Category Archives: Communication

How can anyone work all day around people with Alzheimer’s or dementia?

Posted on December 2, 2019 by Jon Wagner

Are you genuinely curious, or just expressing relief that you don’t have to do this kind of work? If you’re curious, we can tell you what we’ve experienced as volunteer caregivers for friends and family members. We can also describe … Continue reading →

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Talking through Loss and Distress – 27 April 2017 –

Posted on April 2, 2019 by Jon Wagner

When I arrived at A Kinder Light (Leslie’s second memory care residence) Leslie was seated at Lucy, Vern and Ruth’s table for lunch, facing the window and staring outside. Ruth wasn’t there, but Lucy and Vern were. I checked in … Continue reading →

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What can you do if he’s just talking nonsense?

Posted on April 1, 2019 by Jon Wagner

When you say ‘nonsense,’ do you mean vocalizations that are never formed into words, like when we moan or cry out, sigh or smack our lips? Or the fish mouth, cooing and gitchey-gitchey-goo sounds we use with infants and intimate … Continue reading →

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Seeing a Person Think

Posted on February 13, 2019 by Jon Wagner

The image above is a slice from one of several photos I took during a visit with Leslie at her memory care facility. I rarely crop photos to remove information about what I’ve photographed, but I had to cut this … Continue reading →

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Collaborating with Leslie and Lisa

Posted on February 13, 2019 by Jon Wagner

None of the photos or observations presented on this website were made with a research or journalism project in mind, or even a professional interest. They emerged instead through the kind of engaged inquiry someone might undertake while trying to … Continue reading →

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