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Tag: #holiday

Inside Out – Holidays & Dementia – 11/13/24

Inside Out – Holidays & Dementia – 11/13/24

Holidays and Dementia

Family Life’s “Inside Out” podcast with Martha Manikas-Foster

If someone you love is living with dementia, simplifying how you celebrate the holidays could create a more enjoyable time for everyone. Phil Shippers of the Rochester and Finger Lakes chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association offers practical help in this Inside Out news podcast.


https://www.alz.org/help-support/resources/holidays

One in ten older Americans lives with dementia. Maybe this includes people you love. If so, being flexible and even making a few changes to the way you celebrate the holidays could help everyone feel more comfortable around the table this year.

“We have to realize that due to the changes in the brain, the person is trying to interpret their environment. So, being part of a social event may be upsetting or confusing or stressful,” says Phil Shippers, program director for the Rochester & Finger Lakes Region of the Alzheimer’s Association.

“I think the biggest thing is to be flexible, and perhaps to change our expectations,” he says. “Maybe we try new things. And we want to do this to reduce commotion, to reduce noise and activity, to make the person living with dementia feel more comfortable.”

Even if we’re not organizing the gathering, Shippers says there are practical things we can do to help our loved one living with dementia enjoy the time together. “One of the suggestions that we make is that when people approach the person living with Alzheimer’s or dementia, that they introduce themselves,” he says. “And it doesn’t have to be formal or stuffy. You can just make light of it, saying, ‘Oh, this is your favorite grandson Patrick.’”

We want to preserve each person’s dignity and demonstrate our love. Along the way, Shippers points out, we will make mistakes. “Give yourself some grace as well,” he says. “And just be as positive and really enjoy the moment as much as you can.”

Listen to our Inside Out podcast, where Phil Shippers lists a number of practical ways to make gatherings more comfortable.


For additional help, the Alzheimer’s Association offers support and resources 24/7 through its Help Line at 800-272-3900. You can also contact the Alzheimer’s Association at Alz.org.

That website offers six recommendations for households where the attendees include someone  who is dealing with these types of memory loss and limitations.

 

 

 

#InsideOut

11/13/2024

 

July 4 Special – Family Life News – 7/04/24

July 4 Special – Family Life News – 7/04/24

The Founders & and the Influence of Faith

Partisanship in Revolutionary Times … & in Ours

What Forrest Gump’s Lieutenant Dan shows veterans & civilians about Vietnam & about Hope

Colonials & the Earliest Debates on Religious Liberty

This is our Independence Day Holiday Special from Family Life News.

Greg Gillispie is your host for this series of special interviews for this patriotic weekend.

Inside Out – Managing Holiday Conflict – 11/15/23

Inside Out – Managing Holiday Conflict – 11/15/23

Inside Out:  Managing Family Conflict During the Holidays 

                • Ways to prepare
                • What we can do, and what to avoid
                • Who can offer you comfort?

Do upcoming holiday gatherings already have your stomach in knots? A veteran counselor with Focus on the Family suggests thinking ahead of time about how both historic family dynamics and differing personal opinions will play into how the day unfolds.       

 “I think it’s also constructive to look at what is our attitude towards the person or the people that we’re going to be spending time with?” says Glenn Lutjens, a licensed family therapist with 28 years of experience. “Are there things that we can appreciate about them? And if I’m appreciative of someone, I’m probably going to be more understanding of them. I’m probably going to accept maybe a little bit of their quirks.”  

 Lutjens points out that it’s really okay for people to disagree, in a respectful way.  “I think probably one of the best sentences in the English language is this: ‘You and I see this differently.’ What is there to say after that? The person has their opinion, you have yours.”

 If you are anxious, Lutjens encourages you with the truth that God accompanies you. “I would say probably the most important thing is to realize God is going to be with you. You’re not there on your own. The Spirit of God—if you’ve received God’s free gift of salvation through faith in Christ—He’s going to be with you. And realize that that presence is going to be important.”  

 Learn more about Glenn Lutjens and Focus here. 

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