If you have a relative who suffers from dementia and they are due to move to a new home soon, you should keep the following two tips in mind.
1. Put their favourite items into one specific box
Even people who are completely healthy tend to get stressed out when moving house. However, for a person with dementia, this experience can be exceptionally distressing, as this condition can cause not only memory loss but also extreme confusion and disorientation. As such, it is possible that your relative might become very upset and confused when they see all of their belongings packed into boxes and may express fear or even anger when you take them to their new home.
One way to help them adjust to this change in their surroundings is to put some of their favourite items that they use on a daily basis into one specific box, and then open this box immediately after taking them to the new property. Providing your relative with familiar, comforting items that they have seen and used regularly for many years may help to calm them down in the aftermath of the house move and adjust to life in their new home.
In this box, you might want to put some framed photographs of your relative's immediate family members, a box of their favourite type of tea and their favourite mug, along with their most frequently worn pair of slippers.
2. Make sure the removalists are aware of your relative's condition
It is important to make sure that the removalists are made aware of your relative's condition before they arrive. Whilst you don't need to go into great detail about this health matter, you should give them an idea of how your relative may behave and what they should do if he or she gets upset.
The reason for this is as follows; if you don't tell the removalists about this issue beforehand, they may not understand or know how to react appropriately if your relative becomes confused or has an emotional outburst (something that is very common amongst those with dementia). Additionally, if the removalists are unaware of this issue, and your relative, in their forgetful state, gives them incorrect instructions, the house move may take longer than expected.
For example, if he or she tells the removalists not to bother taking a specific piece of furniture when this item is actually needed in their new home, the removalists may end up having to make a second trip back to the old house to collect this furniture item. For more information, contact a moving company like Radcliffe Pty Ltd today.
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