Dementia and Heat

While growing up, my family would visit my Great Grandma Ollis in the mountains of North Carolina.  I don’t remember a great deal of details about these visits.  I do remember, though, how Grandma Ollis was old, her house was small, and the heat coming from her wood stove in the middle of the summer would take your breath away.  It was much like walking into an oven.

Fast forward some forty-five years, and let’s walk into Momma’s assisted living apartment.  While it is not as hot as Grandma Ollis’ small mountain home, it is hot enough to cause this menopausal woman to melt.  Go around the corner to Pop’s apartment, and you will find the thermostat set on 90.Yes, 90!
Why do we get so cold as we age?  The answer has a lot to do with fat.  Fat is a subject I don’t enjoy discussing.  I have fought the battle of the bulge my entire life, and fat is not my friend.  However, a vibrant and healthy young or middle-aged individual has fat pads beneath the skin.  These fat pads provide protection to the bones, and they help hold in heat.  As we age, these fat pads decrease and, eventually, they go away.  The absence of fat pads increases the likelihood of bruising and broken bones and decreases the body’s ability to stay warm.
When I visit Momma, and the heat starts to be too much, I find myself standing in the hall to cool off.  I don’ want to make her uncomfortable or self-conscious, but I don’t want to faint, either.  To top it all off, Momma is often lying in her bed with a flannel quilt on top and a heated mattress pad underneath her.  I am relatively sure I would melt like Frosty The Snowman if I crawled in bed with her.
While caregiving with someone with dementia, become aware of the "why " for the situation.  The answer will make you a better caregiver.  Hope that gives you Something To Ponder.

Dementia and Sleep

I’m sure we are all aware of the importance of sleep.  Without sleep we are grouchy, less productive, sluggish, and just not focused.  Why is this true?  The answer might help entice you to improve your lifestyle so as to improve the quality and amount of sleep you get each night.

The brain is the processing center for all we see, hear, smell, touch, and taste. It helps us know the difference between right and wrong as well as right and left.  It tells our heart to beat, our kidneys to filter, and our bladder to speak to us several times a day. 

The brain also takes new information and places that information in permanent storage facilities throughout the brain.  However, the brains ability to move that information is dependent upon good quality sleep.

Sleep is measured in five stages.  Each stage progresses toward a deeper sleep.  The deepest stage is referred to as REM sleep, or Rapid Eye Movement Sleep.   According to about.com, “On average, we enter the REM stage approximately 90 minutes after falling asleep. The first cycle of REM sleep might last only a short amount of time, but each cycle becomes longer. REM sleep can last up to an hour as sleep progresses.”

Why is REM sleep so important.  It is during REM sleep that new information gained throughout the day is moved from the hippocampus (which is a temporary filing facility for the brain) to a place in the brain where it will live permanently.  If REM sleep is not achieved, the brain will lose that information. 

Staying up all night to study, for example, is not as beneficial as studying and then taking a few hours to sleep.  During those few hours the brain can move the new information learned to a permanent location in the brain.  Later, when the new information is needed, it is available for recall.

We all will agree that sleep is a good thing.  Who knew it could be so productive?

Hope that gives you SOMETHING TO PONDER.