try a variation of the activity.
Give notice when you’re winding down and offer an easy transition into whatever is next.
Thank the person for being part of this activity with you.
Meaningful Projects for People Living with Dementia and Their Care Partners
Strengthen Communications through Creativity
Explore New Ways of Connecting
Use Playfulness to Jump-Start Conversations
Discover the Creativity at the End of the Rainbow
Explore New Ways of Connecting
“Where words no longer brought us together, something richer did . . . a universal expression, a deeper knowing . . . a place where the resilient human spirit, against all odds, rises to meet itself and seek another.” —Laura Beck
Laura Beck knows firsthand the wonders of creativity and dementia. Laura, who is the Learning and Development Guide at The Eden Alternative, began her informal studies on dementia when she was in her early thirties. Her father was living in a Texas nursing home that was practicing The Eden Alternative. This philosophy, developed by Jude and Bill Thomas, MD, helps families and care professionals create quality of life through compassionate care partnerships that put the person first.
Laura’s dad had been a competitive ballroom dancer, and he resonated with music. Though he’d lost his speech, he could express himself verbally through jazz scat (rhythmic syllables, such as “be-dop-a-do-bop.”)
One evening, Laura went to visit him. She heard him singing and followed his voice to his room. He was lying in bed, his thick white hair wildly tousled, his eyes wide, and his voice loud, primal, and totally alive. To Laura, he looked like a shaman or warrior. His intense, primitive sounds startled her and for a moment, she felt so overwhelmed, she stepped out of the room.
That could be me, she thought, steadying herself against the doorframe and taking a deep breath. Once she acknowledged her feelings, she felt stronger. She walked back into the room and sat beside her father, took his hand, and stared into his hazel eyes. Each time he chanted something, she offered affirmations, saying, “Yes, I hear you.” Then she noticed he was having more fun than she was. She began responding to his chants, repeating them in a call and response. For twenty minutes, her dad called out with fiery syllables, and his daughter echoed him.
“Those were the most connected moments I ever had with him,” Laura says. “For me, that was a template for being creative in a relationship. My father brought me into the present and invited me to play.”
That experience helped Laura understand in a new way what it meant to be a care partner.
“Every moment, we’re both recipient and giver,” she says.
“Until we address our own issues with dementia and aging, we cannot step into an open and expressive care partnership.”
“During the dementia journey, creativity makes space for spontaneity and possibility,” she says. “Anytime we can listen to the wisdom of people living with dementia and give them voice and audience, we can learn something profound and powerful.”
She saw her father’s innate wisdom and realized the importance of noticing and dealing with her own fears.
“Until we address our own issues with dementia and aging, we cannot step into an open and expressive care partnership,” Laura says.
In the pages ahead, you’ll find ways to add expressiveness, comfort, playfulness, and depth into your everyday conversations.
“What if we treated people who were living with dementia like we treated children who were living with Down syndrome? What if we said Alzheimer’s syndrome instead of Alzheimer’s disease?” —Cameron Camp, PhD
Sandra’s hands are sweating as she walks into the building. She knows her father needs memory care, yet she feels sad, guilty, and worried about him living in a facility. As she waits to meet with the marketing person, a nicely dressed older gentleman approaches and introduces himself. “I’ll be taking you on a tour of the community,” Franklin says.
Sandra almost rolls her eyes at the word “community.” Just jargon to help the families feel more at ease, she figures. She follows him into the memory care unit, expecting to be assaulted by offensive smells and stagnating elders. Instead, she is greeted by vibrant art, fresh flowers, and a lively mixture of people clustered around a piano, singing along. Franklin explains the various programs, showing her the cooking counter in the spacious dining area, where community members and kitchen staff are chopping red and yellow peppers for a Mexican lunch. After a tour of the library, he shows her a typical resident bedroom, then invites her into another bedroom filled with a variety of plants.
“This is my room,” Franklin says. “I’m a gardener, as you can see.”
Sandra tries to mask her surprise. She had no idea that Franklin was living with dementia. And she had no idea that her father could keep on gardening once he moved into a home.
“We are constantly asking ourselves, ‘What would people living with dementia want to do if they didn’t have a memory impairment?’ and ‘How can we help them do that?’”
Cameron Camp, PhD, has worked with Franklin’s care home, using Montessori and other person-centered principles. Cameron is the author of Montessori-Based Activities for Persons with Dementia, Volumes 1 and 2. He’s an international leader in using Montessori principles to help people living with dementia keep engaged and connected. Maria Montessori originally designed her program to help disadvantaged children who struggled with learning and other disabilities. One of her precepts is, “Help me to help myself.” As Cameron trains care partners all over the world, he emphasizes the values of respect, dignity, and equality.
Cameron
