This month, the Catholic Writers’ Guild is touring Matt Estrade’s book, “The Peace with Dementia Rosary: Education, Intentions, Community.” It received an Imprimatur on June 6, 2019. What if your Catholic faith could help guide you on the journey when your family has been impacted by Alzheimer’s disease or another type of dementia?
Summary:
Dementia is a broad term used to describe a group of chronic symptoms that may include memory impairment disrupting everyday life, diminished judgment, inability to plan, challenges with words and communicating, disorientation of time and place, and other symptoms. Dementia can be caused by Alzheimer’s disease, dementia with Lewy bodies, vascular dementia, frontotemporal degeneration, or other irreversible diseases.
In “The Peace with Dementia Rosary”, Matthew walks along your journey of dementia offering education, intentions, and community.
Education presented through each of the 20 mysteries of the Holy Rosary, features important lessons to improve the quality of life for persons living with dementia and their care artners. Intentions found in the book will focus your prayers on specific moments and challenges during the journey of dementia. The companion website www.dementiarosary.com has a dementia prayer wall, where visitors can post prayer requests, as well as pray for others’ requests. Community is created when we pray for each other and when we create in-person and online support groups. Imagine having a Peace with Dementia Rosary group at your church parish.
Excerpt:
It can be frightening to take the first step of seeing your primary care physician when you suspect that you or a loved one may be having memory or other cognitive (brain) changes. After all, what if the doctor finds something wrong? Will my car keys be taken away? Will I have to stop working or doing other activities? These are valid concerns, but all activities do not cease with a diagnosis. Laboratory and cognitive tests can rule out dementia if the symptoms are attributed to an infection, vitamin deficiency, depression, thyroid condition, poor sleep, or other conditions. If Alzheimer’s disease or another type of dementia is suspected, this diagnosis, while troubling, could allow the whole family to plan ahead for future services and transitions. Medical professionals may also be impacted with regard to diagnoses. Sometimes doctors, as experienced as they may be, face challenges and discomfort in giving a diagnosis. However, avoiding a diagnosis can present hazards if not addressed.
Our Lady of the Annunciation, We pray that we have the courage to seek medical advice even when we do not want to think about the possibility of dementia. We pray that care partners can persuade our loved one to attend the medical appointment and that we have strength if there is news we do not wish to hear. We also keep doctors and other medical professionals in our intentions that they communicate a diagnosis with courage, clarity, and sensitivity.
Website: https://dementiarosary.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DementiaRosary
Twitter: twitter.com/mestrade
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dementiarosary/channel/
Bio:
Matthew “Matt” Estrade, MA, MBA is a gerontologist in the Greater New Orleans area, residing in the Mary, Queen of Peace Church Parish in Mandeville, Louisiana, where he is a member of the Health Ministry Team. His grandfather had probable Wernicke-Korsakoff type dementia in the late 1990s. Matthew has dedicated his career to helping families who are experiencing dementia find hope and peace on this challenging journey through education, coaching, and consulting.
Locally, Matthew facilitates a weekly care partner support group for the Council on Aging in St. Tammany Parish through his training and consulting practice Care Partner Mentoring, LLC. He lives in Covington, Louisiana with his wife and three children. Matt volunteers as a Boy Scout leader at Our Lady of the Lake Roman Catholic School, where he is also in the Knights of Columbus. He earned his Eagle Scout award in 1992.
Buy Link:
https://dementiarosary.com/
Tweet:
What if your Catholic faith could help guide you on the journey when your family has been impacted by Alzheimer’s disease or another type of dementia? Check out “The Peace with Dementia Rosary: Education, Intentions, Community” at www.DementiaRosary.com to learn how.
Michael Fraley
Michael Fraley has been editing and posting the CWG Book Blast since 2016. He's adapted the Arthurian portion of Geoffrey of Monmouth's “Histories of the Kings of Britain” to the comic page, has worked in book illustration, graphic design, and has also served as a newspaper columnist. In 2019 the story of his conversion to Catholicism was told in Nancy Ward's book Sharing Your Catholic Faith Story. His primary area of study is in the Jewish roots of the Church, with an emphasis on the Gospel of Matthew and the Epistle of James. He holds a MA in theology from St. Joseph's College of Maine and a BFA in fine art from Indiana University. He can be reached at michael@michaelfraley.com