Alzheimer’s Disease – Preparing the Home
Your goal in adapting the home for a person with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is to keep the surroundings as familiar as possible while making the changes necessary to create a home that is calming, reassuring, safe, and supportive.
The home should be suitable for AD symptoms, which include—
- Memory loss
- Confusion about how to get to or find a particular room
- Decreased judgment
- Tendency to wander
- Poor impulse control
- Changes in vision, hearing, depth perception
- Sensitivity to changes in temperature
AD symptoms get worse as time goes on. In the early stage, it causes mostly thinking (cognitive) difficulties. Eventually, it causes physical decline as well. In the late stage, the loss of abilities such as walking has a major effect on how much care will be needed. Features of the home, such as steps and narrow bathroom doors, can become major obstacles to providing care.
Not all changes to the home need to be made at once. Remember that it is difficult for a person with AD to adjust to changes in the environment. Therefore, it may be best to make some changes when the person is in the early stage of the illness and will have the easiest time getting used to them.
When the necessary changes are made, the home will be safer. The person with AD will be able to function better, and your job as a caregiver will be less physically and emotionally stressful. The chance of a fall, an accident, and frightening experiences such as having the person in your care wander away from home will be reduced.
Resource For You
The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America created The Apartment—a model studio residence built to showcase ways that practical design and technology can greatly increase the quality of life for someone living with dementia and help family care partners protect their loved ones’ safety. Visit, the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America | The Apartment-A Guide to Creating a Dementia-Friendly Home (alzfdn.org)
General Home Safety for Person with AD
A safe, comfortable home can help a person with Alzheimer’s feel more relaxed and less overwhelmed. Try to look at the world through the eyes of a person with AD and above all focus on preventing accidents, wandering away from home, and emotional upset.
Furniture
Remove any unneeded furniture. Place the remaining furniture so that there is enough space for a walker or wheelchair avoiding the need for an elderly or disabled person to move around coffee tables and other barriers. Once the person in your care has gotten used to where the furniture is, do not change it. Make sure furniture will not move if it is leaned on. Check that the armrests of a favorite chair are long enough to help the person get up and down. Make chair seats 20” high. Remove scatter rugs, which can cause falls. Add cushioning to sharp corners and reflector tape on furniture, cabinets, and vanities.
Lighting
Plan for extra outdoor lighting for good nighttime visibility, especially on stairs and walkways. Use automatic night-lights in the rooms used by the person in your care.
Place nonskid tape on the edges of stairs (and consider painting the edge of the first and last step a different color from the floor to help with depth perception). Provide enough no-glare lighting—indirect is best. Place light switches next to room entrances so the lights can be turned on before entering a room. Consider “clap-on” lamps beside the bed. Cover smooth or shiny surfaces to reduce glare, which upsets or confuses the person with AD. Eliminate shadows by creating a uniform level of light with up-lights that reflect off the ceiling. (Ask a lighting store for a lamp that doesn’t cast shadows.)
Signage & Decor
For those who tend to wander, create a safe path through the home for a “wander loop.” Use reflector tape to create a path to follow from the bedroom to the bathroom at night. Cover or remove mirrors if they are upsetting to the person with AD, who may not recognize himself. Place labels on drawers and cabinets. Decorate the front door so he or she can recognize their house or apartment. To improve the person’s mood and help with memory recall, keep items displayed or paintings from former cherished activities such as mountain hikes, seaside vacations or sports.
Taking Care of Yourself – Dementia Care/Self Care
It is natural for you to have feelings of inadequacy in dealing with the caregiving challenge and heartbroken to be losing the love and friendship of the person you knew. Expect to feel frustrations: from the person’s inability to follow instructions and perform daily tasks, which slows the pace of your day; constant repetition of the same phrases or stories; rage, withdrawal,or use of profanity; demands to do things (like driving) that are no longer safe.
You are the engine that will keep things going over the long haul, so take care of yourself by using little techniques. Take brief daytime “power naps.” Arrange respite care and reach out to friends when you need to chat and have a good laugh. Make a nutritious meal and snack plan for yourself so you eat properly, regardless of how busy you are. Even short exercise breaks help keep you fit and emotionally balanced. Try to keep your sense of humor. Alzheimer’s is not funny, but amusing things do happen.
Safety Tips – Home Safety
Keep a telephone and flashlight where they are easily accessible. Keep power tools out of reach. Place protective fireplace screens. Cover exposed hot-water pipes and cover radiators with radiator guards. Have a carpenter install railings in places where a person might need extra support. Consult a physical or occupational therapist for help in placing grab bars and safety rails. Place colored tape on glass doors and picture windows. Install a sturdy gate with a lock on dangerous stairs. Gate must be higher than the person’s waist. Baby gates are dangerous as people may try to climb over them. Use child-proof plugs in electrical outlets. Clear fire-escape routes. Provide smoke alarms on every floor and outside every bedroom. Place a fire extinguisher in the kitchen. Remove or lock up all poisonous household items. Install safety latches on the doors and gated exteriors. Install alarms or bells on doors. Lock the cellar and garage doors; hide the garage remote control.
Lock liquor cabinets. Store car keys in a locked container; ask a mechanic to disable the car so you can still use it but the person with AD cannot.
Caregiver Lending Library
The Caregiver Lending Library is a resource for any individual who is a caregiver or is interested in learning more about current issues and challenges that caregivers may face. Items that may be borrowed at no cost include books, DVDs, CDs, Conversation Cards, and Activity Books, and Workbooks. The requested items will be mailed with a postage-paid envelope for return to the Caregiver Lending Library. Contact dhambel@buckeyehills.org or 1-800-331-2644 Ext. 2620.