Tips for celebrating Christmas with a friend or family member with dementia
Christmas is a time for getting together with family and friends, but the change in routine and extra people can be overwhelming for someone with dementia. Luckily, there are ways to make your festive event easier if your guest list includes a person with dementia.
• If the house becomes very busy, designate a ‘quiet room’ without television or music where the person with dementia can rest but still be part of the festivities.
• Think of activities the person may enjoy doing, and try to involve them in what you are doing, even if it’s helping with chores like cooking or tidying. Most people like to participate and be helpful.
• Singing carols is a good activity to do with a group of people, with the added bonus of stimulating both mind and body.
• Reminiscing about ‘my first memory of Christmas’ or ‘The most disastrous Christmas dinner’ can be great inter-generational fun, children love hearing about the olden days.
• If the house is unfamiliar to the person with dementia, labels on some doors (like the bathroom and kitchen) may be useful, and consider keeping the section/house safe.
• At night time, keep a few lights on so the person with dementia is less likely to get confused and/or disorientated.
• At meal times, avoid overloading your guest’s plate, as a full plate can be quite daunting and confusing, instead encourage going back for seconds!
• Consider designating one person to be the ‘buddy’ for the person with dementia and take turns sharing this role.
• Most importantly, remember to have fun, it’s okay to laugh and with a little bit of planning your festive get-togethers can be inclusive and enjoyable for everyone.
If you are concerned about memory loss in yourself or a loved one, Alzheimers Wellington offers advice, support and services for people affected by dementia across the Wellington region. Contact 0800 004 001 or www.alzheimers.org.nz...
Alzheimers Wellington
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
Worst Xmas ever?
There's a a lot of planning that goes into Christmas day and sometimes things just don't go to plan. But it can be a good thing - a family mishap or hilarious memory that you can laugh about in Christmases to come.
Whether you burnt the dinner or were stranded at an airport...
Share your Christmas mishaps below!
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
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61.6% Summer
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36.7% Winter
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1.7% Other - I'll share below
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