Forum helps people with dementia take back control and find hope

ExchangeMorningPost
WATERLOO - People living with early-stage dementia and their partners in care will share advice and tips next month in order to become stronger advocates and more in control of the disease.

A Changing Melody, held in Toronto on Saturday, Nov. 15, is an annual forum, now in its fifth and final year, that focuses on the experiences of those living with dementia. The theme of this year's forum is Joining Forces: Building Supportive Dementia Communities.

The one-day event offers a learning and sharing forum designed specifically by and for persons with early-stage dementia and their partners in care. Key areas covered include discussion and sharing on topics such as living with and transforming grief after diagnosis, living in meaningful ways, and building stronger dementia communities.

"Together we can join forces to amplify the voices of persons with dementia and continue to change the perceptions and misunderstandings of living with dementia," said Sherry Dupuis, director of the Kenneth G. Murray Alzheimer Research and Education Program (MAREP) at the University of Waterloo. "We can and should be working together to create communities that are better able to support....read the whole article