Fidget Boards to Stimulate the Mind and Senses for Those With Dementia
Dementia poses numerous challenges for both the individuals facing cognitive decline and their caregivers. As the disease progresses, decreased mental stimulation often manifests in anxiety, restlessness or aggression. Providing engaging sensory outlets helps redirect this agitation into more positive channels.
One approach utilizing the power of touch finds increasing popularity in dementia care: fidget boards.
What Are Fidget Boards?
Fidget boards offer a variety of textures, mechanisms, and manipulatives mounted on a board or cloth base. Running hands across the range of materials provides multisensory stimulation through sight, sound, and touch to capture attention and curiosity.
Benefits for Dementia Patients
These boards engage the mind and senses in often soothing, meaningful ways to help those with dementia through:
- Redirecting restlessness into sensory exploration
- Providing cognitive stimulation
- Aiding communication by sparking memories through tactile cues
- Promoting reminiscence of familiar items
- Reducing anxiety and agitation episodes
- Encouraging activity and range of motion
This diversionary tactic refocuses excess energy into a constructive outlet with numerous benefits.
Crucial Design Considerations for Dementia Fidget Boards
To best aid those with cognitive impairment, fidget boards must adapt to meet the unique needs of this population. Key elements impacting efficacy and safety include:
Size
Boards for dementia patients should measure about 12-18 inches wide to allow for adequate personal space while keeping all features within reach. Vertical dimensions range up to 36 inches tall.
Portability
Mounting boards on wheels or hanging from walls or wheelchair backs maximizes accessibility and convenience across settings. Lightweight boards can also rest directly on laps.
Range of Textures
Incorporating varying tactile components - hard/soft, smooth/coarse, natural/synthetic, thick/thin - creates diverse sensory input for sustained engagement.
Visual Contrast
Highlighting manipulatives in contrasting colors from the base board improves visibility accommodating visual perception changes with dementia.
Noise Elements
Bells, squeakers, and crinkle materials bring sound stimulation alongside touch. Chimes help reorient to surroundings.
Familiar Themes
Boards decorated with vintage housewares, classic toys, natural materials, or cultural nods to one’s background spark nostalgic connections to tap into long-term memory.
Safety
All adornments must sturdily adhere to prevent detachment and choking risks. Rounded edges and soft yet durable components also prevent injury from agitated handling.
Everyday Items to Incorporate
Specialized fidget boards offer pre-designed kits, but handy household objects lifted from yesteryear also stimulate dementia patients when creatively incorporated into homemade boards.
Kitchenwares
Metal pots, silicone utensils, wispy brush heads, and wooden spoons offer diverse textures alongside each other. Mini muffin tins with items to sort provide cognitive play.
Nature Finds
Pinecones, smooth stones, sand dollars, seed pods and shells add organic tactile variety integrating the outdoors inside. Dried botanicals lend seasonal touches.
Fabrics
Swatches of linen, burlap, fleece, velvet, lace and corduroy sewn into patchwork designs supply contrasting feels from soft to coarse weaves.
Old Textures
Vintage doilies, leather straps, wallpaper samples, wooden shapes, metal washers and mesh screen scraps repurpose materials otherwise discarded.
Additional Elements to Incorporate
Specialized accessories take fidget boards up a sensory notch. Smart incorporation aids engagement and functionality:
Twiddle Muffs
These hand-sized muffs worn on wrists sport items like buttons, ribbons, and beads to fidget with, providing portable stimulation.
Activity Panels
Add-on side panels feature manipulatives like sliding bolts, spinning wheels, interlocking gears and turning door knobs for cognitive challenges.
Peak-a-Boo Doors
Hiding items behind swinging doors, shades or flaps encourages curiosity and interaction to uncover surprises.
Musical Elements
Incorporated sound makers like mini pianos and xylophones prompt engagement with cause-effect feedback.
Tips for Introducing & Using Fidget Boards
Realizing benefits requires proper fidget board implementation catered to the individual. Useful guidance includes:
Observe Interests
Note which colors, textures and themes spark curiosity to inform board design and component choices.
Offer Without Forcing
Casually place the board in sight and reach, allowing natural discovery versus formal presentation.
Encourage Interaction
Gently guiding hands to feel elements they neglect promotes full sensory exploration without overwhelming.
Stimulate Reminiscence
Ask open questions about memories the items evoke, listening intently to responses without correction.
Rotate Elements
Switch out components to introduce novel stimulation, maintaining fresh appeal.
With thoughtful design and deployment, fidget boards create enriching outlets and connections for dementia patients and caregivers alike.
FAQs
What are the benefits of fidget boards for those with dementia?
Key benefits include redirecting restlessness into sensory stimulation, providing cognitive engagement, reducing anxiety and agitation, encouraging activity and movement, aiding communication, and promoting reminiscence of familiar items.
What are important fidget board design elements for dementia?
Crucial design factors include an optimal smaller size, portability, incorporating a diverse range of textures, high visual contrast, inclusion of sound elements, use of vintage/familiar themes, and an emphasis on safety.
What types of items work well on dementia fidget boards?
Everyday household objects with intriguing textures like kitchen tools, natural items, fabric scraps, and vintage materials make stimulating yet familiar additions. Specialty accessories like twiddle muffs, doors and panels boost interactivity.
How should caregivers introduce and use fidget boards?
Tips include casually placing the board nearby to allow natural discovery, observing interests to inform design, gently encouraging hands-on interaction, using reminiscence questions, and rotating board elements to sustain novelty and appeal over time.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new treatment regimen.
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