Helpful hints for PSP caregivers

As promised, I'm offering up some tips that may work for others who are caregiving, particularly for those with Parkinsonian disorders. It's what worked for Mom and me, anyway.

1.  When communicating, look your loved one in the eye.  It helped me to get Mom's attention and seemed to help her to vocalize responses.

2.  Little touches -- a pad here, a quick squeeze or kiss on the cheek -- seemed to cheer and enliven her. Research shows that physical contact can improve response and performance, as The New York Times reported recently.

3.  Giving her something to hold constructively helped with her "alien hand" -- her inability to uncurl her fingers.  I gave her a pencil to do Sudoku, a kid's ball to roll around, and am trying to find one of those "stress balls" filled with sand for her to squeeze.

4.  She loved being around my cats. She initiated conversation with them often, spontaneously, which she doesn't much do around humans these days. The cats responded by practically living on her lap.  Again, the warmth and contact were nice for her. Sunny, pictured above, pressed his advantage a little too much -- as soon as he saw her starting to sit down, he purred, leaped and snuggled, which made her laugh (or groan) each time.

5.  I wrote out numbered instructions for doing things like using our Keurig coffee machine.  Big block letters, short sentences. This helped with processing instructions, as did...

6.  Repetition.  Every time we got her dressed, I told her, "Butt on the bed."  I wanted her to get in the habit of preventing a fall right off the bat.  After the fiftieth time, she remembered -- well worth the effort!

7.  Amantadine, which she has just started, seemed to improve her balance quite a bit.

8.  Music.  Mom can remember every word to her favorite Oldies, and even shimmied around the kitchen a bit.  Music truly has amazing healing properties.  Must look into this a bit more.