Last November, I had the privilege of spending the evening with participants of the Parkinson's Carepartner Group at the headquarters location for Rock Steady Boxing here in Indianapolis. I provided education and support on the topic of cognitive decline that some individuals face in relation to Parkinson's disease. An estimated 50-80% of individuals coping with Parkinson's disease will eventually experience dementia along with the disease progression.
Towards the beginning of the evening, I asked those in attendance to go around the table and share either a question or specific example related to cognitive decline that they hoped to have addressed during the session. We got all the way around the table, and the second-to-last individual asked, "What exactly IS cognition?"
So what exactly IS cognition?
The dictionary definition of cognition is the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experiences, and the senses.
Individuals presenting with cognitive decline may experience difficulties using the following cognitive processes:
attention
memory
organization
problem solving/reasoning
executive function (plan, organize, focus, task initiation, time management, etc.)
Cognitive-communication disorders mean that when individuals experience deficits in cognitive processes, impairments in speaking, listening, reading, writing, and social interactions may result.
As a healthcare professional working in skilled nursing, assisted living, and memory care settings for the past 11 years, I know how important it is to provide this breakdown to families. How are caregivers supposed to recognize and adapt to their loved one's decline without a basic understanding of what "cognitive - decline" entails? Healthcare workers should never assume that caregivers understand the complexity of cognition and areas of deficit related to cognitive decline. Although I wish I had provided that education at the start of the session, I am truly appreciative of the caregiver who was not afraid to ask!
Support services such as those provided by The Memory Compass provide families with tools and strategies to enhance the cognitive processes impacted by cognitive decline. For example, individualized recommendations may be made on how to adapt the environment to promote attention. Individualized memory aids may be developed, and caregivers and individuals trained on how to enhance memory function. If your loved one is experiencing difficulty with problem-solving through how to operate the TV remote or sequencing through familiar daily tasks, compensatory strategies can be developed to support families on this journey.
For more information regarding the benefits of Parkinson's Boxing Classes and to find a class near you, please visit https://www.rocksteadyboxing.org/parkinsons-boxing-classes/
By: Jessie Hillock, M. A., SLP
Dementia Navigator & Consultant
Certified Dementia Practitioner
Background as a speech-language pathologist
My husband was diagnosed of Parkinsons disease 2 years ago, when he was 49. He had a stooped posture, tremors, right arm does not move and also a pulsating feeling in his body. He was placed on Senemet for 8 months and then Siferol was introduced and replaced the Senemet, during this time span he was also diagnosed with dementia. He started having hallucinations, lost touch with reality. Suspecting it was the medication I took him off the Siferol (with the doctor’s knowledge) and started him on PD natural herbal formula we ordered from AKANNI HERBAL CENTRE, his symptoms totally declined over a 3 weeks use of the AKANNI HERBAL Parkinsons disease natural herbal formula. He is now almost 51…