“… people do not consist of memory alone, People have feelings, imagination, drive, will and moral being.” O. Sacks
People with Alzheimer’s disease continue to need the same things that everyone needs. They need to feel secure and comfortable, remain in contact with old friends and enjoy the same pleasures they enjoyed previously.
People with Alzheimer’s disease need to be treated with dignity often measured in the little things; the help given when eating a meal or getting dressed, or the reminders given when it’s time to go to the toilet.
People with Alzheimer’s disease need to feel safe; being tucked into bed at night by a warm caring person, a supportive arm offered when walking down the hall, all offering the feeling of security.
People with Alzheimer’s disease need routines;meals served at the same time each day, the same person helping them get dressed in the morning, sitting in the same chair watching the rain hit the window pane. the same person greeting them in the morning or giving them the hot coco
in the afternoon.
People with Alzheimer’s’ disease need activities; working in the garden, playing games with old friends, knitting every afternoon around the kitchen table, walks on a fall afternoon.
People with Alzheimer’s need calmness;soft spoken people going about providing care, calming music playing quietly in the background, the absents of loud phones and intercoms, a gentle fire crackling in the fireplace on a cold winters afternoon, a fountain gurgling in the garden
a warm summer day.
Resources:
- Alzheimer Society http://www.alzheimer.ca/english/care/dailyliving-caring.htm
- The Alzheimer Journey, Module 4, Understanding Alzheimer Disease: The ling between brain and behaviour, video and workbook series, the Alzheimer society of Canada, 2002.
Talking to Alzheimer’s: Simple ways to connect when you visit with a family member or friend, Claudia J. Strauss, Hew Harbinger Publications, Inc., 2001, ISBN 1-57224-270-1.
