Routines

I went to see a brilliant man on day to talk with him about my father and my fear's of Alheimer's. I told him that if my father stays on a particular routine that he manages pretty well. He doesn't seem to get confused. Take him out of town for a day or two, put him in a new environment, he will become very confused. This confusion is more evident the following day. My dad will have particular difficulty with easy tasks on days when his schedule has been varied or the day after he has taken a trip-for example the day after he attends an out of town funeral or family get together.
This Dr. has a degree in psychology/psychiatry-I'm not sure which. He told me that the brain establishes neural pathways as we learn things. Particular routines and acts that we enjoy are particularly ingrained in to the brain. A person with Alzheimer's who loves to fish may be able to drive his car to a lake, get a boat into a lake, go out into the lake and fish safely, return to shore, drive from his/her fishing hole successfully-but then 5 minutes later they may be unable to tie their own shoe. Crazy isn't it. But it is important to keep the patient involved in routine activities where they have success and which has importance to them. If that is taken away from the Alzheimer patient they decline.
THerefore, my dad and I have a daily routine at the pharmacy business to which he has devoted his life. He does not fill prescriptions now. However, he and I do tasks at the business that are necessary. This keeps him going. And it keeps me "at my father's side".