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Dementia is a difficult road for those who have to face it. Loved ones who care for a person or parent with the condition face many tricky challenges along the way too, and often find themselves in for a bumpy emotional ride. One woman named Bailey recently shared a video on TikTok of a conversation with her dad Scott, who has dementia and no longer recognizes her as his daughter. In the heartwarming video, Scott expresses that he knows their relationship is somehow significant and important. “I have feelings for you,” Scott says to Bailey. “There are feelings—I know this girl, this lady—she is important to me in my life. So you mean something to me.”
The touching conversation between father and daughter has gone viral, and is reaching people across the world. Instead of interacting with her father from a place of fear and misunderstanding, Bailey offers him her spirit of kindness, compassion, and humor—and her posts reveal, happily, that Scott is protected from potential loneliness and emotional isolation thanks to their close relationship.
It became clear that Scott could no longer live independently in February 2022. Bailey and her sister Paige embraced the task of caring for him, and have shared the role ever since. Bailey is now putting snippets of her journey as Scott's daughter and carer on TikTok, inspiring others with the loving and inclusive way she manages their situation. Through Bailey's up-beat attitude, people are discovering an alternative approach to what can be a daunting and scary condition.
Losing memory, cognitive function, and even the use of language can be frightening, but even more upsetting is the emotional isolation and loneliness that people with various forms of dementia sometimes experience. “What bridges people with and without dementia to each other is the spirit,” says Michael Verde, founder of Memory Bridge, an organization that works to end emotional isolation and loneliness for people with dementia. “What people with dementia most need from us—is us.”
On Instagram, Bailey shares, “I hope to help as many people as I can thru TikTok and I want to change the stigma behind dementia and bring more awareness to my dad’s disease of Wernicke’s Encephalopathy, which is a degenerative brain disorder.” The loving daughter also says she wants to bring awareness to diabetes, which is a disease her mom has and, along with her traumatic brain injury, also needs full-time care-giving.
Bailey is certainly a positive role model for many. One Instagram follower even said the following: “Watching how you are with your parents has taught me something about kindness and grace when having a relationship with my parents despite their demons that strained our relationship through my formidable years. Thanks for changing the world.”
Follow the ups, downs, and moments of humor in Bailey's relationship with her dad Scott on TikTok and Instagram.
A woman named Bailey has shared a heartwarming video on TikTok, where her dad Scott—who has dementia and no longer recognizes her as his daughter—tells her that he is aware that she is important in his life.
@baileyrosek Some days are easier than others.. i miss you dad, but i love you very much, Scott. #dementiaawareness #wernickesencephalopathy #caregiversoftiktok #parentofmyparents ♬ original sound – Bailey
@baileyrosek Breakfast convos with dad this morning #wernickesencephalopathy #oikostriplezero #wernickekorsakoffawareness #caregiversoftiktok #fyp ♬ original sound – Bailey
Bailey's video of her conversation with her dad has gone viral, and the world is showing appreciation for the warmth, compassion, and humor with which she cares for him.
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Watch an example of Bailey's approach to interacting with her dad:
@baileyrosek Dad has been feeling very nostalgic lately and im not complaining! Today we are watching our favorite movie!! #caregiversoftiktok #dementiaawareness #montypythonandtheholygrail #daughterdad ♬ original sound – Bailey
Bailey: TikTok | Instagram
h/t: [InspireMore]
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