By Sue Ryan and Nancy Treaster
The Caregiver’s Journey podcast is an innovative and refreshing way to learn how to tackle day-to-day Alzheimer's and dementia family caregiving challenges with strength, patience, and peace o
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The podcast currently has 15 episodes available.
As caregivers for our loved ones with Alzheimer's and other types of dementia, we've learned overnight incontinence is one of the most challenging aspects of the journey. It's not a topic often discussed, yet it's a reality for us to face with compassion, dignity, and preparation. We are Nancy Treaster and Sue Ryan. Through our experiences, we've developed four important tips to help you navigate overnight incontinence in your caregiving journey.
Takeaways
Overnight incontinence can be particularly challenging because it affects the sleep of both the care receiver and the caregiver.
It often requires a balance between managing a mess and getting necessary rest.
This stage can be an inflection point in the caregiving journey, potentially requiring additional help or considering moving your loved one into a care community.
Here are four tips to help you navigate this challenging phase:
Tip 1: Transition to Nighttime and ultimately Disposable Incontinence Underwear
It's important to ensure your care receiver has appropriate protection overnight.
Tip 2: Protect the Mattress
Accidents will happen, so it's important to protect the bed.
Tip 3: Make the Bathroom Easy to Find
Help your care receiver locate the bathroom easily if they wake up during the night. We cover this in detail in podcast episode 9 Preparing for Incontinence.
Tip 4: Keep Your Care Receiver Comfortable Overnight
As incontinence progresses, it becomes important to take additional steps to ensure comfort.
Navigating overnight incontinence in Alzheimer's and dementia care is challenging in the beginning as you’re both adapting. With patience, curiosity, compassion, preparation and the right mindset, it can be manageable.
Key points:
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As caregivers for our loved ones with Alzheimer's and other types of dementia, we've learned bathing and dressing can become significant challenges. These activities are often early signs of transitioning from the initial phase of the caregiving journey where we’re simply prompting and helping them, to what we call the "messy middle”, when we begin asserting more control. We are Nancy Treaster and Sue Ryan. Through our experiences, what we've learned from support groups, and others on their journeys, we've developed four important tips to help you navigate bathing and dressing for your care receiver.
Takeaways
Here are four tips to help you navigate this phase:
Tip 1: Simplify Instructions
As the journey progresses, your care receiver may begin struggling with multi-step instructions.
Start giving one instruction at a time.
Break down their tasks into smaller steps.
Consider adaptive clothing options.
Tip 2: Gradually Insert Yourself into the Process
As their challenges increase, it’s time to become more involved in their bathing and dressing process.
From early in their journey, if you haven’t already learned their natural bathing and dressing routines, observe and note them.
Prompt or assist them in their routine order.
Set up the bathroom to make it as easy for them as possible to bathe (if you normally keep everything put away, put the items out where they can see everything they’ll need),
Put their clothing out. (Tip: When I began putting my husband’s clothing out, I began putting my clothing out as well, explaining to him I had heard this was a great tip to simplify dressing, and wanted to try it myself.) This helps maintain their dignity.
Prepare everything needed for their bathing and dressing in advance.
Consider marking the preferred shower temperature on the faucet.
Tip 3: Transition to Sponge Baths
At some point, traditional showers or baths may become too challenging or stressful.
Use non-rinse bathing wipes for body cleansing.
Try non-rinse shampoo caps for hair washing.
For facial cleansing, consider products like Burt's Bees Micellar Water.
Maintain a regular schedule of cleaning, even if it's not a full bath every day.
Tip 4: Assist with the Dressing Process
As with bathing, dressing will require more assistance over time.
- Transition to adaptive clothing when appropriate, especially if incontinence becomes an issue.
- Ensure safety during the dressing process (e.g., have them seated when putting on socks).
- Be attentive to their comfort, including temperature preferences.
- Encourage participation in the process as much as possible.
Read More in This Blog here
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As caregivers for our loved ones with Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, we’ve learned that full incontinence is an inevitable part of our journey. It’s a topic not often discussed, yet it’s a reality for us to navigate with compassion, dignity, and preparation — for both us and our care receiver. We are Nancy Treaster and Sue Ryan. Through our experiences, we’ve developed 2 valuable tips to help you navigate bowel and bedbound incontinence in your caregiving journey.
Watch Bowel and Bedbound Incontinence: Two Essential Topics / Alzheimer’s and Other Dementias
https://youtu.be/PD4zOctyfPw
Takeaways
Read More in This Blog here
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Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform.
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As caregivers for our loved ones with Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, we’ve learned managing incontinence is one of the most challenging aspects of our journey. It’s a topic where having detailed information is vital to our adjusting to this part of our journey mentally, physically, and emotionally.
