10 Tips for Caring for Alzheimer’s Patients

ALZ (Alzheimer) patients mostly live in home environments, especially those in the early or middle stages of the disease, and their care is provided by family members either completely or partially, depending on the situation. Some families also hire a caregiver for Alzheimer patients for additional support. This progressive brain disease, which begins with memory impairment, can also present initial symptoms such as misusing money, mood changes, increased anxiety, and impaired judgment. As the disease progresses, individuals may struggle to recognize people, repeat the same sentences multiple times, wander aimlessly, and have difficulty using the language they speak and organizing their thoughts. Memory problems also increase over time. In the severe stages of the disease, individuals become unable to care for themselves. During this period, skin infections, moaning and groaning, weight loss, and increased sleep duration are observed. The patient becomes completely dependent on others as they can no longer control their bladder and bowels. Care for Alzheimer patients is challenging and exhausting. The caregiver must always keep in mind that their loved one is ill and does not do anything to upset or distress them.

Don’t Forget Yourself While Caring for Your Patient

Patient care is always a process that requires patience, and in some diseases like this, extraordinary patience is necessary. You may need to invent special methods to assist your patient with communication, hygiene, and personal care. Ensuring their safety is also very important. Alzheimer patients may become suspicious due to their declining trust, and they may experience depressive episodes. They can behave irritably and/or aggressively, and their usual personality traits may change. Dealing with these behaviors is not easy. During this process, you may tend to neglect or forget your own needs. However, it is not right for your life to revolve solely around your patient’s care. This will negatively affect you. You should strive to be well not only for your patient but also for yourself. You must avoid completely giving up on yourself. The better you are, the more you can help your patient.

Care for Alzheimer Patients

Below you can find recommendations that will help the patient be calmer and more peaceful and prevent the caregiver from becoming overly worn out.

1. Communication with ALZ Patients

One of the typical features of the disease is communication problems. It becomes increasingly difficult to communicate with a patient who speaks in an irregular and nonsensical manner, struggles to find the right words, and repeats the same questions. These are not intentional behaviors but are inevitable problems caused by Alzheimer disease. The caregiver should not try to correct the patient’s incorrect words if they understand what the patient means. This can lead to negative feelings such as distress, restlessness, and embarrassment in the patient. The patient’s needs and requests may not be met, or their behaviors may be misinterpreted by others. This can lead to an increasing sense of loneliness for the individual.

You can show the patient that you love them through gestures such as smiling, hugging, holding their hand, or gently patting their shoulder. Since both the patients and the stages of the disease vary, it is necessary to find personalized communication methods and try different approaches at different Alzheimer stages. The person communicating with the patient should ensure that their speaking style and tone are natural and encourage the patient to participate in the conversation. It is also important to pay attention to any physical issues that may affect the patient’s communication. An ALZ patient may pay attention to the speaker’s voice, facial expressions, and body posture to understand them. Therefore, it is good if the facial expressions and body language do not contradict the spoken words. The caregiver should also strive to interpret the patient’s body language. Speaking in a calm and gentle tone, using simple words, forming short sentences, and allowing enough time for the patient to respond to what is said are also important points for Alzheimer patient care.

2. Ensuring the Patient’s Safety

Alzheimer symptoms may not seem very disturbing at first. However, as time progresses, these symptoms intensify, and new problems arise. The patient, whose vision and hearing abilities and control over their body decrease, begins to have difficulty maintaining their balance. This poses risks such as falling, poisoning, self-harm, burns, electric shocks, causing fires, and misusing medications. Sometimes, the disease may worsen to the extent that it requires significant restrictions on the patient’s freedom and 24-hour continuous supervision to eliminate these risks. Even if you provide a relatively safe environment and moderate freedom, your patient may not feel secure. Ensuring the safety of Alzheimer patients is challenging. You need to try to understand your patient’s feelings, take precautions to protect them, and reassure them that there is no reason to worry. When determining the precautions you will take, consider your patient’s condition and what kind of accidents they could cause on their own.

*Lock away or remove all items that could pose a danger. Sharp tools, cleaning products, medications, and alcoholic beverages should not be left out.

