Dementia is Not an Insult

The 2024 Presidential debate and the commentary that followed was discouraging for many reasons. One of the more disturbing aspects of the experience was how casually and heartlessly people lobbed the words "dementia" and "elder abuse" as insults at political opponents.

A person living with dementia is undergoing brain changes. Skills are lost, but their humanity is not. When famous people have experienced dementia in the past, a more productive and educational conversation followed. That's what this episode is all about: knowing more about the experience of dementia and how to support a person whose brain is changing. Dementia is simply brain change; it is not an insult.