All About Alzheimer's 2

Here's more of my story about my experience at the Alzheimer's Association support group meeting …

I had a Wii at home so I had been practicing a lot. I had been fascinated by the power of the Wii game system after watching stroke survivors marvel at their newfound abilities to move with greater ease, without the pressure of physical therapy, with the joy of simply enjoying bowling or boxing with arms that had forgotten how to play. It was a beautiful scene to witness.

However, in teaching folks who have Alzheimer's or dementia, I had to learn a lot myself.

Some weren't sure how to hold their hand straight so I could put the wrist strap on them. One kept spreading their fingers apart and twisting their hand because they couldn't comprehend how I was going to slip it on. I gently pushed the fingers together and talked to them softly as I continued and congratulated them when we were done.

Most didn't understand how to hold the controller, how it fit in their hand. I had to carefully coax them as I molded each finger into the proper place. Each hand, its texture and size and shape was different … and my mind imagined everything these hands had touched, grasped, crushed, pressed, captured and freed with that multitude of precise, tiny, mighty muscles over a lifetime. Oh, if our hands could only talk …

Several had no idea what to do when I asked them to push or press or let go of the trigger. One let go of more than just the trigger but the whole controller. I laughed with them and said, "That's why we put it on our wrist." At first, some of them were a little hesitant about me wrapping my hand around theirs to help them move their fingers, but when I looked them in the eye and reassured them with a smile, they quickly relaxed and allowed me to guide them every inch … reminding them at times what was down, up, backward and forward.

Some kept staring at the controller instead of watching the screen to see if they'd made a strike or gutter ball because their minds couldn't connect that the motion of their hands was linked to that big screen on the wall. I told them to look up as I gave a running commentary, "Look, look, look! C'mon a little more! It's getting there! It's going to make it! See, I knew you could do it!"

More tomorrow …