Relationships
Do Something Special | Enjoy things Together | Talk with Each Other | Exercise Together | Attend a Support Group Together | Younger Spouses

All Relationships Tips

Do something special together each week.

Go visit friends or go to the movies.

Buy your wife her favorite flowers.

Take your dad out for a drive and stop for an ice cream cone.

Take your mom to a favorite restaurant.

Make a favorite dish for dinner.

Invite and transport your parents' friends who no longer drive, too.

Do something together that you both enjoy.

Watch your favorite show on television together or rent a video.

Read to each other.

Take a walk.

Do crossword and other word puzzles together.

If your husband has dementia, try to notice when he seems content or is enjoying something in particular. And bring him back to it again tomorrow.

Talk to one another about your feelings and fears.

Communicating and understanding each other's perspective sounds obvious, but can be very difficult. Talking about your feelings and your fears can help to heal old wounds and greatly strengthen your relationship.

Do this with other family members, too. Miscommunication and misunderstanding among family members can lead to great stress for everyone involved.

Consider having someone facilitate a family discussion if there is a lot of disagreement and anger.

Exercise together to help you both stay healthy and mobile.

Depending on your ability you could go for a 30-minute walk around the neighborhood or a 5-minute stroll to the end of the road and back.

Every little bit helps and will be something you can build into your routine to share together.

Attend a support group together.

Some support groups specifically encourage couples to attend together. This can be very beneficial, particularly if the support group is also age-specific.

Even if you can't attend a support group together, attending by yourself is a good idea.

Younger spouses who are able to work together as a team and have a good relationship seem to cope much better.

Seek out support from spouse caregivers who are about your age. You may even find support groups that are targeted towards younger spouse caregivers.

Help your friends, family, and health care providers understand the special and unique challenges you're facing.