I wonder if people with Dementia
ever really feel sad?
They seem to be in a world all their own
while we sit and watch them fade
from who and what they use to be.
Is it sad because we’re sad?
feeling helpless in our dilemma.
Do people with Dementia really know
the pain you feel
because you can’t reach them and bring them back
to the life you once knew?
The life they helped to create.
A life that is all but lost;
somehow erased never to be experienced again.
Where did it all go?
Their whole life is consumed by the here and now
No thought for the past,
no thought for the future.
and their whole life suddenly becomes your life.
you are now the care-taker
when you once were the child.
Is it cruel
to feel resentment, anger , and shame
when they can’t relate to what use to be
and all you have are memories of what was?
There’s nothing kind about Dementia
for those who have to sit and watch.
The pain is real,
but not for those who suffer with Dementia.
This is heartbreaking and I can’t even imagine the struggle of dementia let alone the struggle of ones who have to endure watching it consume someone they love. Paints a vivid picture of how traumatic it is in suffering with it and knowing what the individual had lost because of it. Thank you for sharing this one. I can feel the layers of emotion as they’re stacked up.
Thank you for your comment. I think so many people don’t know how they are suppose to feel when confronted with family and friends with this disease.
So striking and powerful. The last stanza especially hit home for me. Thank you for sharing this.