Into The Mist
Journey Into Dementia
by
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The baby boomers are coming into the aging population. With the aging of the most populous “named” generation comes a health dilemma reported to be of possible epidemic proportions in the next dozen years—namely dementia. I invite you into my personal journey into the deep murky maze of walking through the mists of dementia with my beloved spouse. Follow along with me through the heartache of helplessly watching my husband lose his once hilarious personality and quicksilver memory, while slowly fading into a mist where I could not follow. Experience my wobbly and inadequate faith as God slowly urged me into a surrendered trust even as He led me through long dark passageways of blank discouragement and no-water deserts, finally leading me out into a wide, deep sea of His love, care and compassion. This is a story of growing faith; a story of triumph over failure; a story of God’s strength in place of weakness. In the coming years, many books will offer practical help in maneuvering through the disease of dementia. Into the Mist, however, offers a blow-by-blow experience through the excruciating emotional devastation of lives laid waste by the disease. As I learned from hard experience, practical help is necessary; spiritual guidance is essential. How to handle the guilt of failing at caretaking? What to do as you fall helplessly into old memories, or become angry at the person who can no longer control their behavior? Where is God in all of it? What is He planning to unearth in the deep recesses of a broken heart? I sought for just such a book in vain; thus I wrote this story to offer practical yes, but more importantly, spiritual and emotional healing for the caretaker who is facing this new journey. It is my prayer that as you reach for this book, you will soon find the wide, deep, strong arms of Jesus carrying you along through your own journey of trust in the darkness.
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About the Book
This personal, intimate journey weaves the theme and experience of walking through the maze, confusion and intense emotional pain of watching someone you love disappearing into a mist of dementia. Kathleen examines the emotional, physical and spiritual battle that rages while juggling the very practical and mundane duties of facing a health crisis. Added to this, for a believer in Jesus Christ, are the throes of faith-challenging issues which inevitably surface. This book probes the devastation of watching her strong, loving and very funny husband morph into a diminished soul, whose personality has disappeared, but who insists that he is fine, leaving her to deal with the myriads of broken pieces of their lives and the ongoing grieving process which has no end in sight.. Told in a journalistic style, with writings from personal journals kept over a period of four years, Kathy relates all of the ins and outs, the ups and downs, of wading through crucial decisions—both financial and health, as well as emotional decisions to trust God, who at times seems an unfamiliar friend. It follows this faith journey through to the end result which is that no matter where God may take our lives, and no matter how the story ends, He is enough and He can be trusted and He does have a plan in mind, regardless of how murky that plan might appear in the process. Kathleen invites us into the journey through this process and leaves us with overcoming victory in Christ.
About the Author
KATHLEEN BEARD is an author, speaker and teacher of Bible studies. She has taught women's Bible studies since 1993. Her public speaking engagements have carried her to many parts of the US and Honduras for retreats and conferences. As a former Chaplain with Marketplace Ministries, she ministered to staff at care centers in the Prescott, AZ area. In 2009, she was involved for a short time with Joshua Fund Ministries, a ministry to Israel, and she has traveled to Israel twice. Kathy's passion is to see women walking in complete freedom in Jesus Christ which has led her into discipleship ministry with Abiding Life Ministries International and Freedom In Christ Ministries International. Her love for missions has taken her to lead the annual Women's Conference in Honduras since 2009. Married to John for 23 years, she cared for him during the last four years of his life as he suffered with dementia, and she has written this book which tells in journalistic style of the daily caretaking struggles as well as leading her into a deeper walk with Jesus Christ. She has two grown sons and is the happy grandmother of 5 grandchildren. Kathy loves the Lord and loves His people; she is available for speaking to women's conferences and ministries. Contact Kathleen at kathleenbeard@intothemistbook.com and visit her website and blog at www.intothemistbook.com