{"id":33314,"date":"2013-04-25T14:04:35","date_gmt":"2013-04-25T14:04:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/choicehome.flywheelsites.com\/how-to-communicate-with-a-person-with-dementia\/"},"modified":"2013-04-25T14:04:35","modified_gmt":"2013-04-25T14:04:35","slug":"how-to-communicate-with-a-person-with-dementia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dmg.org.in\/choicehomecare\/how-to-communicate-with-a-person-with-dementia\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Communicate With a Person With Dementia"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Trying to communicate with a person who has Alzheimer\u2019s disease can be challenging. Communication skills are gradually eroded by dementia, so their behavior and words can become difficult to understand. They will also have difficulty understanding your actions and your words.<\/p>\n

This combination creates misunderstandings and can cause tempers to rise on both sides. Knowing what to expect and learning how to communicate effectively as dementia progresses is important for everyone involved.<\/p>\n

Dementia damages the neural pathways in the brain. This makes it difficult to understand what others are saying and find the right words to express what you mean.<\/p>\n

A person with Alzheimer\u2019s may incorrectly substitute one word for another, or create an entirely new word to use instead. They may get stuck in a rut and repeat the same word over and over, or ask you the same question repeatedly. They may also: <\/p>\n

    \n
  • \n

    Lose their train of thought mid-sentence.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  • \n

    Need extra time to process and understand what you\u2019re saying.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  • \n

    Struggle to organize their words in a logical sentence.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  • \n

    Begin to speak in a way that\u2019s out of character for them \u2013 like cursing or using offensive language.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    What can you do to help?<\/h3>\n

    It is challenging, but you can learn to communicate effectively with a person with Alzheimer\u2019s. Here are some suggestions:<\/p>\n

    Minimize distractions.<\/strong>  Turn off the TV or the radio and try to minimize other outside noise.<\/p>\n

    Speak clearly.<\/strong> Speak in a clear, concise and straightforward manner. Introduce yourself regularly if needed.<\/p>\n

    Keep it simple.<\/strong> Use common words and short, direct sentences. Ask questions that can be answered with yes or no, and don\u2019t ask more than one question at a time. Break requests down into single steps.<\/p>\n

    Don\u2019t interrupt<\/strong>. It may take a while for a person with Alzheimer\u2019s to respond to a question. Be patient and let them finish, and avoid rushing, correcting or criticizing them.<\/p>\n

    Show interest.<\/strong> Maintain eye contact, and stay focused on he or she, so they will know that you\u2019re listening and trying to understand.<\/p>\n

    Use visual language.<\/strong> A gesture or a visual cue can help you communicate. If you\u2019re asking them if they need to use the bathroom, take them there and point at the toilet while asking the question.<\/p>\n

    Don\u2019t argue.<\/strong> The reasoning and judgment of a person with Alzheimer\u2019s gradually declines over time. Keep agitation and anger to a minimum by not engaging in any arguments.<\/p>\n

    Keep calm.<\/strong> Even when you\u2019re frustrated, stay calm and keep your tone gentle. Your nonverbal cues, like body language and tone of voice, may be sending a message.<\/p>\n

    Be respectful<\/strong>. Don\u2019t use \u201cbaby talk\u201d and don\u2019t use diminutive language, e.g. \u201cgood boy\u201d as praise. Do not assume that they can\u2019t understand when you\u2019re struggling to communicate with them. Never talk about them as if they weren\u2019t there.<\/p>\n

    Communicating with a person with Alzheimer\u2019s may become increasingly challenging as the disease progresses. Remember that your loved one isn\u2019t acting this way on purpose. Don\u2019t take their words and behaviour personally. You can help them feel secure and safe by being patient and understanding.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Trying to communicate with a person who has Alzheimer\u2019s disease can be challenging. Communication skills are gradually eroded by dementia, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":32824,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[40,39],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alzheimer","category-dementia"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dmg.org.in\/choicehomecare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dmg.org.in\/choicehomecare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dmg.org.in\/choicehomecare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dmg.org.in\/choicehomecare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dmg.org.in\/choicehomecare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33314"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dmg.org.in\/choicehomecare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33314\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dmg.org.in\/choicehomecare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32824"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dmg.org.in\/choicehomecare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dmg.org.in\/choicehomecare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dmg.org.in\/choicehomecare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}