What Can Improve Dementia
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- 21-02-2023
Have you ben asking: what can improve dementia? This article looks at the treatments, medications and therapies for dementia care.
Companions Home Care offer Dementia Home Care throughout London including Westminster, Islington, Kensington, Southwark and Chelsea. Find out more about lifestyle changes which can help improve dementia.
What Are the Treatments for Dementia?
Dementia is a general word for the diminished ability to remember, reason, or make judgements, which makes it difficult to carry out everyday responsibilities. Alzheimer's disease is the type of dementia that occurs most frequently.
Dementia is not a normal part of becoming older because it mostly affects elderly people. Alzheimer's disease is included under the umbrella term "dementia", which refers to a variety of different medical conditions.
The abnormal brain changes that lead to dementia diseases produce a decline in thinking skills, also known as cognitive capacities, that is severe enough to affect daily life and independence; these abnormal brain changes also have an impact on behaviour, emotions, and interpersonal interactions.
While there is no known treatment for dementia, certain medications may temporarily ease some of the symptoms, and doctors may prescribe additional medications to address dementia-related issues including depression, sleep issues, or irritability.
Memantine helps control a different brain chemical required for learning and memory, while cholinesterase inhibitors slow the breakdown of a brain chemical involved in memory and judgement. Memantine and donepezil are sometimes prescribed together as "Namzaric" by doctors for moderate to severe dementia.
Agitation and a bad mood may be lessened by antidepressants, particularly selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Anxiolytics can reduce anxiety or restlessness, whilst antipsychotic drugs can help with aggression, agitation, delusions, or hallucinations.
Therapy techniques could help your loved one remember things and think clearly, or at the very least, they might make them happy and brighten their day. Inspect everything they attempt to make sure it improves their quality of life and doesn't overwhelm or annoy them.
Reminiscence therapy, which can be carried out one-on-one or in groups as part of a structured treatment, may involve things like conversing with your loved one about their hometown, school years, job life, or favourite pastimes. The facilitator may elicit memories of your loved one's history through music, or by using beloved artefacts like pictures.
Dementia Treatment:
Medications
Donepezil (Aricept), Rivastigmine (Exelon), and Galantamine (Razadyne), among other cholinesterase inhibitors, function by increasing levels of a chemical messenger important in memory and judgement.
These drugs may be recommended for different dementias, such as vascular dementia, Parkinson's disease dementia, and Lewy body dementia, albeit their primary usage, is to treat Alzheimer's disease. Side effects may include nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea. Sleep difficulties, fainting, and a decreased heart rate are among more potential adverse effects.
Memantine (Namenda) acts by controlling the action of glutamate, a different chemical messenger important in mental processes including memory and learning.
Memantine frequently causes dizziness as a side effect, and in certain situations, it is taken together with a cholinesterase inhibitor. Other symptoms or illnesses including depression, sleep issues, hallucinations, parkinsonism, or agitation can also require a medication from your doctor.
Therapies
Several dementia symptoms and behavioural issues may be initially managed without the use of drugs, such as through occupational therapy, modification, and simplicity. To avoid mishaps like falls, regulate behaviour, and get ready for dementia development, an occupational therapist can teach you coping skills and demonstrate how to make your house safer.
Someone with dementia may find it simpler to concentrate and function if the environment is changed and there is less clutter or noise.
Knives and vehicle keys are two examples of items that you may need to conceal. You can be informed if the dementia patient wanders thanks to monitoring equipment. Task simplification simply entails reducing work into simpler phases since structure and regularity also assist people with dementia to feel less confused.
Treatments That Do Not Involve Medicines
Curcumin or coconut oil are examples of supplementary treatments that some dementia patients and their carers employ. To determine if these treatments work, though, further research is needed. Any items that make the promise that they will help persons with dementia should be avoided. It's crucial to speak with a doctor before using any vitamin or product of this nature. There are certain cures that interfere with prescription medications, so never use them as a replacement.
