With the holiday season in full swing, you may have already booked your flights and are starting to plan your next trip to visit friends and family. But if someone you know is living with dementia, such as Alzheimer’s disease, you might be wondering if travel is even a realistic option for them in the first place.
It’s always a bit stressful to travel around the holidays: Airports are packed, highways are congested, and flight delays and cancellations can derail even the best-laid plans. For those with dementia — who may have difficulties with memory, thinking, and other cognitive abilities — those environmental stressors can trigger feelings of anxiety, disorientation, and confusion.
Luckily, living with Alzheimer’s or other forms of cognitive decline doesn’t mean that an individual has to stop traveling altogether. Here are some tips and tricks for ensuring a safe and comfortable holiday experience — and how travel can even benefit those living with dementia.
Traveling With Dementia Patients
These concerns may impact more people than you think: Currently, more than 55 million people worldwide are living with some form of dementia, according to the World Health Organization. In the U.S., nearly 6 million people have Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia.
