Jemi Frazier Dancing with Dementia
Jemi Frazier
Dancing with Dementia

DANCING WITH DEMENTIA
Dementia and Alzheimer’s touch the lives of millions around the world, but so much is still unknown.
As first-generation Canadians, we didn’t recognize the early warning signs. We didn’t know the differences between regular aging and the early stages of dementia. We’ve made mistakes but we’ve learned a lot.
DANCING WITH DEMENTIA will help you:
•Identify those early warning signs
•Use visuals to improve communication
•Choose your words wisely
•Redirect and reassure
•Stay calm and cope with your own emotions
•Consider nursing home options
•Improve caregiver self-care
We’ve learned to dance the early steps of this disease with our love and laughter intact. If you are looking for help recognizing early signposts along with practical ways to cope with early Dementia and Alzheimer’s, this book is for you.
Jemi Frazier Dancing with Dementia

Top Ten Reasons to Dance With Dementia
At first glance, Dancing With Dementia may seem an odd title. Dementia is a cruel disease, so why are we dancing?
Dance:
- to move one’s body rhythmically usually to music
- the art of dancing
(Thanks to Merriam-Webster for the definition)
10. Mom (Lizzie in the book) has always loved to dance
9. There are several incidents of Lizzie dancing in the book
8. Lizzie loves music in all its varieties. Her recent favourites include Adele, One Direction, Ed Sheeran. She has loved Bohemian Rhapsody since the 70s. And she adores classical music. Eclectic tastes! When any music is playing, Lizzie is moving to it
7. Lizzie met her husband Philip because of her love of dance. He was a piano player and she loved his music and she loved to dance while he played
6. Those early stages of dementia have required us to learn to dance that fine line between helping and taking over
5. Before she moved into a nursing home, we learned to dance around her need to feel independent with our need for her to be safe
4. We’ve learned to dance around memory lapses, reminding her and Philip (when he was alive) about dates and time of appointments. We took over administration of medication
3. We’ve learned to dance with dementia by using Lizzie’s love of music and dance to help her combat the effects of the disease. When she sings and moves to the music, she is happier, more alert and grounded
2. We’ve learned to dance around questions we know will hurt Lizzie.
Where is your dad? (He died more than 20 years ago)
Where is Philip? (Also passed away)
Why didn’t anyone tell me they died? (We did)
1. It’s important for us to focus on the positives. Sometimes it feels as if there aren’t many with dementia. But, there are. Lizzie still loves music, still loves to dance. And we’ll continue to dance right along with her.
So there you go! Ten reasons why we will continue to dance with dementia.
Jemi Frazier Dancing with Dementia


Recognizing and Coping with the Early Stages of Dementia Blog Tour through MC Book Tours today.
by Jemi Fraser ◊ Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir
◊ Publisher: Just Jemi Books
◊ eBooks
◊ ISBN-13: 978-1-9991258-1-3
•Identify those early warning signs
•Use visuals to improve communication
•Choose your words wisely
•Redirect and reassure
•Stay calm and cope with your own emotions
•Consider nursing home options
•Improve caregiver self-care
DANCING WITH DEMENTIA buy links:
Amazon.com Amazon.ca Apple Books Barnes & Noble Kobo

contemporary romance to suspense and flash fiction. Years as a teacher have
taught Jemi that life is short and that happy endings are a must.

April 17, 2020 @ 02:23
It’s good to know this resource is available. I love that the title destigmatizes, and the overview sounds great.
April 4, 2020 @ 16:52
Independence is so very important.
Congrats again to Jemi!
April 4, 2020 @ 15:32
What a wonderful book for exactly certain people. I love that it sounds happy and uplifting.
April 3, 2020 @ 11:37
Juneta – thanks SO much for hosting Dancing With Dementia, today!! I appreciate your support!
April 3, 2020 @ 10:32
Jemi, I love that you associated the story with dance. Dancing makes us happy and we need to be able to see happiness through all the pain.
Juneta, thank you so much for being a part of Jemi’s tour and sharing this inspiring story with your readers.
April 3, 2020 @ 11:36
We do! Finding those small moments of happiness and those connections is so important!!
April 3, 2020 @ 10:16
At least your mother can still enjoy herself dancing. I think by the time my aunt went into a care facility, she was in total repeat mode and didn’t remember anything.
April 3, 2020 @ 11:35
That makes me so sad! Even now that mom’s in a wheelchair (which she doesn’t realize), she loves to dance!
April 3, 2020 @ 09:09
A lot of verbal dancing as well as real dancing. That must be hard to hear her ask about her husband and your father over and over.
April 3, 2020 @ 09:26
Exactly! It is tough! Thankfully all of her questions/obsessions come and go and she changes it up after a while!
April 3, 2020 @ 07:42
Hi,
I agree with the dancing steps for dementia mentioned here. Sometimes that is all that you can do.
The book was a very good read.
Shalom aleichem,
Pat Garcia
April 3, 2020 @ 09:25
Thank you, Pat! Mom loves music and dancing (as you now know!) and I like that the title honours her 🙂