Tag Archives: communication

Does dementia increase a person’s risk of getting Coronavirus?

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Elderly woman looking sad out the window.Although dementia in itself doesn’t increase one’s risk, there are other factors that might contribute to a person’s increased risk.

Does the patient have any underlying conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, auto-immune disease, lung diseases including asthma and COPD, cancer? All of these increase risk of serious symptoms associated with the COVID-19 virus.

If a person with dementia is living at home, s/he may be at increased risk if they forget to wash their hands or socially distance. And, of course, as we are all well aware of, patients in care  facilities are at higher risk simply for the fact they are communally living together. Caregivers come in and out of the facility, go to their homes, and may be interact with others. See Should you move a family member back home from a care facility?

What can you do?

  • If your loved one is living at home and can still read, place sticky notes around the house  (refrigerator, bathroom, kitchen sink) in appropriate places to remind him/her to wash their hands.
  • Call often to check in. Use Zoom or Skype, Facetime, if the person can manage technology. Amazon’s new Portal, which is like a large iPad that is kept plugged in, is an easy device. Check it out: It’s a smart, hands-free video calling device with Alexa built-in.
  • Make sure your loved one has adequate food. If s/he can still prepare meals, drop off their groceries. If they have trouble in the kitchen, bring home-cooked meals or make arrangements with an organization such as Meals on Wheels that can deliver foods.
  • If you have to go inside the person’s home, make sure you have on a mask and gloves, and maintain physical distance as much as possible.
  • A person with dementia is probably not keeping a clean, tidy home, which is important to health and wellness. Try to clean around the person. Have him or her sit in front of the TV or at the kitchen table, while you vacuum and clean the bathroom. Then move him/her to another room in order to clean the kitchen.
  • The main thing is to stay in daily contact. Have the grandkids write notes and draw pictures to send in the mail. If you live in the same town, visit from the lawn and have your loved one sit on the front or back porch.
  • Set up a daily schedule for your loved one. Keep it posted on the fridge. For example: 8:00–wake up, toilet, brush teeth, shower. 8:30 Take meds, eat breakfast. 9:30 Do fitness routine, etc. Do 10 sit-to-stands while watching TV. Walk through the house for 10 minutes a couple times a day.
  • It’s important to protect our loved ones physically but to engage them socially to prevent loneliness and to keep them mentally stimulated. Here’s a great way for seniors whose dementia is minimal.

Well Connected (formerly called Senior Center Without Walls), is a telephone-based national program that offers free weekly activities, education, friendly conversation, classes, support groups, and presentations to individuals 60 years or older anywhere in the United States for English and Spanish speakers. There are activities occurring throughout the day, every day 10:00 am-8:00 pm, Mountain Time, depending on the day. Sessions run between 30 minutes to one hour.

Play a game, write a poem, go on a virtual tour, meditate, share a gratitude, get support, and most importantly, connect and engage with others every day. Well Connected is a community consisting of participants, staff, facilitators, presenters, and other volunteers who care about each other and who value being connected. All groups are accessible by phone and many are accessible online.

Well Connected offers 75 different programs. People can join a particular group, call in the same time each week, hear the same voices on a regular basis and make friends. This has a positive impact on their emotional and physical life. “The gratitude activity, which is offered twice a day, is especially popular and well attended,” says Wade, Social Call director (see below). “Participants share something they are grateful for. This allows for an increase in social connectedness. We also have fun and intellectual programs that help individuals feel valued, stimulated and engaged, and sometimes we invite presenters from the outside in.”

Wade pointed out that Well Connected, is not just for people with mobility concerns. We get folks who are active, people who are married and individuals in a co-housing situation. Anyone can feel lonely, she says. “We take a survey every year and the results indicate that 85% of our participants feel more intellectually stimulated and  socially connected. And on a daily basis, we get calls of gratitude from participants who say, ‘this program saved my live,’” says Wade.

Well Connected also offers a program called Social Call, in which volunteers call participants for a weekly phone visit. For more information, email coviaconnections@covia.org or call 877-797-7299.

