“I saw people speak with condescension to people with dementia, which is simply not correct.”
In France, it is estimated that the number of people suffering from dementia is 1.2 million, with twice as many women affected as men. Dementia, such as Alzheimer’s disease, can be afraid because it affects memory, identity and autonomy, which confronts us with the loss of self -control and the forgetting of those we love. We do not always know how to talk to someone with dementia because his bearings change, his logic becomes different, and we are afraid to say or do something wrong, without always knowing how to adapt.
“”People see dementia and forget the person who lives in it. I saw people speak with condescension to people with dementia, which is simply not correctdeplores Dr. Philip Grimmer, general practitioner in the United Kingdom, in a BBC article. Even sick, they are still adults who know very well when they are treated differently“. If it is often difficult to interact with them, it is necessary, according to him, to be patience and to try to have a conversation in the same way that one would have with a person not suffering from dementia. He also advises to use simple, attentive, reassuring and sensible words.
According to him, the best sentence to say to a person with dementia demented the situation and his emotional state of the moment, but a universally reassuring, simple and effective sentence could for example be “you are safe, I am there with you”. This sentence has several forces: it is clear, gentle, easy to understand, it immediately soothes frequent anxiety linked to disorientation or loss of bearings, and transmits a feeling of security. You can also accompany him with a calm tone, a benevolent look, and with a gentle physical contact (like a hand placed on the shoulder), if the person accepts this. Or write it on a whiteboard so that the person can read it over the day, advises the general practitioner.
Still in this same article, a nurse from the British National Health Agency says that she uses “souvenir paintings” with in particular photos or sentences that echo them in order to facilitate communication between staff, those around them and patients with dementia, which often revives memories and causes strong emotions to them. “”These panels have significantly reduced the anxiety of our patients, they feel more peaceful and confident“She rejoices.
