Thanks Lewy body dementia

Now that I’ve done over 500 blog posts on a blog aimed at alerting people to the horrors of Lewy body dementia, I’d like to give the other side.

Seriously? I’m not trying to make light of it, but I am trying to do what momma always told me: ‘Look for the good in bad situations.’

So, here are 5 things I am thankful for about living with  Lewy body dementia:

LBD has taught me:

1.  Life  is precious and fragile.  Learning that death by disease would most likely take me in fewer years. I don’t care what religious persuasion or belief system one may hold, LBD will kill you — in a painstaking slow way. And that may be all there is, folks. There is no way you can keep your mind from exploring what the future holds. What’s good about that? It forces us to think about our existence, not last year, not last month or not sometime later.  We may believe we are going to Heaven but we don’t know it, can’t prove it, and if it does exist, then there very well could be a Hell.  That said, the disease has given me a stronger belief that God exists Thanks Lewy body dementia.
2. It has given me a reason to live.  Unless someone has a friend or relative with the disease, most – even if they’ve heard of it before — have a very limited understanding of LBD. It needs a press agent and quick. So, while there are a growing number of outlets for providing information, I started blogging. It gave me something to do that had real meaning — even if to a relatively small amount of people. For that I say: Thanks Lewy body dementia.
3. Empathy. It’s like when you buy a new car. Suddenly, you see a multitude of cars just like yours whereas before you hardly noticed them. You’re not so unique anyway. For me that’s what’s happened to those living with dementia. Suddenly, I see them everywhere, shuffling here and about, blank look on face (masking) and perhaps one of the fists are clenched, and the fingers going tap, tap, tap against the palms. Not in fists of rage. It’s given me an empathy I didn’t have before I was hit with LBD. And that feeling spreads so the bonding of the people spreads exponentially. Thanks Lewy body dementia.
4. The brain is an amazing organ. When I was going through hallucinations I couldn’t believe the sophistication of the tricks my brain played on me. Sometimes it felt real-er than real. It gave me a real brain exercise trying to figure how it did that. Thanks Lewy body dementia.
5. They really are talking to someone. The homeless person you see addressing an invisible someone, gesticulating, emphasizing words. I now know what that’s like. The invisible man or woman, really do exist — in his mind. And it’s as real as you or me. (More praise for empathy). Thanks Lewy body dementia.