Advanced Resource Search: Coping with Common Problems in Dementia, Communication

This web page allows you to view a number of video clips from a documentary about communicating with people with Alzheimer's disease; the producers' philosophy is that it is always possible to connect with them in some way.

This web page discusses the stages of language changes that you can expect your loved one to experience as he/she progresses through the stages of dementia. Topics include how memory, comprehension, language skills, and social communication change with disease progression.

This web page discusses the challenges of communicating with your loved one with Alzheimer's disease and gives helpful advice on what you can do to make communication successful and engage your loved one in conversation.

This article offers advice on communicating successfully with your loved one, including discussion of dementia and language, listening skills, proper ways to get your loved one's attention, body language, and speaking clearly. The article also talks about other possible causes of poor communication (fantasy, pain, hearing discomfort, and poorly fitting dentures).

This booklet from the Alzheimer's Society is easy-to-read and presents practical suggestions for helping your loved one communicate, as well as working around hearing and vision limitations.

This resource list provides suggestions of websites, books, and other publications that can assist you in dealing with communication and behavior problems.

This "message" to family and friends is a list of tips written from the perspective of a person with dementia and offers helpful advice on how to communicate with and understand a person with dementia.

This web page offers advice for communicating with someone who has dementia and handling troubling behavior. Links to related helpful resources are provided at the bottom of the page.

This comprehensive directory discusses many different behaviors that you may notice in your loved one, and is organized alphabetically. The website offers possible explanations for these behaviors, and also offers many ideas on how to prevent and handle them.

This article, written by a caregiver, describes her experience with bathing her loved one with Alzheimer's disease. The article focuses on the things she realized scared and confused her loved one during bath time, such as multiple noises at once, mirrors, running water, the feeling of being undressed against one's will, and changes in perception of temperature and sight. The caregiver also discusses things she found helped make bath time a better experience for everyone.