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Strategies for having a conversation (for people with dementia)
Having a conversation offers you lots of things:
- a sense of connection
- something interesting or new to think about
- a chance to keep up your conversational skills
Having a chat does you more good than you might think!
On this page you will:
- hear Keith and Chris (who both live with dementia) chatting about their strategies for conversations
- get some top tips to help you feel confident
What I miss most is a proper conversation.
A person with dementia reflecting on the COVID-19 pandemic
Chris and Keith on conversations
In this video, Chris and Keith – who both live with dementia – reflect on having conversations: what makes things easier, and what makes things harder. Among the things they cover are:
- the importance of the surrounding environment – do you struggle with background noise?
- using questions to keep it a dialogue rather than a monologue
- the importance of respect and relationships to conversations
Click on the image below to watch the video. It is 12 minutes long.
The ‘I want to speak please’ cards produced by DEEP can be very helpful.
You can download a PDF version of the ‘I want to speak please’ card in English by clicking here.
You can download a PDF version of the ‘I want to speak please’ card in Welsh, Scots Gaelic, Irish Gaelic or an editable version to insert your own language by clicking here.
Top tips for having conversations
Jackie Pool is QCS Dementia Care Champion and an experienced Occupational Therapist. Here are her top tips to help you with your conversations.
- If a name of a person or an object escapes you, substitute the name with a description.
- If you are anxious about having a conversation, take some slow and deep breaths before you start or during the conversation.
- Help yourself to focus on the topic of conversation by repeating a few of the words that the other person has just said, before adding to them with your own words.
The Dementia Tip-Share website is full of tips from people with dementia for people with dementia.
Click here to visit the Connecting and communicating tips page.
How could we improve this page? Visit the Contact us page to let us know.
Strategies for having a conversation (for people with dementia)
You can print a paper version of this resource by clicking the button below.
