Everything One Young Student Learnt about Love, Care and Dementia from Living in a Nursing Home
At the age of 21, Teun Toebes made the bold choice to live in a nursing home, to dedicate himself to care and a society in which people with dementia remain stimulated in their daily lives. In The Housemates, he disarmingly describes life in the closed ward and the moving conversations that result in friendships. We subject people with dementia to exclusion, loss of identity and the dominance of existing patterns, but life in the nursing home is a part of society, where Teun experiences the very essence of existence. The Housemates is a combination of cheerfulness, imagination and genuine activism – straight from the heart.
BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE BOOK!
The past year has been a rollercoaster pure and simple. I experienced many beautiful, sad and intense moments with my housemates, all of whom I can now call friends. As hard as it was at times, I can definitely say that this has been the most special year in my life so far. So, I couldn’t do other than share my experiences, but especially those of my housemates, with the world, because they deserve it.