Gifts For People With Dementia That Can Help Them

Dementia is a complex neurological condition that affects not just people with this disease but also their families and surroundings. Dementia brings challenges that touch on memory, cognition, and daily functioning, often causing emotional strain. Family always tries to find a way to provide comfort and support and enhance the quality of life for those living with dementia.

Meaningful gifts can help people with dementia, and we want to show you how to help a dementia person by creating a family tree and what a dementia person’s family tree looks like.

First Symptoms Of Dementia

Dementia is an impairment of functions such as memory, thinking, and orientation, which impairs every day (even usual) activities. You will recognize dementia through the first symptoms which can vary depending on the type and stage of the condition.

Symptoms include, among others, forgetfulness, damaged memory, orientation in space, and questions and sentences – “Where did I leave my wallet?”, “I can’t remember the name of this thing (e.g. a spoon).”, “Where is my bedroom?”, “Who is this person (if it is often someone close, such as a child or a spouse)?”. All these things are difficult for the dementia person and his family. Dementia is a disease that becomes stronger and more pronounced over time. That’s why loved ones, when they notice some symptoms, start looking for ways to help their dear who is becoming demented.

For a person with dementia, the most important thing is to be there, to say: “Don’t worry, I’ll be there when you get better.”. Try not to ask her: Do you remember? What did I tell you? It is a person you’ve probably known all your life, but the disease has made you not know them so well anymore.

How To Help A Person With Dementia With Family Tree

A family tree is best to show the person in the early stages of dementia. After that, you can talk about your loved ones and share memories. There are also family trees with pictures, so you can connect the name with the person’s face, so he can understand more easily who it is. It doesn’t matter how many people are on the tree, but the most important thing is that the people closest to him are there, and we focus on them when we talk to a demented person. So, on the tree will be his children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren (if he has them), brothers and sisters, and parents. It is not too much for him. If this list includes too many people, my advice is to keep it simple. It depends on the stage of the dementia, but the family tree should not be crowded, so there must not be so many people. If you’re unsure about how many people should be on the tree, please contact me for guidance.

When you talk to him, speak to him in simple sentences, slowly, so that he can understand you more easily. Try to think of some good memories of talking with him, but don’t ask him too much. While you speaking, he will try to recognize those events and people you are talking about. Give him time, let everything be slow, and tell in simple words.

Concrete Steps In Showing The Family Tree To Person With Dementia

The family tree is in logical order, so each generation is in a separate row or column. Start with his name. Next to him will be his brothers, sisters, and spouse. His children and grandchildren will be there. Depending on the stadium of dementia, he may find it harder to understand some things he could easily understand before. Don’t bother him, speak to him for as long as he wants. You can leave the family tree in his space, so he can look at it himself when he wants to. Another day you can continue your story about the people on the family tree. Some of them can visit him so that he can connect the natural person to the one from the family tree.

Do not be disappointed if you realize he has forgotten many people and events. You probably realized that his behavior has changed so much.

The most important thing is to be there for him, to give him the necessary care and medical treatment, and after all, the love you feel for him.

I know you are doing the best you can, and trying to slow down the disease in every possible way. I am here to support you, simplify and improve the family tree, and adapt it to him.

I am not a person who is an expert in the field of dementia. But, even though I am 32 years old, I have a big problem remembering new data, numbers, and events. I have three small sons and, sometimes when someone asks me how much they weighed at birth, I don’t know. Parents generally don’t forget these things as quickly as I do. For their birthdays, I came up with a system to remember the dates. I don’t know if it’s dementia or some of my family’s forgetfulness (my dad and his mother are like that). They don’t have dementia, but they are forgetful like me.

I understand you from my example. I can imagine how dear that person is to you as you read about the things you could do to help them and try to find a way to slow down the disease. You are strong. You don’t give up. Persist in your attempts. Just don’t get lost in looking for new ways to help him. Don’t forget that the most important thing is your presence, your love, and your care.

I have been making family trees for years and can make anything you can imagine. If they don’t see well, I may adjust the image and text sizes. Talking to you about the disease stadium, I can suggest the amount of names and pictures on the family tree and the size of the family tree so that everything is easy to read and understand.

You can also create a family health tree to help understand why someone from your family gets dementia.

For everything I can help on this topic, you can write to me at my e-mail: branka@familytreescreator.com