Life Lessons

Life lessons learned on this journey become the “survival kit” for caregivers coping with dementia. Caregiving for Alzheimer’s challenges you to adjust your attitude; you are the only person who can change. Learning that a loved one’s reality is real (whether it is or not), learning to trust one’s instincts, learning one *will never win an argument with a person with dementia, and learning to “go into a loved one’s world” enables Alzheimer’s caregivers to navigate this long journey more smoothly.

*Rule #1: You never win an argument with a person with Alzheimer’s—SO DON’T GO THERE. His reality is real even if he is telling a “lie;” he is telling you wherever he believes he is, whatever he believes happened, whatever he believes you said—whether it is true or not! While caregiving for someone with Alzheimer’s, you must “go into his world.”