DEMENTIA IN SOCIETY
Changing seasons – A year with dementia during COVID Petri Lampinen was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia in 2015, but he refuses to let the difficulties associated with his dementia defeat him. In spite of them, he continues to live an active life, and is a member of Finland’s national dementia working group and of the European Working Group of People with Dementia. In this article, he shares what it has been like for him, living with dementia during the global COVID-19 pandemic. I’ve been thinking for a long time now, about the question of what I would like to write next. I don’t want to repeat the same things in my writings, but I want to try and develop as a writer despite dementia. I think I have been advancing in writing and it gives me great joy. I have also been particularly pleased that my writings have spread widely through the media. A year of many changes A great deal has happened in recent days. Illness has affected our family and loved ones. Inside me came a strong sense for writing and a desire to write about the past year. The past year brought a lot of changes in our lives. My parents are already elderly and the years have brought many problems, as we all will someday have our own problems. However, by our own actions, we can influence this. We can eat healthily, remember to exercise and look for social contacts. My father has been doing so, and at the age of almost 90, he goes shopping independently and lives an active life. He
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By our own actions, we can influence potential health problems. We can eat healthily, remember to exercise and look for social contacts. My father has been doing so, and at the age of almost 90, he goes shopping independently and lives an active life.”
also helps my mother at home. She is almost the same age, and I have been very concerned about how tired he may be as a result of all this. A year ago, I talked with them both, about how they were doing at home, and I persuaded them to get help from home-care services as well. At first, they were strongly against the idea, but now, after a year, they think the decision was very good. Home care visits have made life easier for all of us.
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My mother became more seriously ill and, as a person with dementia myself, I had to help my father a lot. I personally wanted to take responsibility and reciprocate the care I received from him when I was a child.” Immediately after starting home care, my mother became more seriously ill and, as a person with dementia myself, I had to help my father a lot. I personally wanted to take responsibility and reciprocate the care I received from him when I was a child. In this situation, I was able to take advantage of the experience I have through the disease and I knew what services they could apply for. I also took care of my father’s diet and safety. For a few months, I actively took care of their affairs and began to notice how much my fatigue started to affect my cognition. I know how to keep an eye on myself and I asked my loved ones to help. Throughout this process, my wife Nina supported and helped me very much, and without
Petri Lampinen
her we would have been in trouble. In the difficult moments when I felt like crying, her hugs felt good. For someone with dementia, physical contact is very important, as it is for everyone. Also, during this time, I became a grandfather for the second time. Spring Luckily, my mother got better when spring came and there was more light in the day as well with this new season. I treated myself, going outdoors every day into nature and it was good to gather my thoughts there. Many times, being there meant I was able to work on my thoughts and remove stress.
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I treated myself, going outdoors every day into nature and it was good to gather my thoughts there.” Although I thought my living environment was safe to live in, my wife and I didn’t really like it there. For some reason, we caught our neighbours’ negative attention and we were kind of bullied by them and pushed out. However, I will not let things get me down, instead, I look for solutions to overcome the situation. Dementia in Europe 35
