4 Ways to Communicate More Effectively with a Person Living with Alzheimer's

85% of all communication is nonverbal and with this information in hand Alzheimer's caregivers can learn how to communicate more effectively with persons' living with dementia.By Carole LarkinAlzheimer's Reading RoomNot long ago I went to a lecture on theArt of Active Listening given by David Overton, LCSW of Vitas Hospice Care.Part of the lecture was on non verbal communication, and that ’s the part I want to focus on here.2 Nonverbal Communications Tips for Alzheimer's CaregiversIt ’s been said thatone of the main frustrations of care partners in dealing with people with Alzheimer ’s is the person’s decreasing communication skills throughout the disease. I think that most of us can agree with that statement. But, if you think about it, that statement really only applies to a person ’s verbal skills.We know that words begin to lose their meanings to people with Alzheimer ’s at some point during the disease.This is part of the process of “unlearning” that takes place during the course of the disease. Subscribe to the Alzheimer's Reading - This is a Free Service - Join NowThe “unlearning” is the opposite of the learning that takes place as a child grows and develops into an adult. A word can be “forgotten” but the meaning of that word is “unlearned in Alzheimer’s and related diseases.That is one reason why deep into the cognitive diseases, that emotions are understood, but ideas and concepts fade away.Emotions are instinctual and henc...
Source: Alzheimer's Reading Room, The - Category: Neurology Tags: Alzheimer's Communication alzheimer's communication tips alzheimer's talk communication health dementia care hospice memory care non verbal communication Source Type: blogs