Traveling With a Person With Dementia: Part 1

In addition to fresh air and sunshine, traveling offers a variety of experiences—sightseeing, dining out, and enhanced physical activity—which can provide important cognitive, sensory, and social stimulation. A break from the routine doesn’t have to equal chaos; when planned carefully, traveling can be a restful and reinvigorating experience. For someone with Alzheimer’s or a related dementia, the stimulation of a new environment may improve brain health and overall well-being. Caregivers may benefit from travel as well, as some find that their relationship with the person they care for gets better after quality time in a new place and the creation of shared experiences.

It’s important, however, to recognize that not everyone with dementia can travel. Traveling could be potentially disorienting to people in the later stages of the disease. If the individual’s primary healthcare provider feels travel is permissible, consider the individual’s abilities and safety when choosing how and where to travel, including:

• Go with the option that provides the most comfort and least anxiety.
• Stick with the familiar. Travel to known destinations that involve as few changes in daily routine as possible. Try to visit places that were familiar before the onset of dementia.
• Keep in mind that there may come a time when traveling is too disorienting or stressful for the person with dementia.

Warning signs that overnight travel will be challenging:

If you notice one or more of these behaviors, overnight travel may not be an option.

• Consistent disorientation and agitation in unfamiliar settings
• Person becomes teary, anxious, or withdrawn in crowded, noisy settings
• Person wants to go home when away from home on short visits
• Delusional, aggressive, obsessive, fearful, or uninhibited behavior
• Incontinence problems
• Wandering behavior

If it’s determined by yourself and/or your person’s healthcare provider that it is ok to travel, that does not mean that precautions can’t be taken to ensure the trip goes smoothly. Careful preparation and planning are key to reducing stress and improving the quality of your time traveling. 

Travel Tips

Here are some tips that caregivers and family members should consider to help address disorientation and prepare for challenges that may arise during the trip.

Planning:

• If you are planning a long trip, consider taking a shorter trip ahead of time as a trial run. This will give you a good idea of the challenges you might face and whether the longer trip will be possible. 
• When scheduling, allow for lots of downtime. It’s important to avoid overstimulation and prioritize rest. Try to schedule travel and activities at a time of day when your loved one is most aware and less prone to panic. If possible avoid traveling during peak season when crowds will be bigger and wait times longer. 
• When selecting destinations, see if you can stay relatively close to home. This will decrease time in transit, which can be stressful for someone with dementia. Also consider whether or not the place has easy access to emergency health services and pharmacies.
• If staying at a hotel, a caregiver can let staff members know of the situation. Many individuals with dementia could potentially wander around out of confusion when looking for a bathroom, bedroom, or another area in the unfamiliar space.
• Talk to your loved one’s doctor about identification that cannot be taken off, like an identification/medical bracelet.
• Understand your own limitations. If you can, consider bringing along a companion—someone familiar to the person with dementia. This is a helpful way to share the responsibilities. Or, if you are going to visit friends or family, warn them in advance of possible situations that may arise. Advise them that you will need their help. Be specific when telling them how they can be helpful. One way they can help is to spend some time with the person with dementia so that you can have some time for yourself. 
• Explain the plan to your loved one. Well before the trip, begin describing where you will be going and what you may do, even if you need to repeat it often.
• Keep plans flexible. Don’t hesitate to cancel if you or your loved one’s doctor determines that travel will be overwhelming or medically risky. A backup plan may mean purchasing travel insurance if you have booked flights or hotels.

Packing:

• When packing, make sure to consider what the person may need during travel, like activities to occupy them, snacks, and changes of clothes. Also consider bringing familiar items, such as a CD of favorite music, photographs, or a favorite sweater. 
• Remember to take enough prescription and non-prescription medication to cover the period of travel. Also, bring medication for at least one extra day, just in case things get delayed.
• Hold on to all-important possessions such as passports, money, schedules, tickets, and a list of important contacts.

It’s also important to make sure you have the following documents for your loved one: 

Keep a file of these documents handy while traveling!

• Doctors’ names and contact information
• A list of current medications and dosages
• A list of food or drug allergies
• Names and contact information of friends and family members to call in case of an emergency
• Health insurance information

Preparation and planning are key to successful traveling, especially with someone with dementia. Keeping these tips in mind on whether or not you should travel, how to go about planning, and important documents to pack can help you have the tools you need in case something comes up while traveling.

Now that it has been decided that traveling is a worthwhile and realistic decision, and you have begun the necessary planning and preparation stages, you may have further questions about types of travel and available resources. In “Traveling With a Person With Dementia: Part 2,” coming soon, the ICRN will be continuing this discussion.

Sources:  The Alzheimer’s Association, Dementia Friendly America, Penn Medicine, The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, Alzheimer’s Society, AARP

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