Dementia-friendly activities that both persons living with Alzheimer’s and dementia and their caregiver can enjoy together helps in preventing burnout.
Dementia-friendly activities create a bond between care-giver and care recipient. Because not only does it improve the well-being of persons living with Alzheimer’s and dementia, it also gives caregivers a deep sense of purpose.
These are four dementia-friendly activities you can easily fit into your daily care routine.
1. Have an Arts and Crafts Day
Arts and crafts are known therapeutic activities for people with dementia.
Studies have shown that doing art decreases anxiety and stress, as well as promote mindfulness, and enhance cognitive function.
One activity you can try together is making a collage.
- Gather materials for your collage.
- Photographs and cut-outs from old magazines are good materials to start with.
- You can also print out pictures of their favorite celebrity, vacation spot, or food online.
- Arrange and paste them on a sheet of paper.
- Decorate. Use colorful materials like washi tape, stickers, and bits of craft paper.
- You can compile the collages and turn them into a scrapbook.
This might even trigger good memories, and inspire them to share a story.
2. Bring Out the Old VCR
Remember all those family tapes stashed away in the attic? Well, it’s time to bring them out for a home movie screening.
Reminiscence therapy has been shown to reduce stress, enhance self-esteem, and reduce symptoms of depression for persons living with Alzheimer’s and dementia.
If you don’t have a VCR, services like iMemories can convert your tapes into a digital file, allowing you to play it on any device.
Another option is to use apps like Joygage. It gives you access to a growing library of carefully curated playlists of ready-to-stream movies and TV shows from key eras, which keeps them entertained and engaged.
3. Tell Stories
Storytelling helps a person living with Alzheimer’s and dementia enhance their communication skills, encouraging them to socialize, and boosting their self-esteem.
So when they share stories, make sure to:
- Listen actively. You might even learn something new about your family’s history.
- Reply simply. Persons living with Alzheimer’s and dementia sometimes have difficulty following complex narratives. Which only ends up frustrating them and putting them in a bad mood.
- Keep the memory alive. Use your phone to record them while they’re telling their story.
Caregivers also benefit from storytelling activities because it strengthens your emotional bond with your loved one.
4. Get Moving Together
Doing light and low-impact exercise regularly improves mood, cognitive and memory skills, as well as overall health of persons living with Alzheimer’s and dementia.
And for caregivers, exercise keeps you healthy to function at the capacity you need to fulfill your continuously increasing care responsibilities.
- Lowers your stress by releasing endorphins.
- Keeps your blood pressure and cholesterol at a healthy level.
- Keeps you active and alert.
- Improves your strength and endurance.
If your loved one has a green thumb, simple tasks like working on the garden together is a good substitute for their daily dose of physical activity.