Funny & Cute Things Our Demented Patients Say

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

A member of my family suffers from dementia, & I find nothing funny or cute about it. There is a thread elsewhere on this site that talks about the elderly being devalued, & I thought of this thread.

Go ahead, let the flaming begin...

I'm not going to flame you. We all cope in different ways. The thing is, my mother, mother-in-law and three of my uncles (my mother's brothers) are suffering from Alzheimer's right now, and my husband and I are acutely aware that it runs in families. We cope with humor, and I'm very happy to see a thread like this one. If you don't find it funny or cute, please feel free to ignore it.

Mom was always quite social, and she was acutely aware of what was happening to her. There were times when she was depressed and despondent about it, but there were more times when she'd laugh about it. I remember taking her to a wedding, and just before the processional started, she loudly asked "Now whose funeral is this?" And then, when the bridesmaids started coming down the aisle, "****. I messed up again!"

That was a funny moment at the time, especially with all the knowing titters in the congregation (bride and groom weren't well suited and the marriage lasted about a week longer than predicted -- six of them.) But for the next couple of years, Mom and I would laugh about that moment, laugh until we couldn't stop.

My sister took her to a funeral, and Mom wanted to know whose wedding they were at. My sister has NO sense of humor, so it's probably better that way. You can get away with laughing until the pew shakes at a wedding; not so much at a funeral.

[charli_appleRN]

Back when I was a CNA, we had to complete a 40 hour workshop to continue to work on the Alz. unit. They taught us alot of different calming techniques to use such as hand massages. I really enjoyed the hand massages and couldn't wait to give one to a client. So I'm massaging this little old lady's hands and I ask her how does it feel. Her reply was "ooooooooooh, honey........if only you were a man"

[NurseDirtyBird]

I worked a few years in a dementia care facility, and I could write a book. One of the funniest things I can remember is one particular pt. believed she was at a hotel. I took her and her friends (a group of about 8 other dementia pts) on a tour of our "luxurious accomodations" and showed them their rooms. I had to explain why some weren't able to share rooms. Then came discussion of the bill. I explained to each and every one of them individually that their children had already paid for them to enjoy their stay. Of course, this led to a discussion about what good kids they had and then..."Is there a place for me to stay the night?" We went around and around this circle about 7 times before my shift ended.

Get your giggles where you can, because in this job they're few and far between.

[ADN2B]

The Brady Bunch was on TV when the client asked who was saying the prayers and I replied, "Mr. Brady."

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

No lubdub, many of us also have family that are in stages of dementia.

Some of the behavior is angry or combative.. and some of it is actually a joy. I see it as they are childlike again.

I often said.. if I get to that point I would want to be "pleasantly " confused.

I could not imagine lamenting each and every confused behavior as a ... "oh poor Mr. Jones... he is sooo out of it."

The fact is .... they have a cognitive decline that we currently cannot change. But we are choosing to assist them with that decline.

It is so much kinder to join in their current "reality" instead of lamenting the decline and attempting to bring them to our reality.

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

My favorite is a lady who would take . ...one of the many bouquets available on the unit...hold it like a bridal bouquet and

"walk" down the aisle to her groom. Now THAT is a memory I would like to go over.. and over again!

[joanna73, BSN, RN]

I love my elderly! I also commented in the "devalued" thread. Dementia is not funny to say the least, but if we didn't find any humour in it, we would cry. Who needs that?

[Kay28]

My favorite was a man that told me "You have a short neck and should see a doctor about that"

[Skips, MSN, RN]

I love this article!

A little off-topic - but as a nursing student now - I'm taught to do reality orientation to people in temporary delirium. If someone has dementia, which is long-term, then I'm supposed to play into their reality, not mine. If that makes sense. I'm glad they're teaching us this now. O_o

[whitebunny]

i had a pt who has a routine of getting confused at 0300 in the am. 2 days ago he got an odd confusion moment after lunch. He kicked the 1st nurse out of room "dont u even get into my business. i dont give a damn about you!" when I went in the room, hes half body was in the bed, stiff, and said "I dont want to have a damn thing to do with you. you are not an angel of heart you are an angel of devil!" I smiled and asked "are you comfortable lying like this? Can I reposition you?" and of course did not help.

An hour later I went in he already adjusted himself into the middle the bed and i woke him up he said "You are a terrific nurse. thank you so much. i am not even exaggerating a bit!"

By the way, I do not give prn cuz i do not consider mood change presented by veral is same as agigtation/anxiety. The 1st nurse suggested me to give seroquel but i did not. Not only my assessment and my clinical judgement tells me not to but also i knew if i tried he was going to spit it out. Pt who lost independence are lost and frustrated, if they wanted to be left alone they should be.

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

My favorite was a man that told me "You have a short neck and should see a doctor about that"

Thanks... snorted coffee on the monitor!

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

I love this article!

A little off-topic - but as a nursing student now - I'm taught to do reality orientation to people in temporary delirium. If someone has dementia, which is long-term, then I'm supposed to play into their reality, not mine. If that makes sense. I'm glad they're teaching us this now. O_o

When I was in school, decades ago, we were taught to re-orient EVERYONE regardless of whether the dementia was long-term or temporary delirium. I'm glad they're not teaching that anymore. It's kinder -- not to mention easier and more pleasant -- to 'play in their reality.'

I'll never forget the little old lady who was convinced that Martians were in her room and were staring at her so she couldn't get to sleep. I tried and tried to orient her -- with predictably little success. The "old" LPN I was working with that night -- probably younger then than I am now -- went into the room, mimed picking up a little green man and shoving him into the closet, and then said "Now you can go to sleep." It worked!