T6 - Story

Alzheimer disease
We remember days, moments.
We remember a million feelings, a thousand thoughts ,a hundred faces.
We remember behaviors, fine motor skills.
Memories...defines our personality.

What happens, if you can´t remember?

Alzheimer is a neurodegenerative illness and the most common form of dementia.
It causes problems with thinking, memory and behavior. The majority of the affected people are
65 years old, but it can appear earlier or later. Each person is unique that´s why everyone make their own experiences in alzheimer. The disease is splitted in 7 stages. It´s difficult to know in which step the affected person is because the steps can overlap.
Stage 1: No cognitive disturbances.The illness damages already the brain without showing any symptoms.
Stage 2: Very mild cognitive disturbances. The Affected person forgets words and has difficulty recalling events that happened recently.
Stage 3: Mild cognitive disturbances. Family, Friends and employers note the first difficulties. Recognizable difficulties by the implementation of duties in working-life and social life

Stage 4: Moderate cognitive disturbances No orientation, they are losing track of the day or date, they becoming confused about the surrounding area. Forgetfulness with own, personal past.
Stage 5: Moderate strong cognitive disturbances.There appear Remarkable blackouts.

Some affected persons start to need assistance at everyday activities.
Stage 6: Strong cognitive disturbances. The memory is getting worse. Furthermore a personality change can appear and people need extensive help at everyday activities.
Stage 7: Very strong cognitive disturbances. In this last step the person loses the ability to confide in his or her surrounding area, to take part of a conversation and to control movements.

Story: Will you remember me ?

My Name is Isabel I´m 19 Years old and will I tell you the story of my grandfather’s disease.
He lives in Ibiza, in Never never land house and we always visit him. He loves nature, that´s why he chose to live in this house.

A few years ago my mother and me went to visit him during our holidays. Everything was fine but than the symptoms appeared step by step. First my Grandfather forgot the keys, but we thought it was normal because that also happens to everybody. But then he began forgetting lots of simple things as locking the door, closing the windows but someday he started to forget to take off the hotplate. When he told me his old stories which I had already heard a thousand times, he forgot many parts and always broke up in the middle because he couldn´t remember.
It was conspicuous.
My mum took him to the doctor who couldn´t see anything .
After a while we got a call: he had get lost in the city and couldn´t find the way home. After that happened we took him again to the doctor, Now he had an assumption: Alzheimer.
That changed everything. As he lived alone my mum has now to take care of him, she is always there to control everything. At the beggining, I didn´t see my mum very often and our family was splitted in two parts. When I visited him again he was in a very bad mood and isolated himself from us. He didn´t act normal like I had always known him. He always called for my grandmother and asked me where she was but she had died five years before. Everything happened so fast that the doctor said that he could take medicine but that only delays the illness. My mother was very stressed, therefore my whole family moved to his home. We had to change lot of things at the house because it was very dangerous for him. Now, he cannot live alone anymore. He needs his family and a safety home. Sometimes, he behaves normal but then like a foreign person. He is not himself anymore. He makes so many mistakes and always forgets everything very fast. We can´t stop the illness but we will be there and we will take care of him.

T6 - Interview

T2 - Trisomy21, Down Syndrome_Danny_Eva_Marta

Interview

After Carmela of the death was murdered, the house became in the possession of a young boy, who just left the house of his parents to start a life on his own. The boy just finished his master-degree in economics and found a job at a small accounting firm at the centre of Granada.

His twin brother has down syndrome and lived at that moment still with his parents back in Murcia. But at the age of 24 he started to feel the need to leave his parents and life on it’s own. His parents had the feeling that it still was a little to early for him to leave the home. In fact, for them it would always be too early for him to leave home, they were so afraid... but the idea of independence was persistent on his son's head. So his parents came up with the idea for him to go live with his brother in Granada. If he could live with his brother, his parents would feel a lot safer than if he’d live on his own. Living with his brother for a while would be the perfect first step for him to leave the house and become independent. So it didn’t took long before he decided to go and live with his brother. As his brother worked all day, he decided to start working as a volunteer at the petting zoo.

After living together happily for 2,5 years his brother got married and decided to leave the house to go and live with his wife. He felt really bad for his twin brother because this house was the only thing he had left. After consultation with his wife, they decided to donate the house to his brother with a usage and admistration cession for the Down People organisation in Granada which his brother was part of. In this way his brother was able to keep living in the apartment with overview from the organization. The only agreement that was made was for the organization to be able to use several of his rooms for group activities. The organization became so enthusiastic about the house that they decided to buy the other three houses as well, as soon as the possibility arrived.

So now the organization was the complete owner off the whole building and housed multiple younger people with down-syndrome. At this point the organization asked several younger architects to redesign the house to make it as well “liveable” for the people living there but also useable for the organization to use the space for organising activities for small groups up to +/- 16 people.

