LeBlanc: Adult day care respite program
Caring for someone who’s living with dementia is all about balance. For you the caregiver, you need to be able to dedicate yourself to all their needs, while at the same time try to find a way to keep yourself healthy and physically and emotionally rested.
As for your loved one, you need to discover a balance that keeps them in a daily routine and making sure they stay socially active. These two things are extremely important in keeping your loved one’s dementia at bay.
If you have an adult daycare program in your area (and I truly dislike using the word “daycare” when regarding adults) you would want to enroll them early, before they get too far advanced with their dementia. If you wait too long they may not be able to adapt.
Here in our area, Catholic Charities has a couple of great programs running in Hernando and Citrus counties.
I’ve personally sat in and watched their daily procedures and have to say I was remarkably impressed. I immediately sensed a joyful spirit and a good natured attitude throughout the room.
They started off their group with exercising, both their cognitive and physical abilities. Tossing around a beach ball that was covered with trivia questions to stimulate the mind. One of the queries for example was “Name some circus animals?” I listened to them shout answers for a deer to elephants. I didn’t know a deer was considered a performance animal, but the answer was accepted. However, what I heard the most of was laughter and comical wise cracks.
Catholic Charities has a small fee of $20 per session which is held between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. I don’t know of anywhere else you can find such a program for your loved one that cost only $5 an hour.
About a year ago, Gary Chapman, director of the program, asked me to come out and do a dementia care seminar for his volunteers. They have recently contacted me to do some additional training for them. I like the fact that they are dedicated to making sure that everyone working in the program is knowledgeable and updated on dementia care.
I know as a caregiver, those four hours of respite would have done me wonders. I could have run the errands I never had time for or could of just gone back home and crawled back into my bed for some much needed sleep.
Catholic Charities is affiliated with United Way and has run this respite program since 1999, which is open to the public regardless of what your religious preference is.
For more information on the program call (800) 242-9012.
For a decade, Gary Joseph LeBlanc was the primary caregiver of his father, after his father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. He can be reached at [email protected]. His newly released book “Managing Alzheimer’s and Dementia Behaviors,” and his other books “While I Still Can” and an expanded edition of “Staying Afloat in a Sea of Forgetfullness,” can be found at www.commonsensecaregiving.com.
