Spiritual Caregiving: Soul tips for the journey

Column by Marissa Volpe

 

Recently I facilitated an interfaith training on spirituality and dementia. A spirited group of rabbis, pastors and ministers of care joined together to learn about dementia's effect on one's spiritual self, the warning signs of dementia, and how spiritual caregiving affects those with Alzheimer’s along with the caregivers themselves.

When a person receives a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease a tendency toward planning for legal and medical aspects of a person's life become paramount; at the end of the disease an emphasis on physical needs such as toileting, feeding and bathing are also apparent and yet, what about the spiritual self? How do we care for a soul we may find hard to connect with? What does spiritual care look like as we love someone through the final stages of Alzheimer's disease?

Spiritual Caregivers make a difference by offering:

1. Dignity Emphasizing the dignity of a person means that caregivers pay special attention to personhood -- and by this I am not referring to a person's political, performative or rational abilities, I mean the essence of a person's humanness and relational abilities.
2. Witness/Presence Spiritual caregivers provide key witness to a person's response to diagnosis. This helps those diagnosed make sense of what is happening throughout the process of diagnosis, as living with Alzheimer's disease is often an experience of protracted and ambiguous loss.
3. Affirmation Through continual affirmation that their life is good and worthy of love, spiritual caregivers give a gift twice blessed -- affirming goodness in others and themselves.
4. Closure Assistance in having key emotional conversations with loved ones, whether that be offering or receiving forgiveness, articulating key emotional statements, or saying goodbye to people, places or pets.
5. Resolution Discovering the peace that comes with acceptance of a diagnosis and helping to find hope in a new story of living with Alzheimer’s.

Because Alzheimer's disease may be described as a "relational illness" and not just a neurological one, spiritual caregivers have a special role as they keep the candle of hope and love burning through their ministry of presence. For these caregivers, keeping their own connections to the divine becomes equally important.

If you are interested in learning more, our upcoming Forum on  Spirituality and Dementia will take place on May 19th. Please register below at:

http://act.alz.org/site/Calendar?id=117941&view=Detail

Marissa Volpe works in Diversity and Outreach at the Alzheimer's Association of Colorado. If you would like to learn more about programs and services available through the Colorado Chapter, please visit us at:  www.alz.org/co

[Photo courtesy of Alzheimer's Association]