What dementia storyline in This Is Us teaches us about FMLA

For six seasons, fans of the NBC hit drama This Is Us tuned in each week to watch the Pearson Family saga unfold and have a collective soul-cleansing cry. The series delicately weaved in and out of multiple time periods to tell the heartwarming story of Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) and Rebecca Pearson (Mandy Moore) and their children, Kevin (Justin Hartley), Kate (Chrissy Metz), and Randall (Sterling K. Brown), or the “Big Three.” For HR pros, employers, and other viewers, the show raised indirect questions about the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Read on to learn a few lessons about the law.

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In season three, This Is Us began incorporating flash-forwards revealing the Pearson family gathered to say their final goodbyes to a mysterious woman referred to only as “her.” For the next few seasons, the series slowly unraveled the mystery surrounding why the family had come together and explained the presence or absence of each member.

Ultimately, viewers learned Rebecca was “her.” In the process, the writers revealed the beloved matriarch was suffering from dementia. During the fifth and sixth seasons, viewers watched her slowly deteriorate until she was no longer recognizable as the enviable wife and mother whom everyone loved fiercely. Instead, in a cruel twist of fate, her memory and sense of independence faded from her grasp more and more with each passing day.