Exploring Alzheimer's and Dementia

I worked a fair booth for a few days this past weekend and most of it was the usual crowd.  I did, however, have the opportunity to talk with a man whose mom is suffering from Alzheimer's.

My ears perked up.  Dementia is something with which I am quite familiar.  My grandfather had this condition basically from the time I was born until he lost his battle with it in 2005, and since they lived in the same town as us, my sister and I spent a good portion of our childhood with he and my grandma. 

The man with whom I visited was at first a bit ashamed that he was looking at toys for his mom.  But the more we visited, the more excited both of us became at the prospect of stimulating his mother's brain and giving her something worthwhile to occupy her time.

My conclusion was that most anything Discovery Toys has to offer can potentially do both of these things; it really depends on where each individual lies in his or her mental and physical capacity at any given time.

A few of the suggestions I have, though, are as follows:

Giant Pegboard: especially great for someone who enjoys bright colors, stacking, and patterning

Caterpillar Shape Sorter: a puzzle with varying shapes, patterns, etc., this is rewarding and produces a finished product

Flip Flop Faces: very hands-on; bright colors; works on hand-eye coordination; may help one to express emotions if he or she is nonverbal.

Playful Patterns: varying levels of difficulty; requires some hand-eye coordination, and is just fun!  Produces reward of a finished product.

Tricky Fingers: exercises the fingers - may help keep them limber (good for arthritis); patterning; problem solving as this is a puzzle. 

Wiz Kidz: great for those adults who enjoy word puzzles.  Exercises the brain by using word association such as "something in the garage".

Do you have a loved one who has dementia or Alzheimer's?  Do you know of a care facility that you think may benefit from one of our award-winning products?  Contact me today!  See my website www.discoverytoyslink.com/kidsarenumberone