First Steps: When a Loved One is Diagnosed with Dementia

First Steps: When a Loved One is Diagnosed with Dementia

assisted-living-skilled-nursingEven though many people have health problems in their golden years, a new diagnosis almost always comes as a surprise. Although all serious health problems are devastating, one of the scariest experiences for families is when their loved ones are diagnosed with dementia. When your parent or loved one receives a dementia diagnosis, you probably have a lot of questions and worries. While it is true that dementia is a very serious condition, you can cope with the new diagnosis more effectively when you gather more information about it and line up the right support team. 

Choose the Right Help

Most of us hope that we can care for our senior parents by ourselves. In many cases, that’s a worthy goal. But it’s important to recognize that some situations require more constant hands-on care than what our busy schedules can accommodate, especially because many adults are still raising kids and maintaining careers while our parents get older. When a loved one is diagnosed with dementia, that is a situation that few people are equipped to care for without significant amounts of help. Dementia care is extremely challenging, particularly because it is progressive and will get worse rather than easier to care for over time. Take advantage of the skilled caregivers and well-designed facilities that a senior community specializing in dementia care can provide. 

Insist on Open Communication

Just because you personally are not able to provide the intense amount of therapy and attention that is required after your loved one is diagnosed with dementia does not mean that you want to take an “out of sight, out of mind” attitude. You want to make sure that the caregivers you choose make a concerted effort to keep you up to date on all the daily activities of living and care-related issues involved in their care. Unfortunately, not all communities are created equal, and nowhere is this more true than in the amount of communication you receive. Look for a community that has an open communication policy with families about daily activities, as well as more serious matters like decisions that need to be made as the disease progresses.

Seek Well-Rounded Providers

When a loved one is diagnosed with dementia, it doesn’t mean that they have to give up on having a good quality of life. High-quality care facilities make a dedicated effort to ensure that their residents have access to a wide variety of therapies and enrichment activities to help them continue to thrive and strengthen their mental faculties. When you are looking for the right senior community for dementia care, look for ones that offer programs like art therapy for dementia. Studies have shown that art therapy for dementia care can help to rediscover powerful memories that are not destroyed by the progression of the disease.

When your loved one is diagnosed with dementia, it is common to feel scared, confused and uncertain about how you should handle their care. Therefore, it is really important to feel like you have found a dementia care community that you can really trust. Contact us today to see how we can work together to make sure your loved one gets the quality care they deserve.

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