Madness is a pernicious disease that takes hold over the years. It affects no less than 50 million people worldwide and is one of the main causes of Autonomy loss. “It manifests itself by an increasing impairment of memory and cognitive functions as well as behavioral disorders”, specifies the World Health Organization (WHO). Among the impacts of this neurodegenerative diseasewe note a decline in the overall well-being of patients and their loved ones.
To improve support for patients, parents and caregivers, researchers from the University of California at San Francisco and Harvard (United States) believe that people with dementia and those who care for them should subject to screening loneliness. According to them, socialization promotes well-being. Their results are published in the journal The Gerontologist.
Dementia: living with a sick loved one increases the risk of loneliness
To arrive at these results, the researchers analyzed the results of different interviews with people suffering from dementia and their loved ones. They notably addressed daily challenges and the impact of the disease on social life. In total, 24 people suffered from dementia, 33 people were relatives who took care of the sick person and finally 15 people who accompanied a loved one, but were bereaved.
Researchers have noticed that patients and people accompanying a loved one suffering from a neurodegenerative disease, such as Alzheimer’s disease for example, tended to isolate oneself depending on the weight of responsibilities towards the sick person. “Social changes have generated deep loneliness and harmed quality of life”, write the researchers.
Socializing and doing joint activities would improve well-being
This loneliness can then have an impact on the health of patients, but also on people accompanying a loved one suffering from dementia. “Unmet social needs have a negative impact on quality of life, which can lead to health problems such as the Depression and the cardiovascular illnessesand a high use of health care and premature deaths”, Professor Ashwin Kotwal, first author of the study, specifies in a press release. In addition, researchers specify that people suffering from loneliness are more likely to be placed in a retirement home. Finally, isolation is one of the dementia risk factors.
To combat isolation, researchers recommend participate in support groups, in which patients and their caregivers can meet separately. Indeed, this “can be a low-stress place to socialize and get advice,” underlines Krista Harrison, professor in the Division of Geriatrics at UCSF, in the press release. The researchers point out that among patients too, socialization can help promote well-being. But if it can be difficult to communicate, they specify that we can adapt activities to do together, such as singing for example.
Sources :
- “Relationships, Very Quickly, Turn to Nothing”: Loneliness, Social Isolation, and Adaptation to Changing Social Lives Among Persons Living With Dementia and Care Partners – The Gerontologist.
- Active Social Lives Help Dementia Patients, Caregivers Thrive – University of California San Francisco
