Why use photographs in dementia care

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• Alzheimer's Australia
• Shutterfly
• Alzheimer's Association

Photos and photo albums make for a fantastic activity. They easily reduce social isolation and depression, providing comfort to people with dementia. Check out these helpful tips and lists. 

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According to Alzheimer's Australia, reminiscence is a way of reviewing past events that is usually a very positive and rewarding activity. Even if the person with dementia cannot participate verbally it can still give them pleasure to be involved in reflections on their past. It can also be a means of distraction if the person becomes upset. While reviewing past events can provide a sense of peace and happiness, it can also stir up painful and sad memories. It is important to be sensitive to the person’s reactions if this happens. If their distress seems overwhelming then it is better to use another form of distraction to reduce anxiety.

10 Photo Tips for Families Facing Alzheimer’s

Compiled by the Alzheimer’s Association® in partnership with Shutterfly, here are 10 ways you can help lift a person with dementia to reminisce:

1. Place photos in chronological order. Photo books can be great tools for showing someone’s life history or story. Start your photo book at the beginning of the person’s life and lead up to the present day. Organize the book around key moments and concentrate on happy occasions to assist with engagement. Also, keep the design simple, with one or two pictures per page, so the photos are easy to focus on.
2. Show relationships. To help spark recognition of family members, dedicate a section to each person. Choose photos that include the person with the family member from different life stages and place them in chronological order.
3. Select meaningful moments. Be sure to include photos that reflect the person’s meaningful life moments and depict his/her favorite hobbies or activities, such as weddings, graduations and vacations.
4. Make it an activity. Work with the individual as appropriate to create the book, and share memories and conversation as you put it together.
5. Engage in conversation. Ask open-ended questions about the people or events in the photo. How were you feeling in that picture? Tell me about your brother. What are some of your favorite childhood stories? Tell me more about this picture. The answers are less important than the conversation and engagement.
6. Share your own memories. As part of the conversation, share your memories and feelings when looking at the pictures. Answer some of the same questions you’re asking the person with Alzheimer’s.
7. Connect, don’t correct. This is more about making a connection and sharing memories. Focus on connecting with the person, not correcting them.
8. Revisit frequently. Take the time to frequently revisit memories using the photos. Do what works best for the individual. It may be daily or weekly, depending on the person.
9. Mix it up. Don’t discuss the same set of photos week after week. To help keep it fresh and interesting, discuss various parts of the book with different people and events on a regular basis.
10. Move at a comfortable pace. Follow cues from the individual to gage their interest level and determine h

This Is Your Life book

Making a chronological history of the person with dementia can help with reminiscence and provides information for people who may interact with them. A This Is Your Life book is a visual diary. Similar to a family photo album, it can also include letters, postcards, certificates and other memorabilia.

A large photo album with plastic protective sheets over each page will last indefinitely and can withstand a lot of use. Each photo needs to be labelled to avoid putting the person with dementia on the spot with questions such as “Who is that?” It is best to limit the information on each page to one topic, and to have a maximum of two or three items on each page.

The following list may help in getting a book started:

• Full name and preferred name
• Place and date of birth
• Photographs and name of mother, father, brothers and sisters
• Photographs of partner and wedding day
• Photographs, names and birthdays of children and grandchildren
• Photographs of family friends, relatives and pets
• Places lived in
• Schooldays
• Occupation and war service
• Hobbies and interests
• Favourite music
• Holiday snapshots and postcards
• Letter, certificate, diagram of family tree and short stories about specific incidents.

This book can provide a great deal of pleasure and pride for a person who may be feeling increasingly bewildered in the present.

