ABSTRACT
An important thing to remember when reviewing all cases of dementia is that each person will experience their dementia in an entirely unique way. Many factors can help individuals maintain quality of life, including being around people who understand and can support their needs and being in an appropriately adapted environment. There are many ways to live well with dementia. I shall be drawing heavily upon my own work in this field, with an account of the theory of emotion regulation in dementia that has developed from a series of connected studies. The premise behind this corpus of work is that dementia imperils the person’s very existence. It is an existential threat. As such, over time, the mind has developed various mechanisms that act to eliminate this sense of menace from a person’s conscious mind. This, then, is quite a self-indulgent chapter.