Well Connected is an award-winning program of Covia, formerly called Episcopal Senior Communities. For more information: To register call 1-877-797-7299,  https://covia.org/services/well-connected/

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Barbra Cohn cared for her husband Morris for 10 years. He passed away from younger-onset Alzheimer’s disease in 2010. Afterward, she was compelled to write “Calmer Waters: The Caregiver’s Journey Through Alzheimer’s & Dementia”—Winner of the 2018 Book Excellence Award in Self-Help—in order to help other caregivers feel healthier and happier, have more energy, sleep better, feel more confident, deal with feelings of guilt and grief, and to ultimately experience inner peace. “Calmer Waters” is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Boulder Book Store, Tattered Cover Book Store,  Indie Bound.org, and many other fine independent bookstores, as well as public libraries.

What if your dementia patient becomes abusive, aggressive or violent?

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Angry, enraged senior woman yelling at a landline office phone, unhappy with customer service provided by the agent on the other side, giving off steam and smokeMy husband Morris was a gentle man. But occasionally, if things didn’t go his way, he would get nasty. Once Alzheimer’s took his brain hostage, he exhibited a darker side. But only when he was frustrated or confused.

Morris spent the last two years of his life in a memory care home. He was popular among the staff because he liked to goof around. When he walked the halls listening to music on his Walkman, he’d have a smile on his face and swagger to the rhythm. But if another resident got in his way, watch out. If it was crowded in the dining room and someone accidentally bumped him, he’d swing his arm out to shoo that person away. When one of his neighbors walked into Morris’s room mistaking it for his own, the two got into a rumble on the bed and fought like school boys. After this happened a couple more times, the neighbor was moved to the opposite side of the facility.

When Morris hit a resident in the dining room, the on-call physician prescribed a depressant to “calm him down.” Morris reacted to the drug by transforming into a zombie who slumped in his chair and slept too many hours during the day. I insisted that he get off the drug and Morris returned to his mostly cheerful self.

I once had a next door neighbor whose wife had Alzheimer’s. She threatened to kill her husband with a knife and then went on to slash a painting hanging in their living room. Was she or Morris responsible for their actions? No. A person with dementia is not responsible for acts of violence because as the disease progresses, neurons in the cortex that are responsible for language, reasoning and social behavior are destroyed. This leads to some Alzheimer’s patients engaging in aggressive or violent behavior such as biting, kicking, spitting, slapping, punching, and/or using foul language.

Research from the National Institutes of Health indicates that up to 96 percent of patients with dementia who were studied over a 10-year-period exhibited aggressive behavior at one time or other. In 2011, CNN Health reported that 5 to 10 percent of Alzheimer’s patients exhibit violent behavior at some point during the course of the disease.

There is usually a reason for aggressive behavior.

What to watch out for

  • Urinary tract infection
  • Pain or stress
  • Loneliness, depression
  • Too much noise or stimulation
  • Boredom
  • Constipation
  • Soiled diaper or underwear
  • Uncomfortable room temperature
  • Physical discomfort (stomach ache, etc)
  • Confusion
  • Anger about loss of freedom (to drive, living independently)
  • Drug reaction or contra-indication
  • Resistance against being told what to do such as bathing
  • Sudden change in routine, environment or caregiver
  • Communication problems
  • Hunger or not liking the food
  • Dehydration

What to do

  1. If your life or the life of the person you care for is in danger, get help immediately!
  2. The Alzheimer’s Association has a 24-hour helpline at 800-272-3900.
  3. Rule out UTIs, pain, discomfort, etc.
  4. Use an essential oil to help calm the person down. When my husband got agitated I’d put a few drops of oil on a cotton pad inside a diffuser and plug it into the wall. He usually calmed down immediately.  The following oils can be used in a diffuser, or put in a bath or fragrance free moisturizer. They can also be sprayed on a pillow or handkerchief. Citrus oils are generally refreshing and uplifting for the mind and emotions, relieve stress and anxiety, and are useful for odor management and appetite support. Consider: bergamot, grapefruit, lemon, and orange. Floral oils are often used as a personal fragrance and are useful to relieve anxiety, depression, and irritability. These oils are useful as an inhaler, in a body lotion, and for the bath. Consider: clary sage, geranium, lavender, rose, and ylang ylang. Tree oils are revitalizing with immune boosting properties, ease respiratory congestion, and are supportive to breathing ease. They are useful for pain relief, skin infections, and odor management, and can relieve nervous exhaustion and depression. Consider: eucalyptus (Eucalytpus citriodora or globulus), pine needle, sandalwood, or Tea Tree.
  5. Reassure your patient by speaking gently and calmly.
  6. Play calming music, i.e. Mozart
  7. Try to distract the person with a TV show, favorite snack (ice cream almost always works), or a walk outside.
  8. Maintain a regular routine.
  9. Make sure the lighting is suitable in the home or facility.
  10. Help the person to maintain as much dignity and independence as possible.
  11. Make sure the person is eating a nutritious low-sugar, low-salt diet, with no or very limited amounts of alcohol and caffeine.

