Posted 6-12-20
Happy Friday, you all! I hope you have a peach weekend after sliding through this Friday with flying colors. 🙂 I had a nifty piece on a different topic in the chute for you today, but today’s date distracted me and reminded me of a key Caregiving 101 tip, so the other piece will have to wait. Off we go. 🙂
Did you catch the pattern in today’s date, 6/12/20? 0>2>6>12>20>30>42>56>72>90>110
Said differently: 1×2= 2___ 2 x 3 = 6___ 3 x 4 = 12___ 4 x 5 = 20___ 5 x 6 = 30___ 6 x 7 = 42___7x8=56___8x9=72___ 9 x 10 = 90
Said differentlier: f(x) = x(x + 1)
Said even more differentlier:

Don’t believe me? Here ya go:
Don’t trust me until your computer says so? Here ya go in C#:
My point? Number games are fun. Here are two more at closer to my speed:
What do math patterns have to do with dementia? Simple. Not much…but patterns in general are priceless! Patterns stick with us, even when the most important memories flee. To me, patterns are a shorter term version in dementia of how music and art sticks with us even in the storms of dementia.
Do me a solid and zoom back about a year and a few months on the blog and read through a few of them… Nearly every article mentioned patterns and routine as being critical. Mom would have several good days in a row…then BAM…someone had a visitor…or worse, there was a party for Thanksgiving and all of the furniture was moved to accommodate the tables. Get on a roll, then she falls and struggles for a week. Patterns and routines are mission-critical to them. They can cling to them for dear life and, take them away, they struggle.
This highlights the need to find ways to retain nursing home staff. Hire good folks and keep them. Type cast the ones able to the memory unit because the patients seem to remember faces just fine. This helps in feeding and in the awkward moments of their stay at the Memory Hotel and Suites (toileting, bathing, etc…). Every nursing home I have ever known has had a solid core group of employees that did most of the work and a revolving door of the rest. Training, training, training…and screening, screening, screening these folks…all critical in bringing this pattern to life in the nursing system.
What of you heroes who are caregiving at home? I bet you have already discovered the importance of patterns and routines. However, remember, you need respite time too. Contact the Alzheimer’s Association and your local Area Agency on Aging and schedule respite care to give you a break on defined times and days. Work with your family and extended care team to define some other specified times for them to spell you for a break. BUT, find routines as best you can. These routines may not help you with your math, but they certainly can help make an exceptionally hard task a little easier.
#EndALZ
Update: My brother and his family and I had a nice visit with mom via video chat. My screenshot game was weighed and found lacking, but the visit was very nice. She was more verbal than most days and was quite happy. We have another window meal scheduled for Wednesday…always nice to try to communicate however I can. I try to be systematic on the days and times we chat too. I am not 100% sure it helps since it is days apart, but I have figured out good times of the day to try and others that are not so good.
A quick shout-out to a couple of my favorite teachers ever: Mrs. Stica, you are partially to credit and/or blame for my number fascination. 🙂 Before you, Mrs. Whitlow (5th grade) indulged me as I worked the numbers to see how many hours it was since Columbus sailed, so she gets some of the credit/blame as well. 🙂 You two are some of my heroes. 🙂
Here are some fun facts about the date:
https://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=6%2F12%2F20
and the sequence:
https://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=1%2C2%2C6%2C12%2C20%2C30%2C42%2C56+sequence
Last little analogy: You are on a desert island with your soccer ball. You lose the soccer ball. Doesn’t scratch the surface…When all is fleeing, we need something that stays.
and a bonus: Link 🙁 Loneliness makes this need more pronounced.










