Found a simple calendar trick for nursing home visits that actually worked for my mom

My mom kept forgetting my weekly visits to her facility in Phoenix, so I tried putting a big wall calendar in her room with marked dates and little stickers. The staff said it gave her something to look forward to and she started remembering on her own after about 3 weeks. Has anyone else tried something low tech like this that actually helped with memory or scheduling?

3 comments

3 Comments

karen_carter17d ago

Have you tried putting it right at her eye level near where she sits? I did the same thing with my dad out in Mesa and it worked way better once I hung it by his recliner instead of the wall by the door. We used those little star stickers from the dollar store and he'd get excited about peeling one off when I showed up. The key was having the staff help him cross off days between visits so he could see the countdown. Also I'd write little notes on the calendar like "call Karen at 3" or "bingo at 2" so he had stuff to look forward to every day. It took about a month for my dad but he started telling the nurses when his next visit was coming up.

logan_wood17d ago

Oh wow, that's actually a really smart approach. The sticker reward system kind of taps into that same dopamine hit we all get from checking something off a list. I bet combining it with a little routine like having her help you stick the sticker on when you arrive could make it even more concrete for her brain to latch onto.

wells.christopher17d ago

Right, the dopamine angle is SPOT on. It's kind of wild how something that simple can rewire that anticipation. And yeah, having her be the one to actually place the sticker turns it into a little ritual, not just another thing that happens to her. Makes the whole experience hers to own.