Bring joy when you visit a loved one with dementia

I don’t know about you but sometimes I feel just a little anxious about visiting a loved one with dementia. Maybe it sounds silly. I mull over what to talk about and how to say things so as not to spark memories that may upset them. I try to sit in silence but that doesn’t always work for me.

I looked after my own Mum at home while she ploughed towards the end of her dementia journey. We used to play memory games using maths. Since neither of us were particularly great at maths, we would roll around laughing at our perceived inadequacies. I well remember how angry my Mum became each time she mistook me for her older sister with whom she’d had a sometimes, combative relationship. (I look nothing like my dear aunt). I did learn a few little tricks that helped to manage the unexpected but I could have done with more guidance.

If you love a person with dementia, you’re in luck. Below is a link to Dementia Australia’s guidance on how to visit them.

At Secure My Treasures you can store videos of family events and memories in our “Family Videos for a Loved One with Dementia.”  You can make your visits fun and interesting, especially if your loved one feels that they are a participant in family events, like weddings and significant birthdays.

You can build and store your video collection with photos, voice recordings etc. Share the videos with up to three trustees. There’s no limit on the number of videos (or any file format) you can store in Secure My Treasures, your bank grade secure digital safe.

Check out:

Visiting someone with dementia. Dementia Australia. https://www.dementia.org.au/living-dementia/staying-connected/visiting-someone-dementia  Accessed 11 April 2024

Friends and family visiting tips from Carrie Aalberts aka Dementia Darling Dementia Darling visiting tips (Accessed 15 April 2024)