Senior Activities for Bed-Bound Patients

Going Away on Vacation without Moving from Your Bed

Can you think of entertaining senior activities for bed-bound patients?

Some of us will be sitting in traffic in the sweltering heat, wondering why we decided to go visit the zoo today. At the same time, there are other people, seniors who are in rehabilitation centers, who are confined to their beds.

If you are one of those people in rehab, I don’t think you are actually longing to join the multitudes who are stuck in traffic. But something inside you is stirring. It is the vacation season after all. You would also like to have a vacation.

If you can’t go on vacation, vacation will have to come to you!

 

Senior activities for bed-bound patients can be made in place of vacations to distant shores.

Senior activities for bed-bound patients can be made in place of vacations to distant shores. The main thing is that the senior patient should enjoy the activity.

Stimulating and Energizing

Aside from having fun, these activities are mentally stimulating and will be an excellent source of rehab-power at the same time.

From the sun you get vitamin D, and from inspiring senior activities for bed-bound patients, you get rehab-power!

If you share a room, clarify that your room mate is okay with anything you plan to do.

 

Family Fun at the Bedside

There are fun activities that require little preparation. The following three sections have several different ideas for entertainment, fun and games with something for everyone! These are:

Family Games, Brain Change Ideas and My Story Hour.

Keeping your spirits up is a project that you can invest in on a day by day basis. You will all reap the rewards of happiness. The patient will have the physical and emotional strength to heal faster and, family members or friends will be happier to visit you and spend time with you.

And you might even catch a staff member taking a peek!

 

Family Games that can be Played at the Bedside

1. Learning words in new languages

 Dictionaries (the old fashioned kind!) can be brought along, books from the library are another good source, online dictionaries, the ever-popular u-tube videos, and maybe even a friend who speaks another language can come along and teach the patient and their visitors new words in a foreign language.

2. Puzzles and Favorites

Crosswords, word search, bingo, magnetic monopoly, magnetic scrabble, Sudoku and math puzzles. The ‘old favorites’ are called ‘favorites’ for a reason!

3. Plan a wedding.

It does not have to be a real one. You can invent a bride and groom, make up the guest list and plan the menu and activities.

4. Pictionary or Draw and Guess.

In Draw and Guess, each person take a turn to draw an item and write three possible answers of what it could be and the others have to guess which one it is.

5. Charades.

The players try to guess an item or word from pantomimed or acted-out clues. Every one can take part. If the patient is paralyzed but can still sing, they can play a game called Give Us A Tune – where the audience has to guess which song is being sung.

 

Brain Change Ideas

The concept that “A Change is as Good as a Break” is the source for this successful idea.

Find changes that you can make in your living area. Check that your ideas are allowed by the rules of the rehab center.

Here are some ideas:

  • For the duration of your ‘vacation’ hang up posters of the exotic locations you are ‘visiting’
  • Ask your family to bring in decorative items or scents that express that you are on vacation
  • Rearrange your furniture, if it is convenient and accessible for you in your condition, even to turn a table in a different direction
  • Get a different colored bedspread/throw on top of the regular one for example if you are ‘visiting’ Paris get a throw with the Tricolor printed on it
  • Picking a theme color, is one idea that I saw in Better Homes and Gardens, where there were other tips to simply and easily change the way a room looks.

 

My Story Hour

  • Visitors should bring a selection of books to make your own mobile library. You can read share and swap books.
  • Record life experiences of yourself, or your family members, only the ones you wish to share, and those that do not make you uncomfortable.
  • Bring a mutual friend and compare life stories, this is always interesting for the participants and especially for the ‘audience’.
  • Tell the stories of your various jobs or gifts you received that were meaningful.
  • Tell you message to the world. Everyone has a message that they want to share. You do not have to speak on radio to share your message with millions nowadays. Social media and viral videos do all the work. Your message could be one that will change people lives for the good!

So you see there are many exciting and enjoyable senior activities for bed-bound patients.

If you put in bit of creativity and quite a bit of preparation the result will be a lot of fun. Your time is the most precious gift you can give your loved one. These activities can create memories that you can cherish forever.

 

 

Photo by Anders Wideskott on Unsplash