Although necessary, medications for dementia symptoms are only one aspect of care for a person with dementia; other therapies, activities, and support - including for the caregiver - are as crucial to enable individuals with dementia to live fulfilling lives.
A systematic programme called cognitive stimulation treatment (CST) is designed for groups of persons with mild to severe dementia. The group participates in cognitively stimulating activities during sessions, such as discussing current events, singing, playing word games, or following a recipe.
Basic information like the person's name and the time and date is covered in reality orientation training, they may have noticed with that information up all around their house; if it isn't working for your loved one, drop it. Cognitive rehabilitation is working with a relative or friend and a qualified expert, such as an occupational therapist, to accomplish a personal objective, such as learning to use a phone or other commonplace chores. Using your functioning brain to support your dysfunctional brain is how cognitive rehabilitation works. It might make it easier for you to manage dementia in its early stages.
Reminiscence work is the process of talking about things and events from your past while using visual aids like photos, priceless items, or music. In order to complete a life narrative project, you must gather recollections from your early years to the present, along with pictures, notes, and artefacts. It might be a physical book or a digital copy.
These tactics are sometimes combined. There is evidence that they can improve mood and overall well-being. Also, they help you and those around you prioritise your successes and skills above your dementia.
Lifestyle Changes
Even if a person has dementia, their daily routine may have an impact on how they feel; activities that are healthy for the heart and the rest of the body can also benefit the mind and mood.
Remain active; any physical activity, including walking, dancing, and gardening, counts, as does participation in a senior fitness class.
Naturally, you'll want to ensure that their exercises are safe for them to perform, and depending on whether they are in the early, middle, or later stages of dementia, their abilities may change (and what other conditions they may have).
According to research, exercise can lessen anxiety or depressive symptoms while also slowing the progression of dementia symptoms like memory loss.
Make sleep a priority - many dementia sufferers may have worsening symptoms later in the day, thus promoting a peaceful habit. Limiting daytime naps and avoiding caffeinated beverages, especially in the evening, is helpful for your loved one.
Avoid having a TV on at night so it's silent. Concentrate on the food; what your loved one eats will have an impact on both their physical and mental well-being. Even the ability to delay dementia may come from good behaviours.
The signs of dementia and behavioural issues will worsen with time. The following recommendations, including scheduling, communication, and exercise, may be tried by carers and care partners, but be sure to keep eye contact, use short, straightforward phrases, and don't hurry your loved one's reaction when speaking to them. One concept or instruction per presentation.
Make use of hints and gestures, such as pointing at things. Strength, balance, and cardiovascular health are enhanced when patients with dementia exercise. Another remedy for symptoms like restlessness is exercise. An increasing body of research shows that exercise, together with a good diet and therapy for cardiovascular disease risk factors, can help prevent dementia.
According to some studies, exercise can help alleviate the symptoms of depression and may even slow the advancement of mental impairment in Alzheimer's patients. Consider what the person with dementia can and will enjoy doing. Activities like singing, dancing, gardening, drawing, and cooking may be enjoyable, allowing you and your loved one to connect and encourage your loved one to concentrate on what he or she is still able to accomplish. Create a bedtime routine.
Nighttime behaviour is frequently worse so be sure to leave night lights on in the bedroom, hallway, and bathroom to minimise confusion. Try to develop bedtime routines that are relaxing and away from the noise of television, dinner cleanup, and energetic family members; it may be possible to reduce nocturnal restlessness by limiting caffeine intake, preventing naps, and providing chances for exercise throughout the day.
Keeping a calendar on hand will assist your loved one in remembering impending events, normal responsibilities, and medication regimens.
Consider working on a calendar with a close friend or family. Prepare for the future and establish care goals while your loved one is still capable of participating - you may be able to get aid from support groups, attorneys, family members, and others. You should also evaluate long-term care options, concerns with daily life and safety, financial and legal issues, and safety and legal issues.
If you have questions about the needs of a person who needs overnight care, we hope this information has been useful to you.
We offer specialist home care services and live-in care for vulnerable adults throughout London. Get in contact today if you have a loved one that would benefit from professional care at home.