Before you communicate
Making sure the person is comfortable is one of the most important things to keep in mind when interacting with someone who has dementia. Ensure they are in a good place to communicate. Ideally, the environment should be calm and quiet, with good lighting.
Busy places can make it especially hard for a person with dementia to focus on the discussion, so turn off distractions such as the TV or radio.
If there’s a specific time of day where the person seems to communicate more clearly, try to make use of this time to talk about things you need to or ask any questions. Also, make the most of “good” days and look for ways to adapt to more difficult ones.
Another dementia communication tip you may want to keep in mind is to ensure any of the person’s other needs are met before you two start talking together—for instance, making sure they aren’t hungry or in pain.
I’ve got 2 neighbors who have dementia. Mel is verbal and John doesn’t know me. His wife is my best friend. I go over to see her a lot. I think he gets frustrated when we leave the room because she’ll tell me what is going on. Should we stay and talk later? My other neighbor doesn’t walk and her husband says she is total care now. It’s so sad because she is only 2 yrs older than me. Is there anything I should be doing for Mel?