The best way to learn about anyone’s life experience is to hear it in their own words. We’ve collected stories from people in our community who are facing Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia.

Visit ilivewithdementia.ca to read their stories and consider what you can do to help fight the stigma surrounding the disease. Thank you for taking a moment to understand.

Dorothy also wants to help you understand. Follow her blog as she shares the progression of her husband’s diagnosis throughout the month of January. Click here to read the beginning of her story in our January eNews.

Index

Read their Stories – including four Manitobans pictured above
Dorothy’s Blog
January’s Education Sessions
Connie’s Climb
Discover. Explore. Get Involved!
Become Involved in the Community with Minds in Motion®
Help Create Dementia Friendly Communities
Let Us Help You Understand
Tips on How to Live Well with Dementia
Don’t Face this Alone
About the Alzheimer Society
Get Involved
Follow us on Facebook

Read their Stories

Take a moment to learn what it’s like to live with dementia. Below are links to stories of five Manitobans who have come across dementia in some way: two are diagnosed and three are caregivers.

Vanessa
Brad
Nancy
Bruce
Tanis

Click here to read more stories about other Canadians living with dementia.

Join us for January’s Education Sessions

There are many challenges families face when living with dementia. It helps to have an understanding of what you are facing, along with reliable information about the resources available. Below are some upcoming education opportunites happening this January.

TRANSITIONING TO LONG TERM CARE: PLANNING AND PANELLING

When a person with dementia needs full time support, moving to a personal care home may be the next step for you and your family. This presentation covers things to think about when considering a move for a person with dementia including how to access long term care, eligibility and approval, and the panel and placement process.

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 15, 7 – 8:30 pm
Heritage Room at Lindenwood Manor, 475 Lindenwood Dr. E.
Presented by: Nancy Mohr, Educator/Specialist, Long Term Care Access Centre, WRHA

Click here to register online or call 204-943-6622.

LIVING WITH DEMENTIA: FIRST STEPS PART ONE

An education workshop for care partners supporting a person recently diagnosed with dementia. Topics include:

Overview of dementia
Activities to experience what it might be like to have dementia
We’re here for you – the Alzheimer Society

SATURDAY, JANUARY 25, 9 am – 12 pm
River Ridge II Retirement Residence, 2701 Scotia St.
Cost is $10 – Refreshments and resources are included

Click here to register online or call 204-943-6622.

Click here for more upcoming education dates/topics taking place in Winnipeg.
For education opportunites happening across the province, please contact your local office.

Connie’s Climb

Connie is climbing Mount Kilimanjaro on January 20, 2020 to raise funds for the Alzheimer Society in honour of her dad who recently passed away from Alzheimer’s disease.

Her great hope is to help support those who are struggling with the many challenges this disease brings and ALSO fund dementia research to find better treatment options in the near future.

Way to go Connie, we’ll all be rooting for you on January 20!

Click here if you want to donate to Connie’s climb.

Discover. Explore. Get Involved!

Discover. Explore. Get Involved. is an initiative that involves partnering with community organizations. Through these partnerships, people with dementia have opportunities to get out and participate in social and creative activities with their family members and friends.

ART TO INSPIRE
Art to Inspire is a program designed to creatively engage people living with dementia, and their care partners, with visual art. Led by specially trained art educators and artists, Art to Inspire offers six afternoon sessions in the Gallery where participants can enjoy conversations, works of art, and artmaking in a supportive setting. Each session will explore a different theme and engage participants in different ways that celebrate present-moment awareness and meaningful creative expression.

Six week sessions: Alternate Thursdays, 2 – 3:30 pm
January 16 – March 26, 2020
Winnipeg Art Gallery, 300 Memorial Blvd.
Cost: $90 per pair

To register or for further inquiries, email art-educator@wag.ca

Developed in partnership with the Winnipeg Art Gallery, the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba and University of Manitoba College of Rehabilitation Sciences.

NOW AND THEN: A JOURNEY IN TIME
Now and Then: A Journey in Time is a program that encourages people living with early to moderate symptoms of dementia and their care partners to explore the Manitoba Museum’s many collections. During six lively sessions let by a Museum Learning Facilitator, participants explore old memories and create new ones through object handling, multisensory activities and stimulating discussions. Each session highlights one of the Museum’s distinct galleries, from the animals of the Arctic to the far reaches of ancient Egypt, and many more.

