helping families cope with assisted living transitions

Decorating Tips For A Person With Alzheimer's In Assisted Living

If you have a loved one who lives in an assisted living, chances are good that you may have decided that it was time for him or her to go into an assisted living because he or she is having memory problems due to Alzheimer's. You want to be sure that your loved on is able to get the support that he or she needs to continue living as full of a life as possible, but it might be hard for you to see his or her memory continue to deteriorate. Here are some tips for helping your loved one decorate his or her assisted living apartment to help improve memory.

1. Make a Family Memory Wall

Your first option is to make a family memory wall. Invest in painter's tape or other adhesive devices that will not tear away at the paint or leave marks in the wall. This is critical because you don't want to accidentally destroy your loved one's living space should he or she decide to take down all of the pictures. Then, get pictures of everyone in your family that your loved one might know, as well as pictures of your loved one's friends. Try to make sure that all of the pictures that you get are pictures that only include one person in order to make labeling the pictures easier. Go around the assisted living with your loved one to see who he or she talks to at the facility and ask for these people's permission to take their photos as well. Then, hang up the photos that you have on your loved one's wall in an artistic fashion. Be sure that you label each photo with how he or she relates to your loved one and the name of the person. This will help your loved one keep track of relationships.

2. Make Attractive Reminder Signs

If you are worried about your loved one forgetting basic functions, such as turning the lights off when he or she leaves his or her apartment, consider getting these reminders printed on photo paper with attractive graphics and having them matted or framed. Then, attach the reminders to locations where your loved one will be able to see them and take note of the reminder. This will help your loved one remember to do things that he or she previously cared about without making his or her apartment look less than attractive.

For more information, talk to an assisted living facility such as Harmony Residential Care.


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