The neurologist told us almost a year ago in May that socialization is so important for someone with Alzheimer's. Through social interaction you almost force the person with Alzheimer's to try to remember the little things you encounter in daily living. As the old saying goes, practice makes perfect but in this case repetition is one way to keep the mind from losing ground too fast when it comes to dementia.
Having difficulty recalling the word to identify an object is something my MIL has had trouble with for a while now. Last night was the first time we noticed that she could not cover it up. She tried to tell a waitress at a restaurant that she wanted more chips. There were four other people at the table with us so there were several conversations going on. It took a few minutes for me to notice the waitress looking for help. My MIL finally pointed to the basket of chips and the girl understood what she was asking for. Luckily, my MIL did not get flustered or seem embarrassed which is a side effect of "forced socialization". She knows now that people understand and will help her with her memory hiccups because for many this is a natural part of life when they have dementia.
At least she got to eat some good mexican food! Life is good......
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