By Gleria and Tommy Anderson
Owners
Home Care Assistance of Huntsville
The Cognitive Therapeutics Method is Home Care Assistance’s proprietary program designed to promote brain health and quality of life through cognitively stimulating activities in the familiar home environment. The Cognitive Therapeutics Method offers:
- Non-pharmacological approaches consistent with scientific research.
- One-on-one mental stimulation and basic care support in the home.
- Activities that focus on more than just memory.
- A routine to look forward to that keeps aging minds active.
The Cognitive Therapeutics Method was developed based on cutting-edge scientific research and is consistent with growing evidence, such as the ACTIVE study funded by the National Institutes of Health, suggesting that cognitive stimulation is associated with long-term brain health benefits. The Method currently includes over 20 activities targeting memory and the five cognitive domains:
- Executive Functioning: This includes cognitive abilities such as reasoning, problem-solving, judgment, and thought flexibility.
- Attention: Attention refers to the ability to focus on a specific piece of information for a long period while ignoring competing distractions.
- Language: This aspect refers to the ability to execute verbal functions, including spontaneous speech, speech repetition, speech comprehension, naming, reading, and writing.
- Visual-Spatial Perception: This domain involves the ability to accurately perceive an object’s physical location and understand the relationships between objects.
Citation to the NIH Study
Types of Brain Exercises
Brain exercises are essential to the Cognitive Therapeutics Method. We use many cognitive activities for older adults, including:
- Thoughtful conversations: One-on-one conversations with a caregiver allow older adults to practice critical thinking, speaking, and other cognitive skills that contribute to a sharp mind.
- Meditation: Meditation helps older adults relax and focus their thoughts to improve attention and executive functioning.
- Art: Art activities such as painting, and drawing encourage hand-eye coordination and improve mood.
- Puzzles: From traditional jigsaw puzzles to Sudoku, puzzles help older adults identify patterns and use their spatial skills to problem solve.
- Word games: Word games focus on recall and association, requiring the player to use context clues and hints to complete the game.
- Logic puzzles: Riddles and other logic games help older adults combine their ideas with the information they already know to find a plausible solution.
- Card games: With card games like Concentration, which requires players to match pairs of cards, older adults must rely on their memory and remain focused.
Benefits
- Preserve the ability to perform basic daily tasks.
- Delay cognitive decline.
- Encourage higher levels of mental activity.
- Reduce the risk of developing dementia.
- Stabilize and even improve the cognitive functioning of Alzheimer’s patients.
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