Essential Tips on How to Relocate an Elderly Person Suffering Memory Loss

Back in 2004 my parents were very worried about my grandfather. At the time he was 76 years old and not really suffering any mental illnesses, however as he was getting older his body was starting to slow down on him and he started to get forgetful about things. To this day I am not sure if his memory loss had anything to do with Alzheimer's, however I am sure just with old age comes the fact your memory is not as sharp as it once was.

My grandfather was a vibrant man filled with much energy and he enjoyed working in his yard and cleaning his house. Once he started getting older, the less productive he was around his home. At the same time, the more he would forget to do things around his house. So one night my parents and myself sat down and talked about selling his house and looked into putting him into an assisted living situation. There were many different factors we had to weigh and as I list them below for you, I will explain why you need to make sure you pay attention to how you approach your situation.

Tip 1 - Decide on what level of assistance your loved one is going to need.
There are many different facilities out there that assist the elderly. The first level is basically independent living with a nurse near by. In this situation your loved one still can take care of themselves for the majority part, however if there is any problem to arise, the nurse on call will be there to assist at any time. The second level is where your loved one still can get up and go, however needs help remembering to take his medicine, making sure they eat all their food, help to the bathroom for bathing and all those kinds of needs. You and your loved one will basically decide what all the nurse will need to be involved in on this level. The third level is the max level and this is where you have the nurse on call twenty four hours a day. She will take care of your loved one on every aspect they will need to be tending to.

After we looked at my grandfathers situation we did realize he only needed level one and at this time in his life he was doing good with it! We moved him into a senior apartment complex where there is a nurse on duty if he ever would need her, however he still has the carefree responsibilities he had before.

Tip 2 - Make sure you take along the most important keepsakes.
I noticed once we moved my grandfather into his new apartment it was going to be hard to put a 3 bedroom/2 bath house into a 2 bedroom/1 bath apartment. I told mom that the items he rarely used could easily go into storage, however make sure you keep out all the things he uses on a daily basis or at least sees on a daily basis. You are trying to make the new environment for your loved on mimic what he or she lived in prior due to the fact they need to know that their comfort zone has not been taken away.

Tip 3 - Place all items in the exact same spot as before.
When you are relocating a loved one who is suffering memory loss due to aging or disease, the key thing is to make sure their rooms are arranged in the same way as if they were still at their old home. Now, this may be tricky due to different floor plans, however if they had the couch on the left hand side of the room, make sure in their new place they have a couch on the left hand side of the room. Make sure you place the pictures exactly how they had them in their old house. They need to be able to know their surroundings just like they did before. If you change up the arrangement of their rooms in their new place they may forget more easily and then that tends to make for a disaster because an accident could occur.

Tip 4 - Life Alert necklace is the best investment.
This is for any elderly who is moving to a new environment who is on the first or second level. I am sure you all have seen the commercial where the lady says "I've Fallen And I Can't Get Up" well she is wearing a Life Alert necklace. This necklace, which hangs around your loved ones neck is connected to a main base of operates who will answer your call if you press the button in any sort of emergency. There is a low monthly fee, however it is well worth it. For example, my grandfather fell one day. He didn't hurt himself but he could not get up. He pressed the life alert button and the operator came over the loud speaker in his apartment. They asked what the problem was, asked if he hurt himself or if he thinks he needs to go to the emergency room. He told them no, but he couldn't make it to the phone to call his daughter to help him get up. Life Alert called my mother and we got over there as soon as we could. For more information on this great device click on over to www.lifealert.com and find out for yourself why this is such a great tool for any loved one facing memory loss or really any loved on at all!

Tip 5 - Keep your loved ones routine as normal as possible.
If your loved one worked in the yard everyday then make them a little flower box garden outside their front door. If they went to the store every Tuesday, still make sure they go every Tuesday. When memory loss is approaching a loved one you need to keep a daily routine of the things they normally do. This will allow them to help their memory more.

Tip 6 - Keep contact with them everyday.
I saw my grandpa's girlfriend suffer Alzheimer's. Her daughters placed her an assisted living apartment on level three and never went to see her. My grandpa's girlfriend was lonely, confused, and always wondered what happened to her family. My heart broke to see her kids not want a thing to do with her. When my grandpa first moved I went to see him at least once a day. I wanted him to know we still loved him and we only wanted him to move because of his own safety. Once he was living at his new apartment for a little while (like over 6 months) the visits went from everyday to at least 3 times a week. Now they are around once a week, however I call him and talk to him everyday!!! I make sure that he knows I am still around and here to help him if he needs anything. Also I just want him to know I love him!