We are Nancy Treaster and Sue Ryan. Through our experiences, and insights we’ve learned from others in support groups, we’ve developed three indispensable tips to help you navigate the important component of incontinence care with your care receiver — cleaning them
Takeaways here
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Who knew that understanding the stages of incontinence could make such a difference in our caregiving journey? As caregivers for our loved ones with Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, we’ve learned incontinence is an inevitable - and can be - a challenging part of our journey. It’s a reality and a topic that’s not often discussed. It’s helpful for us to be prepared to navigate incontinence with compassion, dignity, and grace for our care receivers and for us. We are Nancy Treaster and Sue Ryan. Through our experiences, we’ve developed four tips to help you navigate the pre-incontinence and early incontinence phases on your caregiving journey.
Takeaways
Before we introduce your tips, it’s helpful to understand what we mean by ‘pre-incontinence’ and ‘early incontinence’.
Pre-Incontinence
This is the phase before actual incontinence begins, when our care receiver is showing signs incontinence may be on the horizon.
Signs include:
Early Incontinence
When actual incontinence begins, it usually starts with urinary incontinence. Your loved one may still be trying to find the bathroom but often doesn’t make it in time.
Signs include:
Tip 1. Make it Easy to Find the Bathroom
Yes, to us this sounds simple. To our loved one, they are disconnecting with the signs their bodies are telling them they need to go, and the steps to use the bathroom. One of the most effective ways to support your loved one during pre-incontinence and early incontinence is by making the bathroom as accessible and easy to find as possible.
Tip 2. Schedule Bathroom Breaks
Establishing a consistent bathroom routine can significantly reduce accidents and make the transition into full incontinence more manageable.
Tip 3. Simplify Cleanup
As incontinence progresses, accidents will happen. Being prepared can make cleanup easier and less stressful for both you and your loved one.
Tip 4. Think Positively and Have Lots of Grace
Perhaps the most important tip of all is to maintain a positive attitude and extend grace to both you and your loved one.
Read More in This Blog here
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These resources contain affiliate links so we may receive a small commission for purchases made at no additional cost to you.
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Description
Who knew being prepared could make such a difference in managing incontinence? Incontinence can be one of the most difficult areas of our caregiving journeys. It’s personal. It’s awkward. It’s rarely something discussed — by anyone — making it potentially uncomfortable to talk about. It’s also one of the most important areas to navigate with compassion and dignity — for us and for our care receiver. Early preparation is essential. This is your moment of truth as a caregiver. Ask yourself: Can I handle this physically? Mentally? Emotionally? And if so, how? The good news is, you’ve got time to think it through, talk with others, and make smart decisions. Use this runway wisely — your future self will thank you. We are Nancy Treaster and Sue Ryan — we’ve faced incontinence care head-on. Trust us, it’s better to think about this now or you’ll wish you had. There’s a lot going on with incontinence! In this episode, we’re sharing four game-changing tips to help you be prepared.
Takeaways
For takeaways click here
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Keywords
Preparing for incontinence, Boundaries, Alzheimer's, dementia, caregiver, caregiving, dementia care, memory care, dementia caregiver blog, Alzheimer's blog, caregiver blog, senior caregiver blog, dementia caregiver tips, how to care for someone with dementia living alone, information on dementia for caregivers, how to be a caregiver for someone with dementia, family caregiver, frontotemporal dementia, dementia caregiver tips, family caregiver, Sue Ryan, Nancy Treaster, Susan J Ryan
Description
When a close family member is diagnosed with dementia, it can be uniquely challenging for young adults to navigate this new reality. We are Nancy and Merritt Treaster. When Merritt was in his early twenties, his dad, who was 60 at the time, was diagnosed with Frontotemporal dementia. A few short years later, his grandfather, at the age of 85, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Merritt’s experiences led us to create this episode to help other young adults. He has distilled his thoughts on how to be better prepared into four essential tips for young adults facing a family member’s dementia diagnosis.
Takeaways
For takeaways click here
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Keywords
Young adult, teenager, boundaries, incontinence, Alzheimer's, dementia, caregiver, caregiving, dementia care, memory care, dementia caregiver blog, Alzheimer's blog, caregiver blog, senior caregiver blog, dementia caregiver tips, how to care for someone with dementia living alone, information on dementia for caregivers, how to be a caregiver for someone with dementia, family caregiver, frontotemporal dementia, dementia caregiver tips, family caregiver, Sue Ryan, Nancy Treaster, Susan J Ryan, Merritt Treaster
You’re going to wish you’d known about padding hard corners earlier in your caregiving journey!
