The holiday season can create beautiful, tasty and enjoyable moments through our five senses. Drinking a cup of hot apple cider brings the smell of cinnamon, the sweet taste of apple, warmth on our lips, a view of a silly holiday cup, and the clinking sound the cup makes when it is set down on the table. Perhaps a fond memory is triggered by these senses.  We can pick up the cup and drink the delicious cider because we have, what could be called, the 6th sense: proprioception — the sense that lets us perceive the location, movement, and action of parts of the body. 

We take for granted our ability to know where our body is in space at all times through the coordination of a complex network between our brain and the receptors involved in the five senses. It’s how an olympic ice skating team can skate on ice as though dancing with ease, while not falling on ice during complex movements. A more every day example is how one can pick up the cup of hot cider and drink from it. These are examples of proprioception at work. 

Alzheimer’s Disease affects all five senses, and therefore, impairs how the person perceives and experiences their world. These complex changes can sometimes lead to hallucinations, delusions, and paranoia. When the proprioception network becomes impaired, the damage manifests in many ways, including the inability to sit upright, pick up and use utensils, walk, and even how to lie down for rest. 

We apply this (still) limited knowledge of Alzheimer’s by using proprioceptive points on the body to help guide residents during care. For example, placing a hand on a resident’s elbow while holding the other hand to help with movement and direction while walking. Or, giving a gentle physical cue to move from side to side by pressing on the hip joint during care in bed. It is amazing how effective this method and understanding can impact care. 

I welcome questions about this and other topics related to dementia care, so please feel free to comment or email me. 

Want to know more? Here are some references:

Teepa Snow: Special Senses and Memory:

https://youtu.be/oZYluascU_8?si=nO5k3QXjUofKFO64

PBS documentary: Human: The World Within, Senses:

https://www.pbs.org/show/human-world-within/