Caring for someone with dementia: What you should know

Dementia is one of the fastest increasing health concerns for seniors. In this video, learn what caregivers should know when caring for someone with dementia.

Transcript

00:00

Let's shift a little bit to talk about dementia and Alzheimer's disease, in particular. [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:12

Dementia and Alzheimer's are really some of the fastest increasing health concerns for aging populations.

00:19

What should caretakers know when they're caring for somebody with dementia? One of the scariest things, I think,

00:25

for me is the possibility of dealing with a parent that would ever have to go through dementia, just because I've seen a lot of my clients

00:33

go through these types of struggles. You've got this parent or this person that has been in your life for a really long time,

00:41

and they're still there, but you're kind of needing to start that grieving process because it's not the same person.

00:47

So that can be a really painful thing. And I think that a piece of advice for caretakers is you've got to take care of yourself, too.

00:55

You've got to make sure that you know how to set limits for yourself, that you're reaching out for support, and not to just continue to feel like you just

01:05

have to play that caretaker role for somebody else all the time. The number one piece of advice I'd give to our caregivers

01:13

is be patient, not with just your family member or that person you care enough for, but also with yourself,

01:20

as this is not something you asked for. You wish it would go away. And when those unfortunate incidents

01:27

with memory or performing task or they're not recognizing you do occur, your first response might not be the one that you would have

01:35

done under normal conditions. And so if you find that your attempt at caregiving is not the perfect format, you are there.

01:44

And that is the most important thing. And so forgive yourself and the responses you give, and be patient with yourself in getting it right,

01:52

because that's ultimately what we want to do. [MUSIC PLAYING]