Three Vital Essentials For Proper Alzheimer’s Care Giving
The Three Most Vital Essentials
Every Caregiver
Must Know
While there are indeed Three Vital Essentials, often only two are held in high esteem as responsibilities integral to Proper Alzheimer’s Care Giving. The Third, although somewhat intangible, is nonetheless considered by wise Caregivers to be the most important.
Most Caregivers recognize that your mental, emotional and physical labor will intensify as your loved one afflicted with Alzheimer’s Disease digresses. I strongly suggest that in order to make each of your lives more bearable, you dearly consider remembering and applying the following information… paying particular attention to developing your skills toward effectively enhancing your ability to develop and implement this third, somewhat intangible essential. If you do, you will save a great deal of unnecessary inner turmoil… for the both of you.
The hierarchy of vital things to keep at the forefront of your mind surely begins with the physical health and safety of your loved one. (These are Essentials 1, and 2. You choose the order.)
There is a third most important aspect relative to providing the best possible care for your loved one. This third in sequence, by the way,… also has …a tremendously favorable effect with respect to the health and safety of your loved one. Though it’s herein listed as third, make no mistake… it well encompasses that which is indispensable within the context of providing the best in each of health and safety provisions, as well.
But there’s more… This Third most important aspect of providing care not only inherently encourages the betterment of your loved one’s health and safety, to the degree possible it favorably addresses his or her mental stability, as well. It is therefore arguable that the Victim’s normal mental decline just might proceed at a slower pace…
This Third essential objective of proper care giving rises out of a foundational basis far more deep within our make-up than ‘mere’ intellect. As a result, your loved one’s mental decline does not necessarily inhibit the positive proponents this Third very powerful aspect of proper care brings forth. Your proper development and implementation of this Third, extremely comprehensive aspect of proper Alzheimer’s care giving will without any question… greatly …encourage the day to day enjoyment of life your loved one experiences. In turn, the enhanced enjoyment (and less stress) of your life, as well.
Now, what is this ‘third’ Essential?
Their Memory Will Surely Decline.
But… Their Emotions Are Perhaps In ‘Overdrive’.
I cannot stress this aspect of an Alzheimer’s victim’s life more strongly. Though they often don’t have the faintest intellectual idea of anything going on around them, nor are they able to reason through even the most elementary considerations… they still maintain perhaps even intense emotions. You or I might by the use of intellect and the power of reason be able to apprehend, guide or even subdue our emotional responses to events in life. But depending upon the extent to which Alzheimer’s Disease has brought the Victim’s digression, an Alzheimer’s patient can’t even begin to grasp the normal human concept of intellect or reasoning powers, much less employ either.
…For the Victim – Emotions are everything…
Another way of emphasizing this concept is to understand that though the afflicted person may not be in touch intellectually, never make the mistake of thinking the roots of their humanity are no longer valid. Surprisingly, they regularly feel joy, love, hope, sadness, anger, etc. perhaps to a degree far more deeply than you or I. They of course might not be able to intellectually understand their feelings, rationalize how they fit into what is happening at the moment or even convey their feelings. Still, their emotions are intact in the sense that their emotional content just might be… the only ‘real‘ thing …in their entire existence.
Even though they will get to a point they will never again be able to comprehend how anything at all fits together, their emotions will remain generally intact in that they will become the entirety of their consciousness; their expressions, i.e. the displayed existence of all they comprehend life to be.
As their digression progresses, they in many ways become like a baby in a crib. Friend, don’t babies often just react to that which goes on around them and by using their emotional expressions inspire us to comfort their not mentally understood innermost desires or needs? Yes! And as time goes along their intellect begins to teach them that when they act this or that way, this or that is the response they bring forth. Their intellect, you see, is expanding.
Quite the opposite is true with the Alzheimer’s victim. Their mind is digressing. Therefore, as time goes along, like a very young baby, their emotions remain the only wholly pure example of what’s going on inside. But really, it’s far more all encompassing than that. Babies, of course, don’t yet comprehend what adults identify as a sense of ‘person-hood value‘. As you well know, the internal value one develops throughout life by virtue of a combination of intellect, emotions and reasoning powers. The cooperation between each becomes a powerful force which some might argue is the most basic aspect of human existence. In reverse however, one’s inability to any longer make normal use of their intellect and reasoning powers does not automatically cause the elimination of the still present emotional content we retain.
