Do you or a loved one live with dementia? You’re not alone. In Australia, one in four 85-year-olds have a form of dementia. By 95, it's one in two.
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Because almost everyone knows someone living with dementia, caring for and treating those affected is a key priority for governments and communities.
Increased investment in dementia research is starting to pay dividends… We’ve learnt we can reduce the risk by eating a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight, exercising regularly, cutting back on alcohol, quitting smoking and keeping our blood pressure at a healthy level. In fact, avoiding stressful situations helps to slow the ageing of the brain.
We’ve also learnt that making minor changes to the home environment helps to maintain the independence of people living with dementia. Decorating with distinctive interior colour schemes and visual cues provides signposts to help with way-finding and reduce the risk of falls.
We’ve discovered that people living with dementia can make new memories and learn new things. Montessori activities can be used to remind people living with dementia how to independently perform day-to-day tasks like dressing and eating.
And we’ve learnt that friendships are just as important for people living with dementia, as they are for everyone else. It’s important to stay engaged.
Your relationship with a loved one living with dementia might change, but it can also evolve into something new.
Remember, the senses of smell, touch, sight and hearing are still intact in a person living with dementia. Art or music therapy can be used to trigger happy memories and lift the spirits.
Most of us enjoy a pampering at the spa — aromatherapy or a hand massage can provide a calming, pleasurable sensory experience for those who are living with dementia too. The sense of touch is important in other ways for people living with dementia.
In day-to-day life, from the moment they wake up, a loved one living with dementia will find comfort and security in gentle tactile communication. A low calm voice and positive reinforcement can also help anchor loved ones living with dementia in the here and now.
Morning conversation over the daily newspapers about the day, date and year provides a context for daily understanding.
We know that every individual needs a sense of belonging, attachment and daily purpose. When a person living with dementia feels like a stranger in a foreign environment, a schedule of organised daily social activities helps them feel included, involved and reinforces their sense of self.
And of course, people in residential aged care who are living with dementia aren’t the only ones who need support. Loved ones providing day-to-day care deserve a break too. A specialised, expert community of carers that provides respite for family and an engaging experience for people living with dementia, is a genuine win-win.
So as dark as a diagnosis of dementia might seem, remember, you or your loved one are not alone. And every year we’re learning more about how to prevent and treat dementia, and improve people’s quality of life.
Some say we’ll even find a cure — wouldn’t that be wonderful! In the meantime, you can contact Alzheimer’s Australia for more information and support 1800 100 500 or www.fightdementia.org.au.
– Jason Malone, IRT Care CEO. (IRT is a seniors lifestyle and care provider.)