Why Passivity Occurs and Some Methods of Dealing With it
In diseases like Alzheimer’s, brain cells are gradually being destroyed by the amyloid plaques that form in the brain. The losses people with the disease experience depend on the part of the brain that is sustaining the damage. Very often caregivers note that persons with dementia are unresponsive, passive and seem to lack motivation. Since this is the result of damage to that part of the brain that helps us initiate action, we as caregivers must be the encouragers and “activators.”
Unresponsiveness can also be the result of discomfort with revealing oneself, or it can be used passive-aggressively as a way to deny someone needing information or to avois a reprimand. It often manifests itself as withdrawal.
Some tactics to consider:
* Take time to get the person’s attention by sitting at the person’s level, looking directly into his/her eyes, saying his/her name in a warm, gentle voice and waiting until the person appears to be connecting with you.
* Shape behavior by breaking desired behavior down into very small steps; reward each step.
* Prompt using visual (descriptive gestures are an example) and verbal cues.
* Use reminiscing topics or current events as a non-threatening topic to stimulate conversation.
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