Think about this perspective: You can easily witness the wide range of intellect throughout human kind. Moreover, you already know that regardless of the ‘class’ of intellect, neither the basic nor the expansive range of emotions necessarily varies widely between each ‘class’, culture or race. Emotions are a huge part of the human condition and remain similar throughout any ‘class’, culture or race. We all laugh, cry, feel emotional joy and pain. We should not imagine for a moment that when one’s intellect or capacity for reason digresses and brings them toward what might, by the foolish, be thought of as a ‘lower class’, that surely doesn’t mean their internal emotional level nor… important …their inner desire for a sense of self worth has also lessened or disappeared. No. Life does not work that way. Even when through no fault of their own a Victim arrives at a base level of intellect, the Alzheimer’s patient still experiences life vis-à-vis emotions and self worth. Their intellectual digression brings them to the point wherein emotional content, likely well encircled by their sense of self worth, is all they know. Or perhaps better stated: All they have and use, whether they know it or not… is whatever is prompting their emotions.
Caregiver, as time passes you will find that eventually you will become the whole of a Victim’s existence. That means that… you …will perhaps become the only human in their life who can alter for the better whatever bit of comprehension and/or feeling they experience. Accordingly, you have the distinct responsibility to lift them toward a more peaceful and well as happy existence. Yes, happy. In that they don’t comprehend that life holds any expanse other than what they right at that moment experience, they wholly reside either on the happy or the sad side of the spectrum of emotions. That’s true even as they digress toward the point that from an external perspective they become wholly lethargic. YOU are the key to their enjoyment of life. Wow, that puts a trip on you, doesn’t it? (I trust by now you recognize that’s not my intent.)
Perhaps you can begin to see though, why it is that one can realistically come to the conclusion that emotional soundness, inclusive of a sense of self value, is identified as the Third most vital essential to care giving. (And some, I think correctly, argue it is number one, rather than three.) When an Alzheimer’s patient’s emotional life is properly directed and further expanded toward focusing only upon joyful considerations, the entirety of whatever remains of the rest of their consciousness is also positively enhanced… if only by becoming more relaxed, more calm. Friend, the care and proper direction of an Alzheimer’s patient’s emotions are far more than a minor consideration.
Whenever you care for a person with Alzheimer’s, always be cognizant of the extreme level of contentment or even pleasure you might inspire them toward. Of perhaps even more importance though, is the level of pain and suffering you have a hand in bestowing by your words, actions and allowances… or …your inaction relative to not only basic care giving, but anticipating and/or responding to what they might only be able to express by sometimes not wholly understood emotional ‘pleas’.
Also extremely important
are the things or people
you allow
in their lives.
( See… The Buck Stops Here )
Another integral aspect of your provision of care:
Always remember that particularly during your learning curve there will almost surely be times when you are going to become frustrated and perhaps even angry!
Perhaps even very angry and/or very frustrated! So then, as well as always being mindful of the afflicted person’s well being, you must also keep tabs on your own inner self. Particularly during the lengthily and likely never ending learning process, you could well face innumerable incidents which lead to frustration… simply because you’ve not experienced things of this nature before. Or… have faced them too often… without respite.
Caregiver, maintain an awareness of your own mental and emotional well being. When you see your temperature rising… as it from time to time will… strive to do whatever it takes to mentally and/or emotionally and/or physically step out of the situation for a moment in order to re-group. (One thing I’ve personally done is clean out a space in the downstairs freezer so on a moments notice I can climb in, close the door behind me and scream my head off until I can laugh at the situation!)
Just kidding about the freezer. Not about laughing, though. Even if only finding some sort of humor in the absurdity of the situation, always strive to recapture a lighter heart. (>Open To A Smile) The point is, you have to maintain your own sanity and one great way to do that is to learn to become progressively more self aware. Not only will that help you avoid traveling down any road which you already know has previously lead to difficulties, but self awareness will allow you to become more perceptive to stumbling blocks which just might be about to rise.
Remember throughout it all that whatever you face is just part of your learning curve. So don’t beat yourself up when, not – if, you err! Strive to learn how to parry, circumvent and even completely elude things which might lead to arenas of conflict within your own mind and heart as well as the mind and spirit of your loved one. Always strive to do what brings them emotional joy, peace, love and happiness. When you learn to regularly do such things, you’ve won a good part of the battle!
Even so, from time to time you’ll likely still find yourself at wits end and come unglued. That’s life. It’s just a part of a continual caregiver’s learning curve. Don’t allow your ‘downers’ to get the best of you. Climb in the freezer, re-group and endeavor to in many and varied ways love the afflicted person all the more.
Remember always… Your positive and enhancing stance responding favorably to whatever emotions the Victim is then experiencing will lead to a greater sense of peace and trust for them. And as a result… you will taste a greater sense of peace and ‘a job well done’. ‘Love Conquers All’ It does, indeed!
Next, you may wish to view:
‘An Alzheimer’s Victim’s Self Worth‘
Or, Review:
‘Initial Education For Alzheimer’s Caregivers‘
Don’t forget the Nutrition Page…
