Reflection Statement
Uploaded by vdg on Nov 24, 2003
Reflection Statement
The process by which the completed Major Work was formulated was a complex and, at times, frustrating one, yet the intriguing, rewarding and educative nature of my progress has resulted in finished product in which I am entirely satisfied. My initial idea was explore the way consumerism is causing children to present their sexuality as an image at younger and younger ages. But I could not get my concerns to manifest themselves without being clichéd.
My current, more successful concept was based upon my own personal experiences. My grandmother suffers from Alzheimer’s disease, and I have often seen the distress and confusion unfamiliar surroundings and people can cause her. Up until now, I have taken her behaviour very much for granted, but as I have matured in my outlook I have been more affected by the raw emotions that flit across her face when she is fearful and bewildered because she cannot remember where she is or why she is there. She has the vulnerability of a little girl at moments like this, and my observations of this made me seek advice concerning the disease.
I have conducted a great deal of research on Alzheimer’s, both through the Internet and library research. I have also spoken to friends and relatives of victims of the disease, and of course, I have continued to observe my grandmother. Many of the things that she says and does have found their way into my story, as have many of her friends and relatives responses to her illness and behaviour. I realized that the conversations and observations of my grandmother are limited due to her inability to provide foresight, I consulted my grandmother’s doctor for more expert advise, and my grandfather for a more personal insight into living with the disease. While I learned a great deal about the disease, I also found that there are still a lot of unknown factors, such as what the victim sees and hears during moments of dementia.
One of the things I wonder about is whether or not elements of the Alzheimer victims’ lives, that they have suppressed, return to torment them when their ability to suppress unpleasant memories lessens, or is lost completely. Their inability to communicate coherently by the time this would occur prevents researchers from...