T3 - Autism

Autism

Seeing the world from a different angle

Introduction

Autism is a spectrum disorder often referred to as ASD (autism spectrum disorder). This means that even though some traits or habits are the same, will the autism affect each individual different than the other. Because of this are some people with autism able to live relatively independent lives, while others need a lifetime of specialist support.

Each child with an ASD will have their own pattern. Sometimes a child's development is delayed from birth, while other times the child develops normally until they suddenly lose for example social or language skills. Others again will have a normal development until they have enough language to demonstrate some thoughts and preoccupations. For some children can the lack of language be the major symptom, while for others unusual behaviours can be the dominant factor.

In general we can say that people with autism often experience over sensitivity or under sensitivity to things others find normal. This can be sounds, touches, tastes, smells, light or colours. People with autism have described that the world to them is a mass of many people, places and events, and they have trouble to make a sense of it all which can cause them anxiety. They can also have trouble understanding and relating to other people, and to take part in social activities either with friends, family or other people.

Types

As said earlier, autism is a spectrum disorder. According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's) the three main types of Autism spectrum disorder are:

- Asperger's syndrome

- Pervasive developmental disorder

- and Autistic disorder

Symptoms

These are some symptoms of Autism at early age:

6 months - No big smiles or other joyful expressions.

9 months - No back-and-forth sharing of sounds, smiles or other facial expressions.

12 months - No babbling, no back-and-forth gestures (for example pointing, showing, reaching or waving).

16 months - No words being said.

24 months - No meaningful two-word phrases (this does not including imitating or repeating)

Any age - any loss of speech, babbling or social skills.

People with autism often have three main areas of difficulty:

- difficulty with social communication

For example reading another person body language, or understand their facial expressions or tone of voice. It can also be difficult for them to understand jokes and sarcasm.

- difficulty with social interaction

· For example can people with autism have trouble recognising and/or understanding other people's emotions and feelings, and express their own. This makes it difficult for them when socialising with other people. They might appear insensitive because they are not able to recognise what someone else is feeling, and therefore might prefer to spend time alone. They can also sometimes behave inappropriately because it is not always easy for them to express feelings, emotions or needs like other people would. This can make finding friends hard for people with autism since some may want to make friends, but are not able to express their thoughts.

- difficulty with social imagination

· For example it can be hard for autistic people to interpret other people's thoughts, feelings and actions, and to predict what could happen next. They can struggle with understanding the concept of danger. And they can have troubles with engage in imaginative play and activities.

Sources

(http://www.autism.org.uk/about-autism/introduction/what-is-autism.aspx) (http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/autism-spectrum-disorders)

(http://www.autism.org.uk/about-autism/introduction/what-is-autism.aspx)

(http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/autism-spectrum-disorders)

(https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism/learn-signs) (http://www.autism.org.uk/about-autism/introduction/what-is-autism.aspx)

T4 - Story. Childhood schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder often characterized by abnormal social behavior and failure to recognize what is real. Common symptoms include false beliefs, unclear or confused thinking, auditory hallucinations, reduced social engagement and emotional expression, and lack of motivation.

Genetics and early environment, as well as psychological and social processes, appear to be important contributory factors. Some recreational and prescription drugs appear to cause or worsen symptoms. The mainstay of treatment is antipsychotic medication. Counseling, job training and social rehabilitation are also important in treatment. In more serious cases—where there is risk to self or others—involuntary hospitalization may be necessary.

Symptoms begin typically in young adulthood, and about 0.3–0.7% of people are affected during their lifetime.

The disorder is thought to mainly affect the ability to think, but it also usually contributes to chronic problems with behavior and emotion.

People with schizophrenia are likely to have additional conditions, including major depression and anxiety disorders, social problems, such as long-term unemployment, poverty, and homelessness are common. The average life expectancy is ten to twenty five years less than the average life expectancy.

Vera Marschall, Mónica Hidalgo, Sandra Kesselmeier.

T6 - Alzheimer disease - Ege + Aylin + Ángela

Brief Introduction to Alzheimer disease

We remember days, moments.
We remember a million feelings, a thousand thoughts ,a hundred faces.
We remember behaviors, fine motor skills.

Memories...defines our personality.

What happens, if you can´t remember?

Story: Will you remember me ?

Now, he cannot live alone anymore. He needs his family and a safety home. Sometimes, he behaves normal but then like a foreign person. He is not himself anymore. He makes so many mistakes and always forgets everything very fast. We can´t stop the illness but we will be there and we will take care of him.

''Alzheimer´s the cleverest thief, because she not only steals from you,

but she steals the very thing you need to remember what´s been stolen.''

-Jarod Kintz

T5

Journal of an architect:
´
-Today one of the most complex projects of my career has been proposed to me. One day through the door a couple of middle age came into. The first thing that caught my attention was the exhaustion in her eyes. Next to her, an apparently healthy man, but later I realized that he wasn’t what he pretended to be. With this premise, the project begins.

