Working Caregiver- Caregiver
Interacting with a senior living with Alzheimer's or dementia is not easy
Giving Seniors Life with Activities for Alzheimer's
 No one ever said that interacting with a senior living with Alzheimer's or dementia was easy. As a family caregiver, a loved one, or even a hired professional spending time with a senior who has cognitive impairments comes with its challenges, and it can be both physically and emotionally draining. This is a fact, but what's really unfortunate is the outcome that often results when people just aren't sure what they're supposed to do; so instead of making efforts, they help seniors survive minimally, but they're shut off when it comes to trying to give seniors a quality of life that includes happiness.
As caregivers, we're hired to help seniors get through the day, we cook, we clean, we help them bathe or get dressed, and we prompt them to take their medicine and generally keep them safe. These aspects might be what's in the job description directly, but we're there for more than just making sure that seniors are able to survive; we should be there to help them really live, and by deeming them useless based on their failing memories, we're taking away their opportunity to have the lives they deserve.
Creating enjoyable activities and putting a smile on the face of a senior who has memory impairments might be a challenge, but it's one that’s worth taking on, particularly as it takes a lot less effort than you think. Reintroduce the senior that you care for to games that you know they were once familiar with before their memory started to fail. You can ask their family if there are any games or activities in particular that they once greatly enjoyed, or ask the senior directly. Simple games like tic tac toe, checkers or large piece puzzles and enjoyable pastimes for seniors, and by reintroducing them to a senior you might just resurface old memories and create a sense of nostalgia. Other fun ideas are to sit down and go through a magazine together; the stories contained can be great conversation starters which allow seniors and caregivers to get to know each other better. Or, if you're a family caregiver, get out an old family album and reminisce; even if your loved one struggles with their memory, you can create an opportunity to help keep their family members fresh in their mind. Baking or enjoying a treat together, browsing the internet, or taking in the great outdoors are also great ways to give seniors a life.
It's not really what you do with the senior you care for; it's the effort and interaction that's important because you will create a better quality of life for them and create memories, that despite their cognitive impairments, somewhere inside, they're memories that will stay with them forever and ones you'll never forget.
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