Routine plays an extremely important role in the day-to-day well being of your loved one. As Alzheimer’s disease progresses and impairs your loved one’s memory—preventing him or her from remembering basic things (such as names, faces, and even favorite places)—your loved one may experience elevated levels of stress or frustration.
A series of daily routines may ease your loved one’s stress levels by providing him or her with a degree of certainty in a world that’s often riddled with anxiety and uncertainty. For instance, if your loved one typically drinks watches a favorite television show, eats a bowl of ice-cream, or drinks a glass of water before going to bed, then you may wish to continue that ritual. Likewise, if your loved one sits on the patio each morning while drinking tea or reading a newspaper, then you’ll want to allow him or her to keep that routine to decrease an overabundance of anxiety about what the day may bring.
While routines are important, you’ll want to make sure your loved one’s daily schedule doesn’t get so full that performing the ritual—or missing the ritual—doesn’t increase his or her stress levels. For instance, if your loved one misses a television show or if you forget to do a daily routine with your loved on at a specific time—such as folding laundry—then you should do your best to simply focus on the next daily routine. Likely, with all the changes occurring in your lives, you’ll miss a ritual here or there, so you may find that a good approach to schedules and routines is to remain flexible so you can focus on attending to your loved one’s needs.
