Lake Solitude Media's videotapes can be a wonderful gift for both the AD sufferer and for their caregivers. The tapes can provide restful, calming entertainment for the person with Alzheimer disease, and can provide respite and a fun activity for their caregivers.
As you know, persons with Alzheimer Disease and related dementia suffer from problems with short-term memory. They have a difficult time following events over a period of time that you and I would consider short. They also can have high levels of frustrations with day-to-day tasks and actions that they had no difficulty performing earlier in life.
Problems with Regular Television
In our quest to provide relief for Alzheimer sufferers and their caregivers, we have found many instances of problems with television watching. AD victims may have difficulty distinguishing between what they see on the television screen and real life. For example, some veterans of World War II and the Korean Conflict are suffering from stages of Alzheimer Disease. During the Gulf War in 1991 and the conflict in Iraq, nursing homes and other caregivers found that many of these veterans were very distressed when they saw images of war on television. The tank battles, soldiers in action, naval activity and scenes of combat triggered certain memories of very stressful times in their lives, and some AD sufferers even felt that they were back at war. Nursing homes found that they needed to prevent some AD sufferers from watching the news.
Other types of regular television may no longer be a pleasant experience. The popular trivia-based game shows like "Jeopardy" require memory to be enjoyed; news programs do not make sense to an AD sufferer, if they don't remember who today's celebrities and politicians are; the plots of mysteries and dramas are too hard to follow; even modern situation comedies may be too difficult to understand.
Why Our Videotapes Aren't Like Regular Television
Lake Solitude Media's videotapes are produced to be an alternative. Each tape consists of pleasant scenes of nature, with relaxing, calming music and natural sounds on the soundtrack. There are no plots to follow, no disturbing images, and no dialogue (these are not travel videos or nature documentaries!). For example, the videotape Beautiful Wyoming shows the scenic wonders, waterfalls, rivers and wildlife of Yellowstone National Park, Grand Teton National Park and the Big Horn Mountains. Life Beneath The Sea shows many different colorful fish swimming in the enchanting beauty of coral reefs in the Bahamas. Each video is edited to have a calming and relaxing effect with the needs of persons with dementia as our primary concern.
How The Videos May Be Used Effectively
Lake Solitude Media's videotapes may be used as a pleasant activity shared by the person with AD and their family and caregivers. You may watch the videos together, and share a conversation about the pretty scenery, the wildlife, and colorful flowers. Since there is no plot to follow, it can be an experience that does not require sitting through a long movie or TV show to be enjoyable. You may watch and share as much or as little of each videotape at a time. The person with AD may also enjoy viewing the tape alone, while the caregiver performs household tasks. But, Lake Solitude Media's tapes are not meant to be "baby-sitting" tools, but are intended to be an activity that is pleasant and enjoyable for both the person with AD and their family.
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