Hana Vondráčková

I was born in Prague, but all my life I wanted to have my own house with a garden and lots of animals. This dream came true twenty years ago when we moved to the beautiful location of Kostelec nad Labem. 

A lot of water has passed since then. I have become a proud double grandmother, with chickens, ducks, and lots of cats running around my garden. Most of them are foundlings.  They simply arrived, and have been part of our big family ever since.  

Together, my boyfriend and I care for my mom in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's. Besides my four-legged friends, I love music and dancing. However, because of caring for my mom, I am "housebound". Occasionally, I do get a little escape from reality and enjoy a concert in the immediate area, but those are very rare moments.

Caring for a person with this disease is not easy. Especially mentally. I didn't find out my mom was an alcoholic until she moved in.  I was very upset then. I couldn't sleep, I was shaking like a dear dog, and ended up on antidepressants. It made me sick and made me feel like I was behind glass and I certainly didn't consider it the final solution. 

When I was really down, an ad popped up in front of me to start a blog. I didn't hesitate for very long. After all, writing therapy has been around for many years, so why not give it a try? I started writing. The topic presented itself. Alzheimer's. Just for myself at first. I needed to get the pressure off. So I started making fun of this horrible disease. It helped that after a while, I could get off the medication. A little private victory.

My daughter was worried at the time that I'd hurt myself by going off the meds. I had to come out with the truth and confess to the blog. She helped me get it out to people and is actually responsible for me becoming a real blogger in my old age.

I was involved in the Energy of Words project almost from the very beginning. I see it as a chance to deal with some life stages that have not been entirely easy. Maybe my stories will help someone not to make the same mistakes I did. I want to continue writing in the future. It helps me sort through my thoughts, heals my soul, and helps bring closure to painful topics.