Last Week's Caregiver Tip - 2/29/08

Tell the person you care for that the car is broken and cannot be repaired; this may prevent them from getting agitated when losing their driving privileges.


~WebMd

Last Week's Caregiver Tip - 2/22/08

I always love to receive some good advice. Each week I will feature a new tip from webMD. At that time I will post the previous week's tip for archiving. I hope you find the tips as useful as I do.

"The task of dressing can be quite complicated. Just try to break the act of dressing down into short, simple steps."

webMD
Week Ending 2/22/08

Tips For Alzheimer's Disease Homecare - Web MD

I try to read up on various Alzheimer's and Dementia articles. Today I came upon a WebMd article, "Tips For Alzheimer's Disease Homecare", that I believe other caregivers or potential caregivers would find useful. Within the article, nine opportunities were identified for use by those of us in a caregiver role to lessen the impact of the challenges we face daily. Each opportunity is listed below, but today I will only list the tips that foster success for the first one - "Communicate Clearly" and "Choose Simple, Engaging Activities". Hopefully, you will find some of this information useful. Happy reading...

1. Communicate Clearly
2. Choose Simple, Engaging Activities
3. Energize and Enrich Daily Life
4. Make Everyday Life As Easy as Possible for Both of You
5. Stay Active Together
6. Understand the Person's Medications
7. Keep Stress Under Control
8. Deal with Depression
9. Stay Connected with Others Who Can Help

Medical treatment for Alzheimer's disease is key to helping slow progression of symptoms as long as possible with the person in your life who has this disease. However, there's more you can do to help achieve this goal - and most of it is simply an extension of what you'd normally do to help ensure the person's health and well-being.

1. Communicate Clearly

• Choose simple words and speak in short sentences with a calm tone of voice.
• Allow enough time for a response, and be careful not to interrupt.
• Try to frame questions or instructions positively, and speak slowly and clearly.
• Maintain eye contact and use positive, friendly facial expressions.

2. Choose Simple, Engaging Activities

• Try to base activities on skills the person already has, instead of introducing something new.
• Help him or her get started, and break down the activity into several smaller tasks.
• Don't expect too much.
• Be on the lookout for signs of frustration or agitation. When this happens, gently distract the person's attention to something else.
• Try to continue activities you both enjoy.

Check out http://www.webmd.com/content/article/135/119278.htm#namenda_PAC for the entire article.

Pale and Worried

Perhaps I worry about things that I should not worry about, but unfortunately, I cannot help it. As usual, when I arrived home after work, I stopped by Muddear's room to say "hey!" and chat for a moment before beginning part two of the work day. You know, work at work then work at home. I immediately noticed that Muddear appeared very pale, almost ashen. I asked her if she was feeling okay, to which Muddear responded "yes." At that point, I was at a loss...and a little worried. I wanted to do something to "fix" the situation, but what? Therefore, I gave Muddear an Ensure. Of course, Mike asked me, "Why are you giving your grandmother an Ensure?" To which I responded, "I don't know, it just seems like the right thing to do. Maybe she is experiencing some vitamin or calorie deficiency."

I know you think I am nuts, it just made feel better to be able to do something. I will research WebMD today for potential causes. My last resort will be to contact the doctor if Muddear does not improve. I will keep you posted.