vascular dementia Archives » Kitt O’Malley

Shedding a Few Tears

Nov 13, 2016

in Acceptance, Caregiving, Dementia, Family, Grief, Mental Health, Self care, Stroke

It’s been a year. It’s been a year since I noticed that my mother hadn’t taken her turn in Words with Friends. It’s been a year since my mother was verbal. It’s been a year since she could use language. Her passion was words. She spent her days playing word games. She was proud that she…

Flight Back Home

Jul 15, 2016

in Caregiving, Dementia, Family, Grief, Involuntary Hospitalization, Medication, Mental Illness, Stroke, Writing

Friday, July 15th Last Saturday, the day after we returned from Oregon, my mother was psychiatrically hospitalized for the third time since her stroke last November. Yesterday morning, I met with the treatment team at her psychiatric hospital. They do not think she needs long-term psychiatric placement. They believe her memory care community is the best…

I'm a Good Daughter, I Promise

May 30, 2016

in Alcoholism, Bipolar Disorder, Caregiving, Dementia, Family, Stroke

Okay. I pulled into a parking lot to adjust the camera. I like driving with the windows open. So we’re going to get a lot of, we’re going to get a lot of noise. I guess I could close the windows, but I love the windows open. I close them when I’m with my son…

Anxious about Dementia

Apr 11, 2016

in Alcoholism, Dementia, Family

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjf4kNp9TRU] So here I am, in my car, which is pretty hot. Probably have to open the windows to let in some air. Just going to make it hard for anything to be heard. Oh, oh, that feels good. Okay. I’m on my way to the Alzheimer’s Association of Orange County, or whatever it’s…

I Am Not Ashamed

Mar 30, 2016

in Alcoholism, Bipolar Disorder, Caregiving, Dementia, Family, Mental Illness, Stigma

I am not ashamed that I live with bipolar disorder, a mental illness, a brain disorder. I am not ashamed that I take psychotropic medication. I am not ashamed that my parents are struggling as they age, as their brains and bodies fail them. There is no shame in that. There is no need to…

Vascular Dementia and Psychosis

Mar 29, 2016

in Caregiving, Dementia, Family, Health, Mental Health

My husband, son & I are visiting my sister, her family, and the in-laws (my sister and I married brothers) in Oregon. Beautiful outside. We can see Mt. St. Helens peaking out in the distance, but it doesn’t really show up in this photo. Trying to focus on nature’s beauty to give my mind and…

Tag: vascular dementia