She wanted to move to another house because, the house was increasingly small and devoid of elements that would make life easier for a husband who had a disease that produced a progressive degeneration of mental and motor. The couple looked for a quiet and spacious place. They found it in 40 kilometers north of Seville (37 ° 40'33.4 "N 6 ° 11'15.7" W) with views to the reservoir Minilla A detached house built by architect Emilio Ambasz that met all the requirements they were looking for, but it needed an overhaul that would allow them to face the challenges ahead.

From the current 40 to 48, the husband has undergone an evolution of disease that reaches its final stage passing about 15 years approximately after the first symptoms begin. During their first visit Sandra started to tell me the story of her husband’s disease.

John, the husband, began to have trouble at work. He was increasingly distracted and distant from both his family and his workmates. With the pass of time this situation leads Juan to a depression and this fact made the familiar situation worse. This is compounded by memory loss and a series of involuntary grimaces that were virtually undetectable at first but gradually intensified.
At this point and after several medical tests doctors said that it was unusual Huntington's disease. Moreover they told them that the disease would continue degenerating and it would be a difficult situation for the whole family, including children.

From then until now, John has become worse up to the point that he would suffer frequent and prolonged spasms, cognitive failures and a series of problems.

Every day Sandra had to help Juan in everything, that means, she had to dress him and so on. His speech was getting worse and it had non-sense. He was not able to communicate, watch TV, read or whatever… he couldn’t practice judo, his favorite sport.

This terrible situation and the stressful life that we find in a city like sevilla, lead the family to come to a decision: change the style of life they have had so far.
This ambitious project, is not only about remodeling the house itself for an individual with a particular disease, we have also the intention of rebuild a home that allows the family to have a better life.
Thinking not only in the self-reliance of Juan, also is important to take into account his happiness and the health of the rest of the family.

Diario de un arquitecto:

-Hoy me han propuesto uno de los proyectos más complejos a los que me haya enfrentado, en mi carrera profesional. (Un día) Por la puerta entró una pareja de mediana edad. Lo primero que llamó mi atención fue el agotamiento en los ojos de la mujer. A su lado, había un hombre aparentemente, sano que más tarde descubriría que no era así. Con esta premisa(visita) comenzó este proyecto.

Ella quería cambiar de casa ya que la suya se le estaba quedando cada vez más pequeña y vacía(escasa) de elementos que hiciesen fácil la vida de su marido. Él padecía una enfermedad que le producía una progresiva degeneración psíquica y motriz. La pareja buscaba un lugar apartado, tranquilo y espacioso. Lo encontraron 40 kilómetros al norte de Sevilla (37°40'33.4"N 6°11'15.7"W) con vistas al embalse de Minilla y en cuya finca había toros en libertad. Una vivienda unifamiliar construida por el arquitecto Emilio Ambasz, que reunía todos los requisitos que andaban buscando, pero que necesitaba una remodelación que les permitiera afrontar las dificultades venideras.

Desde los 40 hasta los 48 años actuales, el marido ha sufrido una evolución de la enfermedad, la cual llegará a su etapa final transcurridos 15 años aproximadamente después de que comiencen los primeros síntomas. Durante su primera visita, Sandra comenzó a contarme la historia de la enfermedad que estaba desmembrando la unión familiar.

Juan, que así se llama el marido, comenzó a tener problemas en el trabajo, andaba cada vez más distraído y distante tanto de su familia como de sus compañeros. Con el paso del tiempo esto derivó en una depresión, que lejos de ir a mejor empeoraba cada día y complicaba cada vez más su vida familiar. Esto se agravaba con las pérdidas de memoria y una serie de muecas involuntarias que al principio eran prácticamente indetectables, pero que poco a poco se intensificaron.

Llegado a este punto y tras varias pruebas médicas detectaron que se trataba de la inusual enfermedad de Huntington. Los médicos les informaron de que la enfermedad continuaría degenerando y que deberían afrontar una situación difícil para toda la familia, incluidos sus dos hijos.

Desde ese momento hasta ahora, Juan ha ido empeorando hasta sufrir espasmos cada vez más frecuentes y prolongados, fallos cognitivos y una serie de problemas que dificultan su día a día. Cada jornada comenzaba con Sandra ayudando a Juan a asearse, vestirse y desayunar, continuaba lleno de conversaciones cada vez más complicadas y con un Juan impotente, incapaz de realizar las acciones más cotidianas como pueden ser leer, ver la tele, comer o practicar su deporte favorito, el judo. Esto producía (provocaba) que la relación, ya no solo con Sandra, sino con sus hijos también, comenzase a oxidarse y hacerse cada vez más costosa. Esto, unido al estrés que conlleva vivir en pleno centro de Sevilla, llevó a la familia a tomar la decisión de cambiar radicalmente su estilo de vida.

Y por esto nos hallamos hoy aquí.

Este ambicioso proyecto que tenemos entre manos tiene como objetivo no solo la remodelación de la casa en sí para adaptarla a una persona con una enfermedad concreta, sino para reconstruir una vivienda que permita a los cuatro volver a tener una vida plena. Pensando no solo en la dependencia de Juan, sino en la felicidad y salud del resto de su familia.