SOURCES:

• Alzheimer's Australia
• Shutterfly, Inc. is the leading manufacturer and digital retailer of high-quality personalized products and services offered through a family of lifestyle brands. Founded in 1999, the Shutterfly, Inc. family of brands includes Shutterfly, where your photos come to life in photo books, cards and gifts; Tiny Prints premium cards and stationery for all life's occasions; Wedding Paper Divas, wedding invitations and stationery for every step of the planning process; MyPublisher, one of the pioneers in the photo book industry and creator of easy-to-use photo book-making software; ThisLife, a private, cloud-based solution that makes it easy for consumers to find, share and enjoy their photos and videos, all in one place; and BorrowLenses, the premier online marketplace for photographic and video equipment rentals. For more information about Shutterfly, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFLY), visit www.shutterflyinc.com.
• The Alzheimer’s Association is the leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer's care, support and research. Our mission is to eliminate Alzheimer’s disease through the advancement of research, to provide and enhance care and support for all affected, and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer’s. For more information, visit alz.org.

.How Daylight Savings Time Effects Your Loved One with Dementia

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professionals,

You will love the Amazon Kindle Fire

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be

Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care professionals to get an easyceu or two

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FirstLight Home Care
How Daylight Savings Time Effects Your Loved One with Alzheimer’s Disease
Posted by Gina Kaurich in Alzheimer's & Dementia Care, Caregiving, Health & Wellness

Daylight Savings Time starts Sundday March 11.Read this for some insight as to how daylight savings time may affect your loved one or client with dementia

It occurred to me as I sat at breakfast with my mother in law, Martha, who suffers with Alzheimer’s disease that she didn’t seem quite herself today. That may sound strange to some of you but even as an individual is progressing through the dementia stages they do retain certain parts of their personality. Now, sometimes the subtle changes can occur before an illness such as a urinary tract infection or even dehydration. So I started this morning with running through the gamut of potential problems. Beginning with the small things such as the lighting being adequate, is she warm enough, does she have her hearing aids in place and are they turned up so she can hear me. I then moved on to what I call the intermediate of potential issues, such as did she take her medications last night and today, did she seem stuffy or congested this morning, had she had a bowel movement yesterday, or did her unusually quiet behavior reflect something else. She seemed tired and when she asked what time it was, it hit me; last night was the shift to Daylight Savings Time.

Now you would not expect this to create any problems for someone who is not cognitively aware of the time of day any longer; but just like a baby or child, the individual with Alzheimer’s has a sense something is different. We did not necessarily get her up an hour earlier or make any changes to her routine but she sensed a change. She asked repeatedly during the day what time it was and finally said she felt tired today. There are times when she is such a “hoot”! Her surprised reaction when we told her the time was, “Oh my, how could I have slept so long.” And when we all laugh, she laughs and enjoys herself right along with the rest of us, it is wonderful. I love to see her have those happy moments.

Meals were the epicenter of her confusion with Day Light Savings time; she just couldn’t believe it was time to eat again. This made us all laugh again since Martha is a very tiny woman who weighs about 98 pounds but eats constantly. Around our house we have candy dishes filled with her favorite “Hershey Kisses” along with bowls of unsalted pecans, almonds and fruit. Needless to say, she does not go hungry. However, today her eating pattern has shifted and instead of eating all of those treats between meals, she is eating them about an hour later. Our grandchildren came over and she helped fix tacos, salad and brownies for dinner and guess who ate her weight in brownies? It is wonderful to watch how animated she becomes when around children. You can see she is back to raising her daughter and five boys; her old behaviors to keep them busy kick in.

Once dinner was over and as the sun went down she began to become restless and uncomfortable; not unusual for most people with dementia. Martha rubs her hands together when she is unsettled which helps by giving us an indicator to her state of mind. Her bright blue eyes begin to fade. She asks my husband to take her home which we finally figured out to mean Tennessee, where she grew up with “Momma and Daddy”. Then she wants to know if the lady of the house cares if she goes to bed. She and I walk together upstairs to begin her bedtime routine and she says to me that she is so tired and the day has gone by so fast. I agree and to some degree am always surprised at how much she continues to teach me every day about those living with dementia.

Employers to be trained to recognize early symptoms of dementia

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Submitted by Amit Pathania on Sat, 02/07/2009 - 20:20 Health TNM United Kingdom
Around 700,000 people in Britain suffer from the degenerative brain condition with the number expected to double over the next 30 years.

According to national dementia strategy, launched this week employers will help government in its fight against degenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

Under new strategy around....read the whole post

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