Educating Children about Alzheimer's Gives Them a Sense of Purpose.

Reasons to Educate Children about Alzheimer’s Disease                                                                                                               

#1 - So that children will be comfortable around and interacting with a person who has Alzheimer’s (See January’s Blog)
#2 - To teach children compassion (See February’s Blog)
#3 - Teach children how to create a safe supportive environment in which they can thrive by creating a schedule (See March’s Blog)
#4 - To prepare children to adapt to future changes that occur in life: Mild Alzheimer’s Disease (See April’s Blog)
#5 - To preserve memories: Moderate Alzheimer’s Disease  (See May’s Blog)
#6 - To promote inclusivity by teaching children the importance of treating everyone with respect, regardless of their cognitive abilities: Severe Alzheimer’s Disease (See June’s Blog)
#7 To reduce stigma - When children understand Alzheimer’s or any type of dementia they are more likely to approach someone who has this disease with understanding. (July's blog)
#8 To expose children to career options in healthcare- Children are influenced in career choices by the adults in their lives. Exposure to Alzheimer's education may inspire children to pursue careers in healthcare or research, contributing to the ongoing efforts to find a cure or effective treatments. (August's Blog)
#9 To enhance communication skills: Learning about Alzheimer's disease enhances a child's communication skills because they may need to adapt their communication style when interacting with someone who has the disease. (September Blog)
 

Reason #10 Creating a Sense of Purpose.  Educating Children about Alzheimer's disease gives them a sense of purpose.  

Story: Alder’s Mom, Jean, was first diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease when she was in a rehabilitation facility following a back operation. Jean became very despondent. The grandchildren were invited to visit the facility and participate in therapy with Jean. The immediate joy and spark of life the grandchildren brought to their Gran increased her motivation in therapy and her joy for life. 

Alder educated her niece (age 7) and nephew (age 5) about Alzheimer’s disease and how it was affecting their Gran’s brain. They wanted to help their Gran. The children started to brainstorm ways they could help her. Alder watched to see if her niece and nephew would follow through. They did. In turn, Alder’s mom wanted to be an active part of their lives and the interactions gave her purpose, too. 

Information:
Dictionary.com defines purpose as: “the reason for which something exists or is done.”  It’s in our serving of others and ourselves that we develop purpose, and with it, confidence and positive self-esteem. 

Psychologists have researched the benefits of having a purpose in life for several decades. In a 2019, meta analysis of the data on the benefits of Life Purpose by Michaéla C. Schippers and Niklas Ziegler https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6923189/ found that: “The good news is that it is in principle never too late to find a purpose in life, although recent research suggests that it may be most beneficial to find a direction in life earlier rather than later.” 

Kang Y., Strecher V. J., Kim E., Falk E. B. (2019), found that “People with a purpose in life are less likely to experience conflict when making health-related decisions and are more likely to self-regulate when making these decisions and consequently experience better (mental) health outcomes.”

Kim E. S., Strecher V. J., Ryff C. D. (2014). and Freedland K. E. (2019); found that, “having a purpose in life can aid in overcoming stress, depression, anxiety, and other psychological problems.”

The question becomes how to assist your children and your loved one who has Alzheimer’s or any type of dementia in finding a meaningful purpose. We suggest the following activities.

Activities: 
We’ve created a downloadable PDF with activities to educate children on the importance of purpose in their lives and the lives of their loved one who has Alzheimer’s or any type of dementia, and how to find and live that purpose.

Tips:

1. Look for strengths and abilities in both your children and your loved one with dementia.

2. Pay attention to how the child and your loved one act when they have a purpose and responsibility to each other; for example, when they’re helping each other prepare a snack. 

3. Post purpose-filled goals in a place where the family can see them every day. The goals need to be measurable. We will show you how in the downloadable PDF.

4. Living with purpose increases self-esteem and teaches a life skill the child can apply throughout their life.

Actions: 

1. Download the PDF and use the suggested activities to learn more about non-verbal communication. 

2. Sign up for our newsletter and receive four weekly emails with information, tips and activities on improving communication. 

3. Purchase the MMAAP to get even more information, tips, and activities to incorporate children into the care of your loved one who has Alzheimer’s or any type of dementia. 

4. Please scroll to the bottom of this blog and give us a thumbs up if you found it helpful. Leave a comment. Feel free to conveniently share it.