Dementia Patients & The Comfort Cub
The Comfort Cub has proven to be impactful for people suffering from dementia. We work closely with LightBridge Hospice Community Foundation in San Diego, and they shared the following five stories. Our hearts are full seeing how this Comfort Cub has a life of its own with every story we receive. Do you have a story to share? Email us at Stories@thecomfortcub.org.
A patient of ours was never very affectionate. Her children said she was not ever "motherly" to them. Recently in her dementia diagnosis she has been reaching out for hugs when she sees people, so her care team thought a Comfort Cub might satisfy that need. She is nonverbal, but when the case manager walked in the door with the bear, the patient stretched her arms out for it immediately. She put the bear over her shoulder and started patting it's back like a baby and rocking it. The adult children were shocked, and have since shared that this bear has become a way for them to connect with their mother.
A patient with dementia loves to have her Comfort Cub next to her, even when she isn't holding it. She typically does not speak any words, but when a staff member temporarily moved the bear away from her, she said "back! back!" and started reaching for the bear (communicating that she wanted her cuddly friend back). When her Comfort Cub was placed on her lap, she became calm once again.
A patient living at a facility enjoys having her Comfort Cub in her arms. When she carries it into the common areas, the other residents get envious and stare at it until they get a chance to give it a hold too!
In speaking to a patient's daughter about Comfort Cubs, she felt it would be a great idea for her mother. Her mother has dementia and she is fond of hugs and physical touch. When I shared the idea behind the cubs, she was thrilled and said her mom would love it." - LightBridge Social Worker
"I gave the patient a comfort bear and she held onto it the whole time I was there. She is usually very anxious during her breathing treatments, but she sat still, holding her bear and didn't mind it at all!" - LightBridge RN
