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Imagine that you could no longer golf, play tennis or invite your friends over for lunch. Imagine that your social network of friends simply evaporated into thin air. Imagine that you could no longer play couples’ bridge or even take a walk by yourself.
If you were stripped of all your normal opportunities for socialization, wouldn’t you feel frustrated, bewildered or even angry?
Let’s compound things even more. You can’t remember WHY you aren’t doing these things. But you know there’s a lot missing...you feel it. You feel isolated. You feel frustrated. You feel lonely. You have dementia.
Persons with Alzheimer’s disease experience increased isolation as their world gets smaller. Their memories may be diminishing, their cognitive abilities may be slipping, but they are still capable of feeling all of their emotions.
Depression is a very real side effect of dementia. It is unfortunate that those with dementia may not be able to express how they feel. Yet too often, caregivers are unaware of the unspoken frustration and loneliness.
We are social human beings. We need to be engaged in meaningful activities and we need socialization. If our world becomes so small that we are in front of the TV all day, we have no friends, or if we have no reason to get up in the morning, depression sets in and makes a bad situation worse.
Adult day centers constitute one of the better-kept secrets in elder care. Instead of sitting home alone, those with dementia can spend several days a week being active, social, stimulated, and monitored. At the end of the day, participants go home to familiar surroundings and family.
Daycare programs are dramatically less expensive than moving into assisted living facilities or hiring home care.
In addition, adult daycare programs help to reduce caregivers’ stress. And the participants with dementia suffer less depression and anger and generally experience improved well-being.
Dementia-specific adult daycare programs offer help for those on both sides of the caregiving equation. The participants enjoy socialization and stimulation, and the caregivers have opportunity to recharge their own batteries and get a break from 24-hr. caregiving.
Yet many caregivers automatically assume that their loved ones are not “ready” for a daycare program. Or they feel that their loved ones may not be a “good fit” because they view the activities as “beneath them.” They still hold high expectations regarding the mental fitness of their loved ones, and are often in denial about the declining abilities of their loved ones. The best advice: try it on for size. If it works, it’s a win-win. If it doesn’t, that’s okay. Maybe you will be surprised!
Memory Matters is a local non-profit organization that offers a dementia-specific day program, support and resources for caregivers, counseling and crisis intervention services. For more information, or if you want to try an adult daycare program, simply call (843) 842-6688 or check out the Memory Matters website: www.memory-matters.org
