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Article

English, Polish

ID: <

oai:doaj.org/article:9128f80a157942509977088865ad13f2

>

·

DOI: <

10.12775/PCh.2015.036

>

Where these data come from
Looking for the sense of life in the family of a person experiencing chronic dementia in the brain

Abstract

Old age and dependence, as well as the dramatic struggle of an increasing number of families of people who are seriously ill to take care of them in domestic settings, are too few problems in social sciences. Demographics in both Poland and Europe are forecasting the rise of dementia, and due to their clinical heterogeneity in terms of symptoms and the need to take care at home, they pose a particular challenge for family carers. The family is most often the main actor in dealing with the long-standing dementia of one of its members. The sense of ownership of a close person in the care provided and their emotional departure into a different reality influences the sense of life. This kind of experience leads carers to reflect on their existence and the meaning of their existence. There are existential and spiritual questions, and often the life of the family and individuals as a whole is permanently marked by a close dementia disease. The specific family situation of interaction with a person with cognitive disorders and limited awareness leads to new values being given to care and personal life. These changes in the family system and the world of values will be considered in the light of the new family and social roles in family communities affected by dementia. In philosophy considerations, selected classrooms of existential philosophy and personalism will guide the search for values and meta-values and attempts to understand the meaning of life in view of the experience of dementia in the family. Researchers and practitioners of social sciences, in particular care pedagogy and social work, need further research and practical tools to help find the meaning of life in families affected by the dementia of one of their members and to support family carers in practice.

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