Have you ever stopped to consider how deeply the reckoning of time is embedded in your consciousness? We humans are constantly juggling three kinds of time: past, present, and future. We anticipate what is about to happen by imagining the future. We react and live in the fleeting present, and we incorporate our memories of the past into a historic tapestry that helps us make sense of it all.

What would you be like if your ability to coordinate past, present, and future time was shattered? What if you lost your ability to keep up with the stream of time? What if you couldn’t remember 10 minutes ago, so you had no way of knowing if you’d been sitting in a chair for few minutes or a few hours?

This kind of memory loss is what our friends with Alzheimer’s live with all the time.

And this is why they cannot take care of themselves but must rely on us for care and support.

When it comes to dealing with memory loss and dementia, particularly those related to Alzheimer’s Disease, my favorite kinds of caregivers are those who understand the limitations of dementia and maintain a sense of humor, dignity, and love.

It does not help people with Alzheimer’s for us to pretend there isn’t a problem. Denial isn’t helpful. Nor is it helpful to give up on them and treat them as if they were a sub-class of humanity.

Somehow we have to accept their limitations, help them live, keep a sense of humor and compassion, and maintain our own dignity and perspective on life.

Sandy, who writes at the Alzheimer’s Support blog, tells about dealing with her own mother’s memory loss. Her mother was reduced to only living in the present. It was hard for her to understand that and keep her perspective.

When my Mom was in the nursing home, I visited her daily. Yet, Mom would complain that she hadn’t seen me in a year. Because the last time she remembered seeing me was the year before, her “sense of time” told her I hadn’t been there since that visit. She had no memory of the daily visits since that time a year ago. All of her recent memory was gone, destroyed by Alzheimer’s.

Read the article here…

When caring for loved ones with Alzheimer’s and dementia, please remember that they still love you. They are still human beings with all the same desires and needs. It’s just that they have lost their personal timelines. And they need your help to keep things straight.

J. Green
Trilogy Senior Living
Alzcare Alzheimer’s Assisted Living

Alzheimer’s Care Facilities in San Antonio, Texas