By Nishi Pulugurtha
In spite of all the muteness of responses, all the cognition disappearing slowly, she does understand intuitively about comforting presences, about her dear ones. I think, in spite of not being able to recognize me most of the times, I am a familiar presence; my voice and touch comfort her.
By Nishi Pulugurtha
Coming to terms with these and many more behavioural changes is an extremely difficult task. One can just never be prepared for it. It is even more difficult to come to terms with these changes in a parent and loved one. It creates a great deal of stress for the carer who is at a loss at how to deal with the scenario that she/he finds herself/himself in.
By Nishi Pulugurtha
There must be lots she wants to say, she tries making noises and we respond to them as we did to her talk before. The sound of a song elicits a response; she looks in the direction of the sound and moves her head slowly as if in response to it. When she sees a familiar face, she looks on for a moment before smiling a faint smile.
By Nishi Pulugurtha
In what could be a wonderful film that talks about dementia, the problems associated with it, and the troubles that concern a caregiver, Mayurakshi misses the mark. It misses it not in the portrayal of someone in whom dementia is slowly setting it or in the depiction of the changes that become apparent in the person or in the way people around him react to it or in the way people try to find ways and means of dealing with it. It misses the mark in that it does not refer with greater emphasis to the condition clearly and categorically.
By Nishi Pulugurtha
At times, it is very frustrating, but I needed to go on because Amma needed me the most. Everything is upsetting emotionally and mentally. My smiles might be hiding a lot behind them. It is hence very important to take breaks, do things that will help to cope with moments of tension and stress at home.
By Nishi Pulugurtha
A person with Alzheimer’s will slowly withdraw from family and society. Bodily functions are lost over a period of time, including the fact that they forget to eat and swallow. The rate of progression of the disease and the degeneration vary from person to person.
By Nishi Pulugurtha
For someone who earlier did not relish Bengali cuisine as it was not hot (she liked her food to be), she now likes it. She loves dishes that have a little bit of sugar added to it. A vegetable she detested was the pumpkin; it is her favourite now.
By Srirupa Dhar
Suhashini died a year after Abir’s trip to Kolkata. She went peacefully in her sleep one night. Her hands were tightly holding on to the bottom part of her pillow. She clutched as many LEGO figures as she could. Just like those old houses of Bagbazzar that never forgot to protect the people living in them.
By Nishi Pulugurtha
There were times when I walked with my hand across her shoulder. At home, I slept with the house-keys inside my pillow case. I was scared to let them out anywhere else. The house was always kept locked. A door to Amma was just a passage out she look for. When she saw one, she had to use it.
By Nishi Pulugurtha
Today, five-and-a-half years into the disease, Amma has stopped talking. She does not say anything at all. Not a single word, no complaints, nothing. It is difficult to gauge if anything is wrong with her.
