Dementia is a disease that causes the gradual loss of thinking, remembering, and reasoning abilities, and eventually leads to death. However, even in the advanced stages of dementia, a person can benefit from emotional and spiritual help. Two different ways to support a person with dementia are through:
- Sensory connections: Targeting someone’s senses, including hearing, touch, or sight, can bring them comfort. Being touched or massaged can be soothing. Listening to music, white noise, or sounds from nature seems to relax some people and lessen agitation. Just being present can be calming to the person.
- Palliative or hospice care teams: These types of care teams can suggest ways for people with dementia and their families to connect at the end of life. They also may be able to help identify when someone with dementia is in the last days or weeks of life.
Explore more ways you can help with end-of-life comfort for a person with dementia.
You may also be interested in:
- Downloading or ordering a free copy of End of Life: Helping with Comfort and Care
- Reading about different care settings at the end of life
- Learning what to do after someone dies
