When Jason van Genderen’s father became terminally ill with cancer, Jason started filming their lives so he could create a lasting family legacy. Not long after his father passed away, his Dutch mother Hendrika (who unwittingly became Everybody’s Oma on social media) was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia. Dementia is an umbrella term for more than 100 different diseases that lead to progressive decline in brain function. Symptoms can include memory loss, confusion, repeating oneself in conversation, sensory deficits, communication problems, personality and mood changes, and inability to plan or follow instructions. Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia are the two most common types of dementia, and they often occur together, as they did with Oma and my own father.
Jason, his wife Megan, and their two incredibly empathic young children decide they will all pitch in and look after Oma at home. So began their heartwarming — and simultaneously heartbreaking — adventure with dementia. Last week I was privileged to to attend a preview of their documentary Everybody’s Oma.
I believe this is a significant film on many levels. Firstly, dementia is more common than most people realise. World-wide, someone is diagnosed with dementia every THREE SECONDS, and in Australia alone, 250 people are being diagnosed with dementia every day. Secondly, dementias are a misunderstood group of diseases. Although there is no medical cure to date, a diagnosis of dementia is not an end point, but a starting point. It can be the start of a healthier way of living, and it brings into sharp focus the things that really matter. When we focus on what is strong, not wrong, we can slow progression of the disease and enable a person with dementia to continue contributing to the lives of others. They are still capable of experiencing love and joy, and they teach us one of life’s hardest and most valuable lessons: to appreciate the present moment — the one thing we all share. When our ability to remember and make plans slips away, what remains is the here and now. The here and now is where life happens for all of us.
Dementia also teaches us that ‘hard’ is not synonymous with ‘bad’. When something feels hard, it can reveal our hidden strengths and dormant creativity. The van Genderen family certainly demonstrated ingenuity when COVID reached their shores and robbed Oma of her outings and routines.
During the Q&A after the film, Jason and Megan were asked if, in hindsight, they would do anything differently. They both responded the same way: rather than go it alone in caring for Oma, they would more readily accept assistance from others. Simple things like a friend taking Oma for a walk or playing cards with her, would have given them much-needed respite. All of us can make a positive difference to a family touched by dementia. By raising awareness, the film helps to reduce stigma and start important conversations. It opens on 11th August at cinemas throughout Australia.
Lovely and helpful thank you
I was declared prematurely senile at 19 years of age by a naturopath and chiropractor in about 1970. The practitioner treated me with herbs, tissue salts, chiropractic manipulations and positive thinking. He asked me for one month for every year of the toxemia i had to treate me Naturopathetically and with Chiropractic. Well, after one year, the sign in my irises for senility had disappeared along with the signs for limphatic rosary, calcified spine, ulcerated gut and many more.
As you may have calculated, i am now in the middle of my 70th year of life. My health is not perfect now but i am still learning how to treat myself. Focusing on Natures 7 Doctors is my way of UNDERSTANDING HOW I MAKE MY HEALTH GO WRONG !
In October last year i had a sore throat. The emotion of creativity is registered in the throat as i understand it. I was sick of hearing the conflicting ideas of Covid 19 from different sources, they were inflaming my throat. To remedy this situation i took an additional complete zinc and on the hour a horseradish, garlic and vitamin c for 3 hours. In the afternoon i felt better than i had for many years. This is just one instance of how i used my COMMON SENSE, DID NOT PANIC AND FOLLOWED THROUGH CAREFULLY. It was verry fulfilling to do this after a lifetime of natural health obsurvation.
My sister has been diagnosed with Primary Progressive Aphasia. I love her very much and it’s sad to see her loosing her language and trying so hard to communicate. Only a few years ago she was busy teaching 6 year old children. She was very passionate about literacy. I wish I knew how to help her. I wander if diet could help?