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Creative Journaling from Katherine Dorn Zotovich |
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Caring for an aging loved one can be tremendously stressful under any circumstances . . . However, when the loved one has a dementing disease such as Alzheimer’s, and is unable to participate in decisions regarding their care the stress is far greater. Add to that the stress of raising young children as well as parenting your parent and the stress can be absolutely overwhelming for many of us. Finding accurate and helpful caregiving information is one of the keys to providing adequate care for your loved one as well as helping curb your stress. This information needs to be organized in a manner that makes it available when needed. Keeping a journal helps you do this, and it can also be helpful in maintaining a positive and healthful attitude. JournalKeepers evolved out of my search for a way to provide a resource for children and adults to write about their feelings and to provide a quick, easy to read reference tool for caregivers. Ten years ago when my mother was first diagnosed with Alzheimer’s there was little or no information regarding the disease for families. Most of the material I could put my hands on was very clinical in nature and difficult to understand. I needed something that would address my need to heal my children and myself as well as answer common questions in a concise and simple way. Unfortunately, we soon realized there was little or no material available to help parents and children effectively manage their grief.
As the Alzheimer’s patient progresses through the stages of the disease, they will change dramatically. Change can be very threatening to children because they have no basic understanding of how the disease is effecting their loved one. My Memory Maker is a children’s creative journal designed to provide a place for children to express their personal thoughts and feelings of grief and memories about their older loved one. Young children think symbolically rather than with the use of written words. This book is not a cutesy coloring book, but rather a child’s journal to be used to express themselves through artwork.
My Memory Maker has drawing and writing prompts to help children begin the journaling process. Art is used to stimulate feelings and memories that may be written about or discussed with their parent. Drawing and journaling may be used a springboard for discussions regarding their older loved one and changes taking place within their family. Journaling steps in both books are user-friendly. They are clearly presented so even those folks who don’t think of themselves as writers feel comfortable with the process. Both books contain a scrapbook section to save precious moments.
In many cases, having an older loved with Alzheimer’s
disease can create a change in family dynamics, reassigning of family roles, economic
hardships, demands on adult time and emotional stress for all family members. The changes
taking place can be threatening to children. The My Memory Maker journal provides children a pathway to the expression of their feelings through artwork. This is a process that I call Heart Art. Their artwork can provide opportunities for discussions that can help reveal their misconceptions or concerns. The journal set is comprised of two journals and a box of crayons for the child's use. Making Memories is the parent companion journal to My Memory Maker.
To learn more about Making Memories, Click Here.
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Pictures reveal a child’s thinking.
They provide
opportunities for gentle discussions, which can offer insights into a child’s fears
and misconception and provides opportunities for clarity and reassurance.