As a geriatric care manager, the primary diagnosis of the individuals that I work with is dementia. Dementia can be from early in the disease process to very late, so the ability of patients to communicate with me is highly varied. Following are some touching and funny stories from my patient archives.
Elaine was a 93-year-old female with significant dementia. She was alert and awake but was only oriented to her own name. That means she was very confused. When I would come to see her weekly, she would beckon for me to come to her bedside. She would grab my face in her hands, pull me down to her face level, look lovingly into my eyes and tell me, “You are so beautiful. I love you so much”. I was the only one she did this too, and I do not know why. I was given one of her plants when she died. I look at it and remember her with a smile.
Pat was having trouble fastening the seat belt in the car. He refused to sit in the front seat of the car with me. He was struggling with the belt, so I turned to look at him and smiled at him. He asked me why I was smiling. I told him that it was because he was having difficulty and I understood. His response to me was, “Well, I may be having trouble with the seat belt, but it is not because I have a fat belly like yours.” I could not contain my laughter, but Pat could not understand what I was laughing about.
I was visiting a patient in a nursing home. I overheard the following conversation between a resident and staff member. The CNA was trying to get the resident to walk down the hall to get his monthly weight. The CNA told the man, “Let’s walk down the hall and get your weight.” The resident turned and said, “Ok, let’s wait here.” He would not move because he was waiting. I stood and listened to his interchange for several minutes and walked away laughing.
When working with individuals it can be very stressful, but we must always keep a sense of humor to work in this field. We cannot get upset with the conversation because the person with dementia has lost their social boundaries and is not trying to be hurtful. They just cannot understand the constructs of social structure anymore. If you have any humorous stories of your own, please share them with us on our Facebook Page.