Top Communication Strategies for Alzheimer’s and Dementia
One of the most challenging aspects of cognitive decline is that it significantly limits an individual’s ability to communicate. It’s so difficult to build and maintain a relationship with your partner, sibling, friend, or parent when they seem to be losing such large parts of what made them who they are.
Christy Turner is a consultant, speaker, and trainer who specializes in communicating with people living with dementia. Her highly rated communication guide can be downloaded for free HERE!
Keep reading to learn more about evidence-based communication strategies for individuals impacted by Alzheimer’s, dementia, and other forms of cognitive decline.
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Christy Turner’s Communication Principles
While her resource guide goes into much greater depth, here are a few of Turner’s key principles when communicating with dementia impacted individuals.
Bad Behaviors, Lying, In Denial - What’s Really Going On?: Turner explains that the labels often placed on the behaviors of people with Alzheimer’s gets it all wrong. She’s found that reframing the way we understand our loved one’s behaviors is one of the first major steps towards more effective communication.
Arguing Doesn’t Work: Christy warns family members and caregivers to never fall into the trap of arguing. She empathizes with the fact that it’s so easy to get caught up in the argument loop.
Strategies: Turner lays out exact strategies and an insightful mindset shift to stay out of the trap of arguing. She explains that there are specific ways to communicate with people living with dementia that will make the most sense to them. We need to be willing to learn a new language - their language.
General Approach
Turner says that if you only adopt one strategy from her writings and trainings, it’s to bring these five vital elements into every interaction with your loved one:
- Respect
- Love
- Empathy
- Compassion
- Kindness
She suggests that being flexible and staying calm can go a long way towards preventing meltdowns. Her guide helps caregivers get into the mind of someone living with Alzheimer’s. She explains how overstimulating public environments can be when cognitive processes are declining (eg: lights, background noise, music).
Having a variety of approaches and cues (nonverbal, tactile, verbal, and visual) can all be helpful in Alzheimer’s communication. For example, if your loved one gives a blank stare when asked “Would you like an apple?” putting an apple in their hand can be an alternative.
Stay Tuned!
Stay tuned for our next blog post where we’ll explore written strategies for effective communication for loved ones living with dementia.
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