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The Heart Of The
Alzheimer's Caregiver
By
Beverly Moore |
 Quincy
- Not everyone is a natural caregiver and few, if any, ever
dreamed of being an Alzheimer caregiver. However, in America
today there are five million caregivers, who are trying to
make sense of their family member’s changes in thinking,
behavior and ability and to care for that family member in a
respectful loving way.
The Alzheimer caregiver with a heart learns about
Alzheimer’s, how it is expressed in behavior and learns to
respond to the changes instead of react to them. The natural
reaction for example to repetitive questioning or stories is
to say, “I already told you that several times.” or “You
just told me that story. I heard it!”
To respond, one needs to understand that the ‘working
memory’ that short term memory that experiences something, a
question, an event, a new person, a sound, cannot ‘hold
onto’ that meaning of the moment long enough. Thus, they
repeat the question or responds in what seems an
inappropriate way. Working memory is a few minutes long at
best and is compromised in Alzheimer’s, unlike long term
memory which lasts longer. We, who are well, hear or see
something and take a moment to decide what to do with the
information. We do this almost automatically. This is not so
for the person with memory loss. They struggle to hold on to
what is happening around them to stay in control of his
life. This is hard work. The Alzheimer caregiver with a
heart knows this and repeats the question, waits for
answers, hears a story again and again, and listens as if it
were the first time. The goal for developing a caregiver’s
heart is to appreciate the effort the person is making to
keep relationship with others alive, and accept them as they
are now. |
About The Author
Beverly Moore
is president of Sweet Grapes, Inc. a licensor for StilMee™
coaches. StilMee™ The leader in Alzheimer coaching™.
Beverly’s book, Matters of the Mind…and the Heart, is
available on line at www.StilMee.com. Beverly welcomes email
questions about the holidays. Write her at Beverly.Moore@StilMee.com.
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