All Episodes
Introducing Call to Mind
In this podcast series, people living with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia record audio diaries and conversations about their lives during the pandemic.
Join your host, Debra Sheets, a nursing professor and researcher with the institute on aging and lifelong health at the University of Victoria. In each episode you'll hear intimate and surprising stories about the challenges and rewards of caregiving, the impacts of isolation, finding joy by living in the present, and staying in love when everything else is changing. We hope this podcast inspires you to make your community a more friendly and supportive place for people with dementia.
Beautiful Morning: Brenda & Dot
Dorothy—or “Dot” as most people call her—was living in long-term care in Victoria when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Her daughter, Brenda, visited every day...until lockdown. Dot had her 100th birthday pretty much alone. After six months of isolation, Dot was declining fast—losing weight and becoming more confused. Brenda wasn’t allowed to visit, so she brought her mom home to live with her. This episode is about the tenderness, love and laughter that fill most of their days, and the emotional challenges Brenda encounters when Dot becomes lost in the 1950s, long before her daughter was born.
Snowstorm: Daphne & Miki
Miki and Daphne’s love story begins more than 42 years ago, with a poker game, a snowstorm and a first kiss under a streetlight. Both their lives and careers have been dedicated to advocacy, social justice and mental health. In this episode, they record conversations about forging families, finding calm, and staying in love throughout the seasons.
Intelligent Noises: Margie & Brian
A few years ago, Brian started playing the banjo-ukelele. He plays it every morning. And on days when he can’t find his words, he loves being able to make “intelligent noises” on his instrument and talk to his dog, Che. He and his wife, Margie, sing in the Voices in Motion choir and when they stopped meeting in person, they joined the chorus online. In this episode, they play music and sing together, and Brian reveals his secrets to finding happiness with dementia. And explains why playing singing in a choir is a better team sport than football.
Every Minute of Respite: Wendy & Judith
Three years ago, Wendy closed her commercial cake business in Vancouver to move back to the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island to live with her mom, Judith, who had also been a baker. In this episode she and her brother make sourdough bread and cinnamon buns to sell locally as they care for their mother and try to help her cope with growing confusion and sadness. This episode is about the need for self-care, digging in the garden, and digging up old family secrets. They unearth the meaning of home and how our memories shape us.
Hosted by Debra Sheets, a nursing professor and researcher with the Institute on Aging and Lifelong Health at the University of Victoria.
Produced by Jenni Schine; sound design by David Parfit; executive producer, Suzanne Ahearne.
This series was made possible by the University of Victoria, with funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, The Alzheimer’s Society of Canada, The Alzheimer’s Society of BC, Michael Smith Health Research BC and and BC SUPPORT Unit Island Centre.