Terri Leedom

Play the Game is a deeply compassionate, personal account of author Terri Leedom’s journey as a caregiver to her mother living with dementia. From the earliest signs of the disease to her mother’s final decline, this memoir offers a candid look at the realities of a condition that erodes memory, but never love.

Leedom shares how she learned to play “the game of dementia” one day at a time, following her mother’s lead and finding connection with her mother’s new and ever-changing reality. She showed up each day with good humor and a willingness to meet her mother wherever she was in her mind.

Blending Leedom’s honest storytelling with accounts of others who have faced similar experiences, Play the Game offers guidance for how caregivers can gain access to the mental world of their loved one with patience and empathy, and provides heartfelt insight into establishing new connections. It’s a holistic approach for anyone embarking upon or already navigating this challenging path, including a checklist of common dementia symptoms, practical caregiving suggestions, and self-care tips for desperate times.

My Silly Granny is a heartwarming story of a little girl known as Sweetheart and her dear Granny who has dementia. On a visit, Granny explains to Sweetheart how a few simple acts of kindness can tap into her youthful spirit and help them both navigate the day with love and positivity. Her gentle, innocent voice explains how simple pleasures like laughing and singing can keep her in the present and what it’s like when she begins to lose track of things.

This book was written to provide some insight into how people with dementia behave in hopes of reducing children’s anxiety about their elderly relatives who may sometimes forget important things or act in strange ways.

‍