Weathering the Storm: the Alzheimer's Patient and Tornadoes, Hurricanes, Earthquakes and Other Natural Disasters
by
Brenda S. Parris

The weather we are having in the Southeast and the recent earthquake here in Alabama have me thinking about my year as my mother's caregiver. As always in this state, there were plenty of tornado warnings and watches, but we also had one unusual weather-related even when the destruction of Hurricane Opal came all the way up into north eastern Alabama where we were.

My mother slept through that night while I listened in bed to a small radio through earphones. I stayed awake all night as the wind whistled around the old farm house and downed trees all around. I kept thinking I needed to get my mother into a more central location in the house, but I didn’t want to waken her and risk the confusion that would be sure to result. So she and I both stayed in bed, and while I worried, she slept like a baby. Any other night she would have been up wandering through the house.

There's a fine line between keeping an Alzheimer's patient safe and keeping him or her calm during a storm. Yes, keep them safe, but try to minimize talking about the storm if possible. If the electricity goes out, they might even enjoy, as my mother seemed to, a return to the candles or oil lamps of their childhood. Even if the electricity remains on, they might find comfort in turning the lights and television off and enjoying candlelight. The old farmhouse with its minimal wiring often popped during an electrical storm, especially when I was a child. My mother turned off everything and unplugged the television, so I did this for her as well when she became my "child" to protect from the storm.

To take the minds of the caregiver and the patient alike off the storm, it might be a good time to tell a story or reminisce. If the lights remain on, it might be a good time to read to the patient. A fearful time can thus be transformed into a cozy and enjoyable story time.

Yes, do keep a source of news available and keep your patient in a safe area of the house. Or if they are sleeping as my mother was on the night of Opal, be ready to move them to a safer place if needed or even to a shelter if necessary. Always keep first aid supplies on hand, as well as bottled water, canned food, and candles in case you have to survive for a time without electricity.

A page at Alzheimer's Outreach lists tips for Natural Disaster Safety. Among them include having a disaster plan, making neighbors aware of the AD patient's special needs, and having the patient wear an identification bracelet, as well as keeping stocked with extra food, medicine, water, batteries and other necessities.

An article at About.com asks "Are You Prepared?" and lists twelve steps in creating a disaster plan which also includes taking first aide and CPR classes.

In "Disaster Migration for Persons with Disabilites" at UPC.org, this report discusses the need to have facilities equipped for the disabled in case moving to a shelter is necessary.

May we all be safe and spared tornados, hurricanes, earthquakes and other natural disaster, but may we also be prepared to keep our Alzheimer's patients as safe and calm as possible just in case.

References

"Are You Prepared?" Senior Health from About.com - http://seniorhealth.about.com/od/stayingsafe/a/disaster_prep.htm

"Disaster Migration for Persons with Disabilities" UPC.org - http://www.ucpa.org/ucp_channeldoc.cfm//1/11/11376/11376-11376/2451

"Natural Disaster Safety" Alzheimer's Outreach - http://www.zarcrom.com/users/alzheimers/sa5.html