I know this will be the first post anyone sees on this blog so I wanted to share this visual lesson I have given on Lewy Body Dementia. If you can understand this, you might understand Lewy and other dementias a little bit more.
This is also a hands on activity for you to do at home and share with others, so here goes
You need
Bubble wrap
Highlighter
This brain photo *Thank you to Stephen Holland at hiddentalents.org for his permission to use it.
 |
| Brain Functions |
Print this picture out on a regular
sheet of paper
Cut a piece of bubble wrap a little less than the size of the paper
Play with the bubble wrap while you're reading the brain functions, you know you
want to pop some bubbles!
Turn the bubble wrap to the smooth side
and use the highlighter to mark the popped bubbles.
Turn the bubble wrap back over and
place it over the picture.
THIS represents the beta proteins of
Lewy Body Dementia!
Lewy bodies are diffuse, meaning scattered or spread over a wide area, not concentrated.
Notice what areas of the brain are under the
highlighted bubbles.
Now fill the bubbles back up with air.
What do you mean you can't? Just do it!
You see, the bubbles are broken so the
best you can do it try to patch them (meds) or in some cases if the
bubbles air was only transferred you might be able to shift some of
the air of another nearby bubble into the highlighted one. THAT
represents the fluctuations of LBD, seems to decline, now a rebound.
But you realize that over time the air
will eventually seep out and the bubble will no longer be inflated.
Lewy Body dementia is a total body
issue, not just a memory one.
We give meds to alleviate some
symptoms, it's the best we can do.
Even meds for other things might not
have the same effects on their intended issues over time.
We're trying to MAKE a dying brain that
can not, function normally. Sometimes we can force it for a while but
the brain, the mainframe of the body is shutting down totally, the
bubbles continue to pop and as of yet, can not be reversed or repaired.
I hope this visual helps you understand
a little bit more about what is happening to our loved ones.
