Are you trying to think of a gift idea for a person in your life living with dementia? Experience gifts are always my go-to. This includes something a person can do with others that is fun, relaxing, and/or adventurous. Experience gifts create opportunities for building connection and boosting those feel-good endorphins that support a person’s ability to feel safe and loved. These types of gifts also support brain health as you learn something new and engage in whole body sensory-rich activities. Keep in mind, every person with dementia has unique interests, skills, and preferences. This list of experience gifts for adults with dementia is not all inclusive, but does provide a few ideas to get your wheels turning.

1. Sign up for a Music Therapy class

Music therapy is one of those sensory-rich activities that can be adapted and modified to meet the unique needs of the participant. Through listening, singing along, dancing/moving, and even playing a musical instrument, the brain lights up as multiple sensory systems become activated.

I personally love the work of these 3 music therapists:

• Bridgetown Music Therapy (virtual offerings): Alexis is a licensed and board-certified music therapist with over 8 years of experience. She specializes in working with older adults. Her goal is to spark joy while decreasing the effects of agitation, loneliness, anxiety, etc. Her smile is contagious and her voice is beautiful!
  
  Alexis recently updated her membership offerings to include access to an online video library of 250+ videos and a free monthly Live Session. There are 2 membership options:
  • *Singing at Home: appropriate for individuals or family caregivers
  • *Music with Alexis: appropriate for adult family homes, senior living communities, or community-based programs
    
    
• Bailey Beats Music (virtual offerings): Joe Bailey is a licensed and board-certified music therapist with over 13 years of experience. He works with people of all ages and ability levels, including adults with Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s. Mr. Bailey’s music therapy addresses cognitive skills, sensory development, communication, motor skills, etc. He also offers engaging presentations/workshops that are certain to get you laughing and dancing!
  
  
• Music Therapy at Home (virtual offerings): Karla is a board-certified music therapist with over 30 years of clinical experience. She has a gorgeous voice and such a loving heart for others. Karla identifies multiple benefits of music therapy, including relaxation/reduced muscle tension, improved cognitive functioning, opportunities for self-expression, enriched quality of life, greater sense of emotional comfort.

2. Buy a membership to the local YMCA or gym

Look for a place that has a therapy pool or therapeutic group classes. Swimming indoors is a year-round activity that can support regulation. Unless someone has a history of water-related trauma or fear, swimming can be a very calming sensory-rich activity. For example:

• Being inside a pool of water provides deep touch pressure input to the whole body.
• Moving arms and legs against the resistance of the water provides “heavy work” (proprioceptive input).
• Changing positions of the head activates the vestibular system. Slower, linear patterns of movement are more calming.
• The water inside a therapeutic swimming pool tends to be warmer, which can feel soothing.

3. Visit a museum, zoo, aquarium, or concert hall that has sensory-friendly hours

Sensory-friendly hours are designated times (usually a weekend morning before the building opens to the public) that support a lower stimulation environment. This doesn’t mean the displays are less exciting or engaging, but rather the risk of environmental sensory overload is decreased. There are less crowds, which means there is less noise and lower risk of unexpected touch from other visitors bumping into you. Some organizations use soothing lights and turn the overhead music off.

Examples of organizations with sensory-friendly programs:

• Access Smithsonian (Washington, DC): Morning at the Museum
• Como Park Zoo & Conservatory (St. Paul, MN): Sensory Friendly Mornings and Senior Strolls
• Great Lakes Aquarium (Cleveland, OH): Calm Waters: Sensory Friendly Days
• People’s Light (Malvern, PA): Relaxed Performances

4. Take an Art Therapy class

Activate your senses of touch, vision, sound, and even smell using various art therapy mediums! Depending on the tools and motions you use, you may also activate your sense of proprioception (for example, pushing, pulling, lifting, stretching, etc.). There is no right or wrong way to create art, so the finished product is guaranteed to be a unique masterpiece.

Erica Curcio is one of my favorite art therapists who specializes in dementia care. She says, “Creativity does not stop, because we age.” She is a licensed mental health counselor and registered art therapist. Erica offers therapy services for families living in Massachusetts and she also offers presentations. Learn more about Erica’s work by clicking here.

5. Give the gift of massage

Try an at-home hand/foot/back massage using your favorite lotion or massage oil. Try to avoid light touch as that can feel ticklish and overstimulating. Monitor skin integrity (look for signs of redness or irritation) and frequently check-in with your loved one or client about their comfort level with the touch provided. Also, look for signs of dysregulation. For example, increased muscle tension, increased breathing/heart rates, or flushing (redness) of the cheeks or ears.

Finally, if you have access to a local massage therapist or spa, both are lovely options! These can be gifts for adults with dementia and their care partners too! The deep touch tactile and proprioceptive input of a massage has potential to be so calming.

What other experience gifts for adults with dementia can you think of?? Share in the comments below!

[Updated October 14, 2022]

DISCLAIMER: Although I am an occupational therapist and the information compiled is based on years of training and clinical experience, this is NOT a place for skilled therapeutic intervention.  The ideas presented on this website and in products are for informational/educational purposes only and are not medical advice.

A website does not replace an individualized plan of care developed as the result of assessment, clinical observation, and collaboration between therapist, client, and care partner(s). If you are concerned about the cognitive, sensory, or functional abilities of yourself or someone you know, then you should talk with your physician or your therapist.

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