Joined: 7/7/2013
Posts: 469
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Iris --
Thanks for posting this!
I don't remember ever reading this thread, now I've copied the list for my own reference and (eventually) to share with family! Very important reminders!
--paula
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Joined: 9/12/2013
Posts: 3608
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17 things never to say or do to a person with dementia
See the person not the dementia
1.Don’t say, ‘but you don’t look or sound like you have dementia’
2.Don’t tell us we are wrong
3.Don’t argue with us
4.Don’t say ‘remember when…’
5.Don’t call us ‘sufferers’ or ‘victims’
6.Don’t say we are ‘demented’, ‘demented sufferers’, ‘fading away’, ‘disappearing’, have a ‘dementing illness’, an ‘empty shell’, or are ‘not all there’
7.Don’t say you are ‘living with dementia’ unless you are diagnosed with dementia
8.Don’t remind us of the death of a loved one or pet
9.Don’t blame the person with dementia for the changes in behaviour or personality
10.Don’t assume we do not understand you
11.We have a form or type of dementia, not an ‘affliction’
12.
Don’t refer to us as ‘aggressive’, ‘wanderers’, ‘poor feeders’,
‘wetters’, ‘non-communicators’, ‘vocalisers’ or as ‘obstructive’ – we
are still human beings
13.Don’t assume we can’t feel pain just because we may not be able to tell you about it
14.Don’t assume because we can’t tell you, your words or actions don’t hurt our feelings
15.Don’t assume we can’t answer for ourselves, but it may take longer than you
16.Don’t talk about me to someone else, in front of me (also better not to talk about anyone behind their back)
17.Don’t assume we can’t communicate even if we can’t speak
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