*You may need to prevent your patient from entering areas of the house where serious accidents could occur.

*Ensure that the floor is not slippery and take measures to prevent rugs and carpets from slipping.

*Arrange the furniture in the house so that it allows for easy movement. Take precautions for items and furniture that you think may pose a danger.

*If you think there is a risk of falling, you can install bars on the windows.

*Make sure that the rooms and hallways in the house are adequately lit. Ensure that there is always a light on between the room where the patient sleeps and the bathroom at night.

*Take precautions for cables and electrical appliances. Ensure that there are no devices in the bathroom that could cause accidents.

*You may need to install locks on doors and windows. When doing this, ensure that they can be easily opened in an emergency.

3. Recommendations for Alzheimer Patients Who Want to Constantly Wander Inside the House

The reason a patient feels the need to wander constantly is often due to being at home for most of the day, feeling bored, and not being able to expend their energy due to lack of movement. Sometimes, the patient may want to continuously follow the caregiver around the house. For a patient in this situation, in addition to making the house safe by taking the precautions mentioned above, you can also do the following:

*Allow them to do simple household chores under your supervision.

*Ensure that they wear healthy and comfortable shoes to avoid discomfort while wandering.

*Think about what activities you can engage them in to keep them entertained.

*If possible, take them outside for about an hour every day. On bad weather days, you can also take them to a nearby shopping center. In this case, prefer times when the center is not too crowded. If your patient is disturbed by noise and crowds, always choose walking places accordingly.

*A patient who wanders a lot will expend energy. To prevent this, you can give them light snacks.

4. Patient Nutrition

The person caring for an Alzheimer patient may notice that mealtimes are becoming increasingly difficult. You can try to solve the problem of a patient who is constantly on the move and resists sitting down to eat by feeding them frequently and in small amounts. The most important thing to prevent the patient from becoming constipated, dehydrated, and distracted is to ensure they consume enough liquid food throughout the day. It would be good if you can ensure they drink 8 glasses of liquid a day. If the patient has a loss of appetite, it is necessary to consult a doctor. Dental issues can also affect eating, so you should take them to a dentist and have their condition examined from this perspective.

If you can establish a routine around meals, it will be good for both your patient and you. Try to create a schedule for meal times. Avoid trying new flavors; prefer to prepare meals that your patient is accustomed to and knows. On the other hand, do not forget that food preferences may change and take their reasonable preferences into account. Research what foods they should be eating. Do not place unnecessary accessories on their table. Keep in mind that they may not be able to understand whether the temperature of the food and drink is appropriate. Remember that it may take a long time for them to finish their meal.

As the disease progresses, some Alzheimer patients may experience swallowing difficulties. In these patients, behaviors such as holding food in their mouth for longer periods, frequent coughing, sometimes to the point of breathlessness, may be observed. Some severely ill individuals may not show such symptoms; swallowing difficulties may only manifest as lower respiratory tract infections. In this case, the patient’s intake of solid and liquid food will gradually decrease. Problems such as weight loss, weakness, inability to stand, and falling may occur.

If you suspect that your patient has chewing and swallowing problems or if you notice a significant decrease in their desire to eat or appetite, we recommend that you consult a doctor without delay. This way, the patient can be evaluated in terms of swallowing function, and scientific solutions suitable for their condition can be suggested to you.

5. How to Respond to Doubts and Accusations?

Alzheimer’s disease leads to a decline in an individual’s mental abilities, a decrease in self-confidence, and the development of irrational suspicions about their surroundings. In this case, you should think that the patient, whose mind is becoming increasingly confused, does not process information like yours, and try not to be upset or angry. Your patient may think that their personal belongings have been stolen or believe that those around them wish to harm them. Trying to defend yourself with logical sentences will not work; it may even lead the patient to insist more on their opinion and increase their anger. Instead of becoming defensive, you should try to dismiss the accusation using calming words like “We’ll see.”

To divert the patient’s attention from the lost item, you can start searching for the item together with them and try to initiate a conversation about another item or topic that comes up during this time.

One of the precautions you can take in this regard is to obtain backups of the patient’s most frequently lost items and keep them at home, and while searching for the item they think is lost or stolen, give them one of these backups as if it were the item they are looking for.