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Barbra Cohn cared for her husband Morris for 10 years. He passed away from younger-onset Alzheimer’s disease in 2010. Afterward, she was compelled to write “Calmer Waters: The Caregiver’s Journey Through Alzheimer’s & Dementia”–winner of the 2018 Book Excellence Award in self-help– in order to help other caregivers feel healthier and happier, have more energy, sleep better, feel more confident, deal with feelings of guilt and grief, and to ultimately experience inner peace. “Calmer Waters” is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Boulder Book Store, Tattered Cover Book Store,  Indie Bound.org, and many other fine independent bookstores, as well as public libraries.

The 20 most important things to consider when looking for a memory care home

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seniorenheim 6The day I moved my husband into a memory care home was the second worst day of my life. The worst day was the day he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. And both of those days were worse than the day he died.

After the diagnosis, I didn’t waste any time getting our finances sorted out, talking to an elder attorney about options, and learning about Medicare benefits. I did, however, wait a year before I contacted that Alzheimer’s Association. That was a mistake because this amazing association offers so much good information and support. So do yourself a favor and contact your local chapter and take advantage of all the free classes and support groups they offer.

After several years of caring for my husband at home, and downsizing to a more manageable home, I was advised to start looking for a memory care home in case an emergency situation arose.  I wanted to keep my husband at home as long as possible. But things happen, and in my case, I received a serious diagnosis. My doctor said that I needed to take care of myself and I listened to him. I got recommendations about a few homes in my town, found one I liked, and put my husband on the waiting list.

Many facilities will allow you to get on a waiting list. When your name gets to the top, you might have the option to refuse because you are not ready. In this case, you can move down the list but still have priority over someone who is recently added. Ask about this option.

The home where my husband lived for two years provided good care, but did not live up to the promise of caring for him until the end of his life. In fact, the last month of his life included several moves. After being discharged from the hospital, Morris was sent to a rehab center in a nursing home. It was not a good situation. The food was horrible, and the care was sorely inadequate. After two weeks, I begged the original home to take him back. They agreed to only if I hired additional one-on-one care. I did, but the cost was prohibitive. I moved him again after finding a wonderful end-stage Alzheimer’s unit down the hall from a hospice center. Morris received excellent compassionate care there the last two weeks of his life.

Here’s list of 20 things to look for and ask in your search for a memory care home:

  1. Look at your state’s Public Health and Environment website to see a facility’s number of beds, complaints, medical director, ombudsman’s phone number, and whether the home is Medicare and/or Medicaid certified. Here you can discover things like mishandling of narcotics (oxycodone), and theft of residents’ belongings, etc.
  2. What is the staff to patient ratio? During the day? At night?
  3. Is there a RN (registered nurse) always on the premises? Is a doctor always on call?
  4. How often does a medical doctor visit the facility?
  5. What level of care does the home provide? Can your loved one stay there until the end of his/her life? What if your loved one becomes non-ambulatory?
  6. Are three meals a day provided? What about special diets such as kosher, vegetarian, low-salt?
  7. What type of training has the staff received?
  8. What is the staff turn-over rate?
  9. What is the monthly rate for housing and care? What services does that rate include?
  10. Are rooms private or semi-private? How do prices vary for each?
  11. Is housekeeping and laundry provided? How often?
  12. What programs are offered? Social, educational, outings, exercise?
  13. How secure is the unit? Are residents locked in? Is there any chance a resident can leave and wander? Has this ever happened?
  14. What happens if the resident becomes aggressive or violent? Is he or she drugged? Given a warning that he or she must move out?
  15. What is the chain of communication for letting family members know what is going on with a loved one?
  16. What is the discharge policy?
  17. Are pets allowed?
  18. Are visiting hours limited or open?
  19. What is the protocol for a medical emergency?
  20. Visit the facility and look around. Are the staff appropriately dressed? Are they warm and friendly? Is the environment pleasing and clean? Does the executive director address residents by their name? Would you be comfortable having your loved one live there, and would you be comfortable spending many hours there?

