Tag: Dementia

Dementia is a medical condition that describes a symptom, which damages communication, memory, and thinking skills of a person who suffers from it. In most cases, a person who suffers from dementia has poor judgment or a cognitive problem, confusion with place or time, and has aggressive actions and speech. That is why caregiver services in Chicago make sure that they give their full attention and understanding to their patients who suffer dementia. As a family member of someone who has dementia, you can also learn some strategies to fully learn and understand the situation of your loved one.

 

As with any other kind of circumstances, communication is also the key in dealing with dementia behavior. A good communication skill will likely improve your ability to handle difficult situation and challenging behavior of person who has dementia. To guide you accordingly, here are some of the effective tips for communicating with people suffering dementia.

 

Clearly State Your Message

Since people who have dementia are more likely to be in their 60’s and 70’s, use simple words and sentences as much as possible. Instead of using pronouns, such as he, she, or they, use the names of people or places. To clearly state your message, pitch your voice lower and speak slowly so that you can be fully understood. Moreover, avoid using higher or louder voice if they can’t understand you in the first time.

 

Break Down Activities into a Series of Steps

Just like in using simple words and sentences, giving simple instructions is also an ideal way to encourage your loved one to do what task he or she can do. When encouraging them to do a certain task, break down such task so that they can’t be overwhelmed. By breaking down the activities, you will make such tasks simpler and manageable for them.

Make Sure to Respond with Affection and Reassurance

People who are suffering from dementia are commonly disoriented, have mood swings, anxious, and confused with themselves and the things around them. As much as possible, refrain from telling them that they are wrong. Instead, respond to them with full comfort, support, and reassurance. Body languages, such as holding hands and hugging will definitely be a big help to show your care. Moreover, be patient with them in explaining different things.

 

 

Listen with Your Ears, Eyes, and Heart

One of the essential things that you should have in dealing with people who suffers from dementia is compassion. Sympathy and concern for their sufferings will help you connect with your loved one efficiently. Moreover, good listening skills are also helpful to understand them better. Be patient when they tend to forgot certain words or things.

 

Certainly, we are not born knowing how to communicate clearly with person who has dementia. However, we can learn and improve our communication skills that can help us deal with them and understand their situation. Practice some of the techniques mentioned to be able to interact well with your loved one.  After all, dementia should not be a hindrance in your family bonding.

 

As people get older they face more and more possible complications. You have to make sure that if you have a senior relative, to be aware of the different health problems they could end up facing. Even different caregiver services in Illinois agree that early recognition is critical. There are numerous conditions that could happen, so you have to be knowledgeable enough to distinguish them from one another because only then will you know how to treat these conditions.

Arthritis

This is a common condition anyone above 60 will be at risk of. Arthritis is a condition where the cartilage in the joints are slowly wearing out. This will limit movement and will definitely affect the quality of life, having arthritis will cause them to give up many physical activities. This can happen in any of the joints, from the hips, knees and even the spine. A good alternative for physical activities is swimming, it doesn’t put too much pressure on the joints and is a great way to manage weight. Be sure to watch what they eat so that they don’t gain too much weight that could contribute to the joint pains.

Heart Disease

This is another case of the body just wearing out due to aging. There are a lot of factors that go into whether someone is at risk of heart disease or not. There’s blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol all of which can be tracked back to what you put in your body. Be sure to keep track of your meals and your habits. Excessive alcohol intake and smoking also affects the health of the heart. Last thing is to get daily exercise, make sure your body is active so that your heart is being taken care of.

 

Alzheimer’s Disease

A condition in the mind is one of the hardest to predict and treat. AD is a condition you hope you never have to watch a loved one go through. More than just losing memories and misplacing thoughts, AD can also cause knowledge of certain skills to be lost. This is very frustrating and you can see it in AD patients. Sometimes the frustration will also cause them to change their behavior causing them to become easily irritable. The best course of action, due to safety, is to make sure AD patients are always taken care of.

Diabetes

Diabetes can be a very serious problem if it goes unnoticed and nothing is done. It will attack small blood vessels and nerves that may cause problems with your sight, kidneys and heart. The most important thing to do to make sure this doesn’t happen is get your blood sugar checked. By recognizing early whether you’re at risk or not you can easily adjust your diet and activities to make sure your blood sugar levels are not too high.

Of all these diseases that anyone could face, the best defense is early recognition. Research on ways to identify whether you or anyone you know is at risk so that immediate action could be taken. Conditions can be treated much easier if they’re not in their latter stages, so better known early.