Aging gracefully: Information makes smoother outing

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Aging gracefully: Information makes smoother outing

Make sure wait staff knows of situation

October 7, 2008

So often the general public thinks only of short-term memory loss

when they hear the words " Alzheimer's disease. " Unfortunately, there

is much more to Alzheimer's disease and other related dementia than

simply short-term memory loss.

There are several other warning signs to consider when interacting

with a person with Alzheimer's disease. In addition, other forms of

dementia - such as vascular dementia, Lewy Body dementia and Pick's

disease -have similar characteristics and symptoms.

Irreversible dementia can also cause impairments in language skills,

reasoning, and a person's ability to perform routine tasks. Symptoms

also involve behavioral and personality changes as well as a lack of

initiative.

This means that every waking moment is affected for the person who

has dementia. From making a decision about ordering lunch at a

restaurant to accompanying his caregiver on a social outing with

friends, the person with memory impairment is challenged with

processing information and communicating his needs throughout the day.

Continuing to go on outings with family and friends is important, but

must be done considering the person's level of functioning. If eating

out was always an enjoyable outing, choose a restaurant that is not

too crowded or noisy to take the person who is now experiencing

memory impairment. Crowded, noisy environments create too much

stimulation and may increase confusion and agitation for the person

with dementia.

In addition, subtly letting the wait staff at the restaurant know

that your loved one has special needs may be helpful. The Dubin

Alzheimer's Resource Center has pocket-sized cards for such

situations.

Using these cards may help the wait staff better understand the

delayed response that often results when the person with early

dementia is asked for his lunch order. If the delay is unusually long

or frustration is evident, the caregiver can discreetly slip the card

to the waiter while offering a suggestion for the lunch order.

In Lee County, the estimated number of cases of Alzheimer's disease

exceeds 22,000, which essentially means most if not all of us are

interacting with persons with memory impairment in our work and

personal lives. All of us have the potential to find ourselves

helping a person with memory impairment in some way or another.

Source:

http://tinyurl.com/3omanj

Reminder - we have our own cards in the Files section:

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/LBDcaregivers/files/

In the folder marked:

Companion Cards

Use these cards to pass out to restaurants, stores, etc. when you &

your LO is out & about...