You can never predict how Alzheimer’s will impact someone. It can transform someone’s mood, personality, and behaviors in the blink of an eye. When you are at home caring for a person with dementia, these changes can be stressful enough to manage. But what happens when challenging behaviors arise when you are at a grocery store, restaurant, or hair salon?
How to Respond to Dementia Outbursts in Public
Worrying about potentially embarrassing scenes in public can make you avoid going out at all with someone with Alzheimer’s. However, being out in the community is important. It provides someone with dementia a sense of purpose, eases isolation and loneliness, offers opportunities to socialize, and more.
Knowing how to respond to dementia outbursts in public before going out is key. These recommendations will help.
- Remain calm. How you respond to difficult dementia behaviors will transfer to the person with dementia. Take a deep breath and give yourself a pep talk before stepping out the door. Remind yourself to remain patient and unwaveringly calm, regardless of what occurs.
- Carry cards. Making small cards to hand out to passersby can be very useful if you have concerns about going out in public with a loved one with dementia. They can simply state, “Please forgive any rude behaviors or outbursts. These are the result of dementia.”
- Be mindful of triggers. Write down information about each outburst, and try to find any trends that arise. You might find, for instance, that the person does well in a small restaurant or store, but becomes distraught whenever there are large crowds, an excessive amount of noise, or bright lights. There may be a specific time of day that is more distressing to be out, or physical needs might be a factor, such as hunger, thirst, pain, fatigue, or the need to use the restroom.
How Home Care Can Help
A dementia caregiver from Home Sweet Home In-Home Care can help you navigate the more challenging effects of dementia with skill, patience, and creativity. As seasoned care professionals who are fully trained in a wide range of dementia care needs, we have seen it all! We know how to restore calm to somebody who is distressed or agitated, ensuring respect and dignity throughout an outburst.
A few of the many challenging symptoms of dementia we are able to help manage include:
- Confusion and disorientation
- Sundowning
- Aggression
- Anxiety
- Wandering
- Hallucinations and delusions
- And more
Whether you are interested in just a couple hours of respite care to allow time to take a break, overnight support or live-in care to ensure safety and wellbeing while you get much-needed rest, or anything in between, we are here for you.
Contact us online or give us a call at (866) 229-2505 for more tips and resources, and to learn more about our specialized in-home dementia care in Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, St. Joseph, and the surrounding areas.