Whats In A Word?

I have written about this before but as Alzheimer Society have relaunched Dementia Awareness Week to be now known as Dementia Action Week - I wonder if we need to have a look at other language we use.

I was reading an article the other week about some one who had been diagnosed with Dementia as a child. The language throughout was referring to the fact that the child can no longer remember how to walk, eat and talk - does this truly represent what is happening?

Oxford Dictionary defines the word Forget as 'Fail to remember'

If forgetting means we fail to remember surely this means we should have the ability to know we cant remember?

Dementia does not allow us to have this ability.

My mum doesnt know she has 'forgotten' how to drink, she doesn't know she has 'forgotten' how to eat with cutlery, she doesnt know she has 'forgotten' how to hold a conversation.

If we don't know we have failed to remember does it truly mean we have forgotten?

Instead of forgetting how to walk it should be losing the ability to walk. Someone who has lost a leg doesn't forget how to walk they have lost the ability to walk, why do we not recognise this as being similar?

Instead of forgetting how to use use a fork and knife, Dementia makes us lose the ability to follow through these small tasks which are key to being an independant person.

Instead of forgetting to take a shower daily, Dementia doesnt allow us to be able to realise the need to follow through with this task.

Instead of forgetting to drink regularly , which we know is key to daily living, Dementia stops you from feeling the needs to drink regularly or ask for help to drink - thats even if Dementia has allowed you the ability to continue speaking, or have we forgotten how to do that also?

Hopefully I am making sense in my points above.

I now that the words 'forget' and 'remember' will always be involved when talking about Dementia, but I think it sugar coats some of the more serious ways Dementia effects a person and belittles the diagnosis.

This is why we still find people laugh and crack jokes when someone forgets where they have put their keys, the ultimate phrase 'I better not be getting Dementia' creeps in there ususally.

Yes key signs are people forgetting and getting confused, but as the disease progresses they dont simply 'forget' how to talk, eat, walk, shower, use the toilet and so on - the brain is dying and bit by bit a person loses the ability to function as they did pre diagnosis.

People are dying from Dementia, do we say they just forget how to live?