6 weekly sessions: Fridays, 2 to 3:30 pm
February 12 – March 18, 2020
Manitoba Museum, 190 Rupert Ave.
Cost: $95 per pair, $90 for Museum member (+GST)

To register online visit the Manitoba Museum website or contact Corinne Antoniuk at cantoniuk@manitobamuseum.ca or 204-988-0671.

Developed in partnership with the Manitoba Museum and the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba. It allows people with dementia and their care partners to try new experiences in a supportive environment.

VIVACE VOICES CHOIR

Vivace Voices is a community choir for people with dementia and their care partners. Learn to sing new and familiar music while making connections with those around you!

12 week sessions: Mondays, 6:30 to 7:30 pm
January 27 – April 13, 2020
Canadian Mennonite University, 600 Shaftesbury Blvd.
Cost: $145 per pair

To register or for further inquiries, contact the Community School of Music at csma@cmu.ca or 204-487-3300 ext 691
No prior choral experience is required. Care partners must attend with person living with dementia.

Developed by Community School of Music and the Arts at Canadian Mennonite University with assistance from the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba.

Become Involved in the Community with Minds in Motion®

MINDS IN MOTION®

Minds in Motion® is a two-hour weekly fitness and social program running for eight weeks. It is designed for people with early to moderate symptoms of dementia to attend with a family member or friend. You and your partner will experience physical activity, games that challenge your brain and opportunities to socialize with others in the group.

Program Details:

Registration takes place at community recreation or seniors resource centres.
Program includes up to 50 minutes of gentle exercises followed by refreshments and 50 minutes activities that stimulate your brain.
Cost per participant pair is $65.

For a list of complete locations and session dates, please visit the Minds in Motion website.

Help Create Dementia Friendly Communities

Our vision is of a community that respects, supports and empowers people with dementia; a community in which people with dementia are socially and culturally valued; a community where people with dementia actively participate in a safe environment.

Click here to learn more about how you can help.

Tips on How to Live Well with Dementia

There are some practical things you can do to help you live as well as possible with dementia.

Keep stimulated, focus on the things you can and want to do, maintain a healthy lifestyle and try not to become isolated.

Click here to learn more about how to live well with dementia.

Don’t Face This Alone – We’re Here to Help

A diagnosis can be challenging for both the person with dementia and their care partners. You are not alone – the Alzheimer Society is here to help. Here are a few of the services we offer to help families face the challenges ahead:

Supportive counselling. To access one of our client staff, call 204-943-6622 in Winnipeg, the Regional Office nearest you or call toll free at 1-800-378-6622. You can also send an email to alzmb@alzheimer.mb.ca. The responding staff member will assist you in a caring, confidential manner.

Education sessions. The journey with dementia poses many challenges. Having an understanding of what you are facing, and reliable information about the types of help available to you, will make a difference. Click here for a list of the Alzheimer Society’s upcoming topics and sessions.

Support groups. Support groups are there for people who want to inform themselves with current information that will help improve quality of life with the disease. It’s a safe environment where you can learn, laugh and help each other through mutual understanding. Click here for support groups for family and friends. Click here for support groups for people with dementia.

Website information about dementia and strategies for caregivers. For a comprehensive list of resources, click here. This page on the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba’s website includes links to a variety of resources, including: topics for further reading; the national Alzheimer Society website; other national and international websites containing dementia-related information.

The Alzheimer Society of Manitoba’s e-Newsletters. These eNewsletters contain information about topics of interest to care providers and those with dementia, current research, upcoming education events and much more. Click here to access links to several back issues of the newsletter. Click here to subscribe so you will never miss an issue.

Care partners are encouraged to access support in ways that work for them. To learn more about care partner support and education provided by the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba, check the programs and services page at www.alzheimer.mb.ca/we-can-help/programs-and-services/

About the Alzheimer Society

Founded 36 years ago, the Alzheimer Society exists so that all Manitobans affected by dementia receive the help they need today and have hope for the future.

As a province-wide organization, the Society seeks to achieve its mission through community awareness; individual, family and professional education; support programs and research funding.

Click here to read more about the Alzheimer Society.

Get Involved with the Alzheimer Society

Whether you volunteer your time or make a donation, we need your support.

Click here to find out how you can help.

Follow Us On Facebook

Join us on Facebook for the most current news, information and resources. If you’re already tuned in on Facebook, please invite your friends.

check out the Alzheimer Awareness Month posts throughout January.
share your personal stories and let others know how your family has been touched by Alzheimer’s disease or another dementia.
encourage your friends to “like” our page.

Click here to “like” us on Facebook now!