We are Nancy Treaster and Sue Ryan. Through our experiences as caregivers for our family members and loved ones with Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, we’ve learned ensuring home safety is both vitally important and ever-changing.
In this post, we’re sharing three main tips for managing safety — both inside and outside the home. These help you keep your loved one safe while giving you peace of mind.
Takeaways
Practical Tips
Tip 1: Create a File of Life
One of the most effective ways to keep your loved one safe is by creating a document called File of Life. File of Life was created to give first responders valuable medical and personal information when the people they’re helping can’t.
The valuable information this File of Life document contains about your care receiver includes:
Tip 2: Care Receiver proof Your Home
As your loved one becomes more curious and restless, it’s time to care receiver proof your home. This process is ongoing — observe and adjust as needed. It’s most likely still hard for us to know what they can and can’t remember. We’re so used to them being able to think rationally, it can be a hard transition to using the position they can’t.
For those of you who have raised children, it’s the same kind of process — they’re curious, you don’t know what they’ll explore, and they don’t yet know what is safe or dangerous.
Tip 3: Minimize Fall Risks
Falling is unfortunately inevitable. Here are steps you can take to minimize risks and impact.
For takeaways click here
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Keywords
Home safety, child proof, dementia proof, reduce falls, Alzheimers, dementia, caregiver, caregiving, Alzheimers care, dementia care, memory care, best dementia podcast, alzheirmers podcast, caregiver podcast, dementia caregiver podcast, dementia podcast, alzheimers podcast, caregiver podcast, senior caregiver podcast, dementia caregiver tips, frontotemporal dementia, dementia caregiver tips, how to deal with dementia as a caregiver, information on dementia for caregivers, how to be a caregiver for someone with dementia, family caregiver, Sue Ryan, Nancy Treaster, Susan J Ryan
If your loved one can’t do three of the things we discuss in this episode, they should not be home alone. As caregivers for our husbands, parents, and other loved ones with Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, we both know that one of the early goals for our loved one is to help them maintain their independence as long as it's reasonable. You’ll be balancing your concern for their safety with their independence, remembering their ability to stay home alone is temporary. We are Sue Ryan and Nancy Treaster, and through our experiences, we're sharing six key tips for supporting your loved one's ability to be home alone.
Show Notes
https://sueryansolutions.medium.com/leaving-your-loved-one-at-home-alone-six-essential-tips-b46fc1b6a1ef
Related episodes
Episode #7 Care Receiver Home Safety / Alzheimer’s and Other Dementias
https://youtu.be/dFlZXGn4r9k
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These resources contain affiliate links so we may receive a small commission for purchases made at no additional cost to you.
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If you can successfully leverage tip one in this episode you will have an easy path to taking away the car keys. As caregivers for our husbands, parents, and other loved ones with Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, we both learned that taking away the car keys can be a sensitive and important issue to address. In the beginning stages of dementia, our primary goal is to balance safety with our care receivers' desire for independence. We are Sue Ryan and Nancy Treaster, and through our experiences, we're offering four key tips.
Show Notes
Takeaways
We offer four tips to help you.
Tip 1: Understand Legal and Insurance Considerations
One of the most effective ways to approach the driving issue is to familiarize yourself with the legal and insurance implications in your area. This involves researching local laws and understanding the potential consequences of allowing someone with dementia to continue driving.
Tip 2: Implement Tracking Measures
For those in the early stages of dementia who are still able to drive safely, tracking can provide peace of mind for caregivers while allowing the care receiver to maintain some independence.
Tip 3: Gradual Transition: Riding Along and Taking Over
As dementia progresses, it's helpful to start riding along frequently and gradually take over driving responsibilities.
Tip 4: Removing Driving Completely
Sometimes, for safety reasons, we need to take more decisive action to prevent our loved ones from driving.
Additional Resources Mentioned
These resources contain affiliate links so we may receive a small commission for purchases made at no additional cost to you.
Rate, subscribe and share your tips on social media!
Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform.
Please click here to review, follow or subscribe to our podcast.
If you don’t see your preferred platform click on Podchaser and click at the bottom “Write my review”
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Keywords
Alzheimers, dementia, caregiver, caregiving, Alzheimers care, dementia care, memory care, best dementia podcast, best alzheirmers podcast, best caregiver podcast, best caregiving podcast, best caregiver podcast, dementia caregiver podcast, dementia podcast, alzheimers podcast, caregiver podcast, senior caregiver podcast, dementia caregiver tips, frontotemporal dementia, dementia caregiver tips, how to deal with dementia as a caregiver, information on dementia for caregivers, how to be a caregiver for someone with dementia, family caregiver, Sue Ryan, Nancy Treaster, Susan J Ryan
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The podcast currently has 15 episodes available.
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