Tips On Supporting A Loved One With Dementia

This is a guest post by Nisha from the MHA. Thanks to Nisha.

Ways to Support your Loved One with Dementia

A loved one has been diagnosed with dementia from Alzheimer’s Disease or another condition and it has fallen on your shoulders to be their confidant and caregiver. This is not an easy position to be thrust into and can get the better of even the strongest of us. Here’s some ways to support your loved one with dementia and tips on what to do if you cannot care for them all by yourself.

Create a Safe Space

You need to make sure the area where your family member resides is safe both physically and psychologically. Make sure someone can keep an eye on them at all times and try to put photographs or other items that may trigger a positive memory in your loved one. Day-to-day needs like cooking and cleaning should not be left up to your loved one. If you cannot do these things yourself, hire someone to take care of them for you.

Speak Slowly and Have Patience

As the loved one of someone with dementia it can be a trying experience for both of you. You need to learn how to relate your feelings and thoughts in an easier-to-understand manner. This starts with slow, clear speech and simple questions. It is important to remember you are not speaking to a child; rather to someone who has lost part of their mental capacity.

Have a conversation like any other but keep to simple “yes or no” questions when possible and avoid using lots of big words. Identify yourself by name and your relationship to the patient and always address them by name. It’s easier said than done, but never lose your temper when a dementia suffer cannot grasp the simple concepts they once could. It isn’t their fault any more than it’s your fault; they have a condition and they cannot control it. Make sure your interactions are part of the solution, not adding to the problems they face each day.

Revisit Past Successes

When conversing with someone with dementia one of the greatest tools that can be used to improve their quality of life and aid in continued use of the mind is to take a trip back in time to remember past pleasant memories and successes. Dementia often means the affected person will have trouble remembering simple day-to-day things, but helping them use that memory is good for their condition.

Bring up significant events from the patient’s life, like a wedding, a time spent skydiving or other key life event. Get them talking and use the time to bond. Regardless of the current state of a dementia sufferer’s condition, they crave the simple person-to-person interactions that everyone does.

Decide When It’s Time to Seek Help

If you are the primary caregiver for an individual with dementia, a family member for example, there may come a time when you realize you can no longer go it alone. Sadly, dementia always worsens over time and taking care of a sufferer can be a life-consuming activity. There are plenty of care homes in Southampton licensed to provide compassionate and expert care for your loved one. Just because they reside in a live-in facility, still take the time to visit as often as you can. The brain condition can be scary and it is important to constantly remind the sufferer they are cared for and remembered.

Care homes have the medical expertise to spot and treat any other medical conditions you may miss, helping to prolong life and increase the quality of a person’s last days. Good-quality care homes treat the whole person and not just the condition.

This article comes from Nisha representing mha.org.uk – a charity providing care and support

services for older people in Britain, with care homes in Stockport, Southampton, Glasgow, Leeds and many other locations.