No one ever wants to live in a nursing home or assisted living facility. But when your loved one needs more care than you can provide, is a danger to him or herself, or you, the caregiver, need to take care of yourself, a memory care home can provide a warm and loving option. Good luck finding one that suits your needs and the needs of your loved one.

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Barbra Cohn cared for her husband Morris for 10 years. He passed away from younger-onset Alzheimer’s disease in 2010. Afterward, she was compelled to write “Calmer Waters: The Caregiver’s Journey Through Alzheimer’s & Dementia”—Winner of the 2018 Book Excellence Award in Self-Help—in order to help other caregivers feel healthier and happier, have more energy, sleep better, feel more confident, deal with feelings of guilt and grief, and to ultimately experience inner peace. “Calmer Waters” is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Boulder Book Store, Tattered Cover Book Store,  Indie Bound.org, and many other fine independent bookstores, as well as public libraries.

Communicating with someone who has dementia

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Confused Senior Man With Adult Daughter At Home

Confused Senior Man With Adult Daughter At Home

It’s difficult communicating with people who have dementia for several reasons. They may have diminished hearing, but most often times they are unable to express themselves because they have forgotten words in addition to losing memories and a sense of self.

Here is a list of tips that come from a caregiver’s guide published by the Aging Services Division of the Denver Regional Council of Governments. The author is unknown.

  • Trouble remembering the right words
  • Repeating words with which they are still familiar
  • Creating new words when they can’t recall the names of people or items
  • Problems with organizing words in a coherent manner
  • Falling back on the language used during childhood
  • Losing their train of thought
  • Speaking less and relying primarily on nonverbal communication and gestures
  • Cursing or using inappropriate words even if they never did so before

The following tips can ease working with persons with dementia

  • Remembering that this person is an adult first and foremost. Keep in mind that they deserve respect and dignity
  • Be calm in your interactions and be aware of your body language. Your family remember is looking to you and your behavior for clues on how to behave him/herself.
  • Speak slowly and in short, simple sentences. Avoid complex directions or dialogue.
  • Avoid arguing with or criticizing the person, even if she is delusional in his/her thinking. Always validate the emotion behind the statement.
  • Indicate by facing your family member and maintaining eye contact that you are listening and trying to understand what is being said.
  • Support your loved one’s attempts to converse even if he or she is having difficulty.
  • Do ot interrupt.
  • Speak in a relaxed and gentle tone of voice.
  • Keep a friendly face toward your loved one when either of you is speaking.
  • Approach the person from the front, identify yourself, and address him or her by name.
  • Only ask one question at a time and allow sufficient time for your family member’s response before you continue.
  • Talk about other people using their names rather than pronouns.
  • Never quiz your loved one, e.g., “Don’t you know who that is? Don’t you remember?”
  • Furnish assistance as needed but avoid finishing your family member’s sentences.
  • Never talk about your loved one as if he or she isn’t there.
  • Draw on your innermost resources to display understanding and thoughtful patience, and try to remain flexible.
  • Rely on nonverbal communication such as pointing and touching to help facilitate understanding.
  • Use lots and lots of touch and praise. compliment frequently to make up for lowered self-esteem due to losses in abilities.

And most importantly, be kind. Put yourself in the other person’s shoes. How would you like to be spoken to and listened to?

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Barbra Cohn cared for her husband Morris for 10 years. He passed away from younger-onset Alzheimer’s disease in 2010. Afterward, she was compelled to write “Calmer Waters: The Caregiver’s Journey Through Alzheimer’s & Dementia”–winner of the 2018 Book Excellence Award in self-help– in order to help other caregivers feel healthier and happier, have more energy, sleep better, feel more confident, deal with feelings of guilt and grief, and to ultimately experience inner peace. “Calmer Waters” is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Boulder Book Store, Tattered Cover Book Store,  Indie Bound.org, and many other fine independent bookstores, as well as public libraries.