Walking in the shoes of someone living with dementia is challenging at best, especially since every person, like shoes -  is different!  There is an urgent need to help professional and family caregivers communicate and respond to the needs of their care partners.  A walk in their shoes is a powerful and very needed training and education tool to help others develop understanding, empathy and improve care.

What's it really like to live with dementia?  To cope with the anxiety, embarrassment, feelings of loss and hopeless that can so often accompany the progression of dementia.  There are far too many caregivers today who are struggling with truly understanding the depths of living with cognitive decline and sensory changes.  Instead caregivers try to cope with what's on the surface.  Transformation takes place when caregivers change how they think, feel and act!

Is it any wonder that upwards of 25% of caregivers suffer from self-induced stress over the holiday season?  I was not at all surprised by  that statistic, and actually I believe it is probably higher.  Then I read that 65% of stress is due to family and in-laws!  That puts a whole new twist on WHY caregivers by and large are at great risk of stress related emotional, physical and spiritual breakdown that starts in November and last for at least 2 months!

Empathetic listening is defined as a method via which you can prevent or manage disruptive or challenging behaviors.  Caregivers can benefit from practicing empathetic listening, especially with people living with dementia.   The result will be improved communications and reduced stress for both care partners.

I have always been a proponent that if something is just not working well, shifting gears may be a solution.  Let's face it - everything is changing fast these days, so much so that it seems as if technology  leads the pack in shifting gears at every juncture of our daily lives.

We all like to think that have compassion for others don't we?   After all, we give care, so we must have empathy.  Is there a difference between caring and true compassion?