6. Ways to Cope with Irritable/Aggressive Behaviors

Individuals diagnosed with ALZ disease, which is an increasingly serious public health problem, may begin to exhibit irritable and aggressive behaviors. The angry and hostile behaviors caused by this slowly progressing brain disease may stem from the patient’s feeling that they are not safe, their needs not being met, encountering new events or people, becoming confused in a situation they struggle to cope with, or being exposed to an unfamiliar sound. When such an event occurs, the way to calm the patient is to remain calm in front of them and speak in a reassuring tone. Observing how the patient reacts in different situations can also help prevent similar situations from arising.

7. Depression in Alzheimer Patients

Depression seen in the early stages of the disease usually arises from the individual’s realization that their mental functions are beginning to deteriorate and their inability to accept this. The person may begin to withdraw, distance themselves from social environments, and participate less in conversations. They may think that talking too much will lead to their forgetfulness being revealed. When their forgetfulness is noticed, they may try to cover it up with various excuses.

Understanding depression in the later stages of the disease is very difficult because the patient usually enters depression for no apparent reason. This situation can manifest as changes in habits, behaviors, or sleep patterns. It is very important to diagnose and treat depression in the patient. Because depression can also lead to memory impairment, it may give the impression that the disease is in a worse and more advanced state than it actually is. If you think your patient is exhibiting depressive and anxious behaviors, you should first have them evaluated by a specialist. As for how to behave towards them:

*Identify the events and people that lead them to feel good or bad. Try to keep your patient away from negative influences and ensure the continuity of things that are good for them.

*Encourage the patient to talk about the issues they are anxious about and listen carefully. Make an effort to show them that you understand.

8. Ways to Cope with Aimless Wandering Outside the Home and Precautions Against Getting Lost

One of the biggest fears of relatives of Alzheimer patients is that the patient will get lost. In the early stages, it is difficult to control the individual because they insist on doing many things independently. The risk of getting lost, which is quite low in the early stage of the disease, significantly increases in the second stage. The safest way to control the patient and protect them from getting lost and other dangers is, of course, not to take your eyes off them for a moment. However, this may not always be possible, or you may be preoccupied with something else or distracted. Methods such as installing an alarm on the street door and keeping it locked at all times can prevent the patient from going outside alone. If your patient frequently wants to leave the house and pressures you to do so, you can hide their clothes, such as jackets and shoes, in places where they cannot find them. Regular daily exercises can also be beneficial for the patient. By expending their energy in this way, their desire to wander outside may decrease.

One of the precautions to take for a lost Alzheimer patient is to have them wear a bracelet with their name, address, and contact information on it. Labels containing information can also be sewn onto their clothes. Low-button cell phones designed for children can make it easier to monitor some patients.

9. Personality Changes in ALZ Patients

One of the distressing situations for caregivers is the personality changes that can be observed from the beginning of the disease. An Alzheimer patient may start to behave very differently from the person their surroundings have known for years. The behavioral disorders exhibited by the individual can sometimes create seriously negative effects among family members. For example, they may disclose family secrets that cause discomfort or recount unpleasant events from their marriage without paying attention to where and in front of whom they are speaking; they may make sexually embarrassing remarks or exhibit such behaviors.

In such situations, although the patient’s behaviors may evoke feelings of sadness, distress, and anger, it is important to remember that these stem from their illness or depression and to convey this to other family members. You must never forget that there is no intention or malice behind it. This will not be easy, but it is very important.

Those around the patient should avoid arguing, criticizing, or behaving angrily with a patient in this situation. Trying to divert the patient’s attention to something else may be effective.

10. Alzheimer Patients Who Hide Items and Empty Cabinets

The reason for such behaviors is likely the patient’s boredom. You can try the following precautions for this issue:

*If there are dangerous substances in the cabinets that the patient can reach, take precautions to prevent them from accessing them.

*If they are hiding items, frequently identify where or to where they are hiding them and check these places occasionally without drawing attention.

*Place valuable items and important documents in places that the patient cannot reach.

*Create a space where the patient can engage in these activities.