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Most people think Alzheimer's patients have no memories, but many of them do if you prompt them to remember. Short-term memory goes first, so it's best to try to elicit memories through activities relating to their earlier years.
There are several ways you can prompt dementia patients to recall memories:
Sit with them and look at old family photo albums together. These often bring back memories you thought were lost forever.Sing songs with them that were popular in their youth. Surprisingly, many people with dementia can sing and remember the words to songs even in the later stages of the disease when they barely talk anymore. Equally surprising is that patients who can hardly walk may get up and start dancing.
Watch movies or old TV shows they used to like. These, too, can lead to recalling fond memories.
Get them involved in decorating the house or doing crafts for holidays. Holidays usually leave an emotional impact on people, and those emotions can help Alzheimer's patients remember holidays past.
Tap into their senses, such as the sense of smell. The aroma of apple pie, for example, may lead to vivid memories of their grandmother baking back when they were a child.
The Alzheimer's Foundation of America has just found a new way to help spur and permanently record the memories of people with Alzheimer's disease through a collaboration with Legacy Keepers, a nationwide legacy and family history preservation service.
Legacy Keepers arranges for personal historians from its national network to interview people about their life, then it engages writers, graphic designers, filmmakers and audio, text and video editors to produce professionally-done keepsake audio CDs, books or high definition videos commemorating their life or the life of a loved one.
Legacy Keepers has just launched a new product line, "AFA Forever." This specially-priced group of products is available on the Alzheimer's Foundation website. A portion of the proceeds from Alzheimer's clients and/or their caregivers will benefit the Foundation. Legacy Keepers' services will be an important addition to the Foundation's collection of tools that help caregivers of people with dementia cope with the emotional aspects of the disease.
Earlier stage patients may be able to do the interviews by themselves. Those in more advanced stages may be able to participate while their caregiver answers most of the questions.
Carol Steinberg, Executive Vice President of the Alzheimer's Foundation, emphasizes, "The most important thing about this project is that it will provide something family members can hold onto. It will give them a lasting connection to their loved one. It will help them with the long good-bye."
Please visit http://www.comebackearlytoday.com/ to sign up for a free newsletter containing Alzheimer's patient caregiving tips. You'll also find a link to purchase Dr. Marley's latest book, Come Back Early Today, which illustrates fresh approaches to the numerous heartbreaking problems that arise when caring for a loved one with Alzheimer's.
