Six Tips for Talking to Someone You Think Has A Memory Problem

It may be challenging to communicate with an older adult who has memory loss associated with aging, dementia, and Alzheimer's. There are a lot of reasons that these discussions can be hard for families to have, but knowing a few strategies can help. In this week's episode, you'll learn about the six tips for talking to someone you think may have a memory problem.

Part One of ‘Six Tips for Talking to Someone You Think Has A Memory Problem’

Previously, we talked about the ten warning signs of Alzheimer’s Disease:

• Memory loss that disrupts daily life.
• Challenges in planning or solving problems.
• Difficulty completing familiar tasks at home, at work, or play.
• Confusion with time or place.
• Trouble understanding visual images and spatial relationships.
• New problems with words in speaking or writing.
• Misplacing things and losing the ability to retrace steps.
• Decreased or poor judgment.
• Withdrawal from work or social activities.
• Changes in mood or personality.

All of those ten warning signs are things you need to pay attention to over time, and to look for patterns. Do you see something that concerns you every afternoon at a certain period of time? Do you only see it in the morning? Paying attention and documenting these types of details will help your healthcare providers figure out what's going on.

Keeping a journal to write down when and where you have seen any of the warning signs is a helpful strategy and helps to keep things objective. Write down the changes that you see in somebody's memory, their thinking, or behavior. What are they doing or what are they not doing that's worrying you? What specific day do they usually happen? How long have you been seeing that particular behavior, or when's the last time they did something that they used to do all the time?

Another consideration are major life changes such as the recent loss of a spouse. Is their behavior changing because they have been trapped in their house for three months because of COVID19? Depression and anxiety can look like a memory problem. Or is there some type of family stress that happening? Has anyone else seen the changes that you are seeing?

Watch the full episode for the six tips for how you're going to have this conversation.

About Melissa
I earned my Bachelor of Science in Nursing (‘96) and Master of Science in Nursing (‘00) as a Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) from the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) School of Nursing (SON). I truly enjoy working with the complex medical needs of older adults. I worked fulltime for five years as FNP in geriatric primary care across many longterm care settings (skilled nursing homes, assisted living, home and office visits) then transitioned into academic nursing in 2005, joining the faculty at UNCW SON as a lecturer. I obtained my PhD in Nursing and a postMaster’s Certificate in Nursing Education from the Medical University of South Carolina College of Nursing (’11) and then joined the faculty at Duke University School of Nursing as an Assistant Professor. My family moved to northern Virginia in 2015 and led to me joining the faculty at George Washington University (GW) School of Nursing in 2018 as a (tenured) Associate Professor where I am also the Director of the GW Center for Aging, Health and Humanities. Find out more about her work at https://melissabphd.com/.