Holiday Tips when Alzheimer’s is Present

Contributed by Chris Soden

The holidays are often filled with opportunities for togetherness, sharing, laughter and memories. But they can also bring stress, disappointment and sadness. A person living with Alzheimer’s may feel a special sense of loss during the holidays because of the changes he or she has experienced. At the same time, caregivers may feel overwhelmed maintaining traditions while providing care.

In the early stage, a person living with Alzheimer’s may experience minor changes. Some may withdraw and be less comfortable socializing, while others may relish seeing family and friends as before. The key is to check in with each other, focus on the things that bring happiness and let go of activities that seem overwhelming or stressful. 

As the disease progresses into the middle and late stages, review your holiday plans to ensure they are still a good fit. The following tips may help you make the holidays easier and happier occasions.

Adjust expectations.

• Call a meeting or arrange for a group discussion for family and friends to discuss holiday celebrations. Make sure that everyone understands your caregiving situation and has realistic expectations about what you can and cannot do. No one should expect you to maintain every holiday tradition or event.
• Give yourself permission to do only what you can reasonably manage. If you’ve always invited 15 to 20 people to your home, consider inviting five for a simpler meal. Think about having a potluck dinner, asking someone to order and bring dinner, or asking others to host.
•  Familiarize others with your situation by writing an email similar to the following:

I’m writing to let you know how things are going at our house. We’re looking forward to your visit, and we thought it might be helpful for you to understand our current situation before you arrive. You may notice that ___ has changed since you last saw him/her. Among the changes you may notice are ___. Because ___ sometimes has problems remembering and thinking clearly, his/her behavior is a little unpredictable. Please understand that ___ may not remember who you are and may confuse you with someone else. Please don’t feel offended by this. He/she appreciates your being with us and so do we. Please treat ___ as you would any person. A warm smile and a gentle touch on ___’s shoulder or hand will be appreciated more than you know. We would ask that you call when you’re nearby so we can prepare for your arrival. With your help and support, we can create a holiday memory that we’ll all treasure.

Involve the person living with Alzheimer’s. 

•  Involve the person in safe, manageable holiday preparation activities that he or she enjoys. Ask him or her to help you prepare food, wrap packages, help decorate or set the table. Avoid using candies, artificial fruits and vegetables as decorations because a person living with dementia might confuse them with real food.
• Maintain the person’s normal routine as much as possible, so that holiday preparations don’t become disruptive or confusing. Taking on too many tasks can wear on both of you.
• Build on traditions and memories. Your family member may find comfort in going caroling, but you may also experiment with new traditions that might be less stressful or a better fit with your caregiving responsibilities, such as watching seasonal movies.

Adapt gift giving.

• Provide people with suggestions for useful and enjoyable gifts for the person, such as an identification bracelet or membership in a wandering response service (contact the Alzheimer’s Association 24/7 Helpline at 800.272.3900 for more information). Or, suggest comfortable, easy-to-remove clothing; favorite music; photo albums of family and friends; or favorite treats.
• Advise people not to give gifts such as dangerous tools or instruments, utensils, challenging board games, complicated electronic equipment or pets.
• Depending on his or her abilities and preferences, involve the person in gift giving. For example, someone who once enjoyed baking may enjoy helping to make cookies and pack them in tins or boxes. Or you may want to buy the gift so that the person can wrap it.
• If friends or family members ask you what you’d like for a gift, you may want to suggest a gift certificate or something that will help make things easier, like housecleaning; lawn, handyman or laundry services; restaurant gift cards; or even volunteering to visit with the person for an afternoon so you can have some time off.

Try to be flexible. 

• Celebrate over lunch or brunch, rather than an evening meal, so you can work around the evening confusion (sundowning) if it sometimes affects the person living with Alzheimer’s.
• Consider serving nonalcoholic drinks and keeping the room bright.
• Prepare for post-holiday letdown. Arrange for in-home care so you can rest, enjoy a movie or have lunch with a friend, and reduce post-holiday stress and fatigue.

For those who are unsure if a loved one is living with Alzheimer’s or concerned about dementia within their family, you can learn more about how to recognize the symptoms and warning signs through free educational programs provided by the Alzheimer’s Association at alz.org/oc. 

Christopher Soden is the Communications manager for the Alzheimer’s Association. They have free services and programs in South OC both virtual and in person.  If you are navigating Alzeheimers try a class like “Differences between dementia and Alzheimer’s” and “10 Warning Signs of Alzheimer’s” both which are offered monthly.

Need a support Group?

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24/7 Helpline

The Alzheimer’s Association 24/7 Helpline (800-272-3900) is available around the clock, 365 days a year. Through this free service, specialists and master’s-level clinicians offer confidential support and information to people living with dementia, caregivers, families and the public.

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