By Us for Us© Guides

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The By Us For Us© Guides are a series of guides created by a group of talented and passionate persons with dementia and/or partners in care. The guides are designed to equip persons with dementia with the necessary tools to enhance their well being and manage daily challenges. What makes these guides particularly useful is that they are created By persons with dementia and/or partners in care, For persons with dementia and/or partners in care.

ALL GUIDES ARE NOW AVAILABLE IN PDF

These documents were produced at the University of Waterloo by the Murray Alzheimer Research and Education Program, and are protected by copyright. However, permission is granted to individuals and facilities to reproduce specific pages for their own educational purposes and for not-for-profit purposes only.

Hard copies of each guide are still available and can be ordered online, by downloading an order form and mailing it to MAREP with payment, or calling our offices to place an order. See order forms below.

Food & Mealtime

Food & Mealtime Guide

The Food & Mealtime guide is the second guide in the Partnership Series, which incorporates the experiences of persons with dementia and family partners in care. Food is an essential part of living - it allows the body to function well. Whether shopping or preparing meals, or going to eat a restaurant to eat, it is important to acknowledge and accept changes around food and mealtimes for both persons with dementia and partners in care. This guide will present many strategies for adapting to the many changes associated with living with dementia. Click here for a PDF copy.

Living and Celebrating Life Through Leisure

The purpose of this sixth guide in the Person with Dementia series is to share with you some thoughts on living and celebrating life through leisure. Meaningful leisure can be a wide range of activities from enjoying coffee on your deck first thing in the morning to being involved with other people in a more structured and challenging venue. Activities that leave us feeling good are so important in contributing to a quality of life that everyone strives for. Click here for a PDF copy.

Before/Early Diagnosis

The Before/Early Diagnosis guide is the first guide in the Partner in Care series - a series of helpful resources written BY and FOR partners in care of those living with dementia. This guide is meant to provide help and reassurance for those who are concerned about possible symptoms of dementia and provides knowledge about the diagnosis, assessment and testing process. Click here for a PDF copy.

Living and Transforming With Loss & Grief

loss and grief

The Living and Transforming with Loss & Grief Guide, is the first guide in the Partnership series, which incorporates the experiences of family partners in care as well as persons with dementia. The guide is a practical resource that recognizes the experiences of loss and grief that come with the journey of dementia, and provides useful tips and strategies for acknowledging, experiencing and transforming with loss and grief. This booklet aims to guide readers through the ebbs and flows of loss and grief to a place of acceptance, peace and hope. Click here for a PDF copy.

Memory Workout

The Memory Workout Guide, the first guide in the Person with Dementia series, provides examples of cognitive exercises and it encourages persons with dementia to develop and maintain regular "workouts" for the brain so as to function better while engaging in enjoyable activities. Click here for a PDF copy.

Managing Triggers

The Managing Triggers Guide, the second guide in the Person with Dementia series, is a practical resource that outlines the main triggers experienced by persons living with dementia, and offers solutions for how persons with dementia and their partners in care can manage and alleviate these triggers. The guide focuses on managing triggers associated with social situations, verbal communication, changes of abilities and memory, and managing your environment and negative emotions. Click here for a PDF copy.

Enhancing Communication

The Enhancing Communication Guide, the third guide in the Person with Dementia series, is a comprehensive resource that outlines the main challenges associated with communication as experienced by persons with dementia. It explores communication challenges that can occur with family and friends, in social situations, and when communicating with health care professionals. The guide provides practical solutions for persons with dementia and emphasizes the importance of using a wide range of communication strategies in order to make opinions, feelings and experiences known. It also suggests ways that family partners in care and professionals can enhance communication with persons with dementia. Click here for a PDF copy.

Enhancing Wellness

The Enhancing Wellness Guide, the fourth guide in the Person with Dementia series,focuses on how enhancing physical, psychological and emotional, social and spiritual well-being can help us live our lives to the fullest extent, even after diagnosis of dementia. The guide provides helpfulf tips for eating well, taking care of your body, being physiclly active, staying centred with yourself, staying connected with others, and living in peace, all of which are important in enhancing wellness. Click here for a PDF copy.

Tips & Strategies

Tips and Strategies

The Tips & Strategies Guide, the fifth guide in the Person with Dementia series, is a helpful resource that contains ideas and suggestions for living daily with an illness causing dementia. The guide provides additional memory "workout" ideas, tips for those in the workforce, and general tips and strategies for daily living. Click here for a PDF copy.

As of January 21st, 2009, a nominal fee of $1.50/hard copy book has been applied to the BUFU guides. All of the guides are available through the MAREP website, or by calling 519-888-4567 ext. 36880.

Please use either the printable order form (cheque payment only) or the online order form (credit card payment only) to place your order now.