May 13, 2022
The Importance of a Daily Routine for People with Alzheimer’s Disease
If you’re caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease, creating a daily routine can help them navigate their day and maintain a sense of control over their life, even as their memory or cognitive abilities decline. Routines may also help reduce undesired behavior patterns, such as aggression, restlessness, and agitation.
Let’s take a closer look at Alzheimer’s disease, and examine why a routine can be so beneficial when caring for someone with Alzheimer’s.
What Is Alzheimer’s Disease?
Alzheimer’s is a form of dementia, which is a general term referring to the loss of cognitive function, including memory, judgment, and thinking abilities. Different types of dementia exist, but Alzheimer’s disease accounts for 60-80% of dementia cases.
Alzheimer’s disease is most common in people older than 65. When the disease is in its early stages, common symptoms include:
- Poor memory
- Poor judgment
- Getting lost, even in familiar areas
- Misplacing items
- Needing more time than usual to perform daily tasks
- Changes in personality, including increased aggression or anxiety
Alzheimer’s is a progressive disease, meaning that the patient’s symptoms will gradually worsen over time. Common symptoms during the later stages of Alzheimer’s include:
- More profound memory loss
- Difficulty speaking logically, or as the disease progresses into its later stages, an inability to communicate altogether
- Trouble recognizing friends and family members
- Trouble with language and writing
- Delusions
- Seizures
- Reduced bowel or bladder control
How gradually Alzheimer’s progresses depends on a number of factors, but most patients will live for 4-8 years following their diagnosis. Though many do best in a care facility once the disease has reached an advanced state, it’s common for people with Alzheimer’s to receive care at home from either a loved one or a home care nurse.
How Does a Daily Routine Help People with Alzheimer’s Disease?
Because Alzheimer’s disease can make it difficult for someone to keep a firm grasp on time and to learn to do things in a new way, a solid routine helps reduce the possibility of them getting distracted, sidetracked, or struggling to perform a task. It also helps maintain a sense of order and predictability in their day.
Additionally, routines can help limit aggression and anger, which are common symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. There are a number of reasons that a person with Alzheimer’s disease might feel agitated or lash out in anger, including pain, depression, lack of sleep, too much noise (or too many people) in their company, and even pressure to remember memories they’ve forgotten or perform tasks they can no longer do. Building a routine empowers them to keep control over their life. Including periods of quiet time can help limit their stress, and ensure that they’re able to get enough sleep and downtime.
Example Daily Routine for Alzheimer’s Disease
Before designing a routine for your loved one, think about things such as their likes and dislikes, whether they function better in the morning or afternoon, and how they used to structure their days before their diagnosis. It’s important that the routine you develop works for them as well as you.
A basic routine might include things like:
- Waking up – bathing, getting dressed, brushing teeth
- Preparing and eating breakfast
- Doing dishes and other chores
- Quiet time alone for activities like drinking coffee and reading the news
- Preparing and eating lunch
- Collecting and reading the mail
- Afternoon social activities like playing cards (coordinate with neighbors and friends to set these events for specific times that don’t disrupt your loved one’s routine
- iPad time – reading email and browsing social media
- Preparing and eating dinner
- Evening activities, such as watching TV together
- Getting ready for bed – washing face, brushing teeth, changing into pajamas
Get Help at Home with Home Care Nursing in NYC
If you’re feeling overwhelmed and struggling to care for your loved one with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia at home, you’re not alone. Home care nursing is an excellent way to get your loved one the help they need in their own home, and it’s often covered by insurance. To learn more about home nursing in New York, contact JSP Home Care Services online or call us at (866) 860-2528.
Sources:
https://www.whereyoulivematters.org/importance-of-routines-for-dementia/
https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dementia/what-is-alzheimers
https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/what-is-dementia
https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/coping-agitation-and-aggression-alzheimers-disease https://www.alz.org/help-support/caregiving/daily-care/daily-care-plan
