Mind Care

Games

These games aren’t just for fun, they’re a practical way to help reduce boredom, reorient thinking, and maintain a sense of control and calm. Whether you're a family member, carer, or healthcare provider, this collection provides meaningful, low-pressure options that anyone can use.

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Write a short text about your service. Highlight key benefits for potential clients.

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Music

Relax with Music 🎵

As a carer, you can use music as a simple, supportive tool to help calm and connect with your loved one.

Consider playing music they enjoy or recognise favourites from their past can be especially comforting. Use it during quiet times, or when they seem unsettled, to help reduce stress for both of you.

Reference –
McCaffrey, R., & Locsin, R. (2004). The effect of music listening on acute confusion and delirium in elders undergoing elective hip and knee surgery. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 13(6B), 91–96. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2004.01048.x

Reorientation

Keep your Brain Focused. Frequently being reminded of the time, date, where you are, and why you are in the hospital will keep your brain focused This technique is called reorientation.

Reminding yourself or your loved one of the time of day, where they are, the reason for hospitalization, and the date is a simple and powerful action. Doing this once every hour during the daytime keeps the brain active and may cut the risk of delirium by 50%

"Hi, its Debbie again, John’s recovery coach. I am going to talk about how to do frequent orientation, also called re-orientation, that is a simple tool that helps prevent delirium and keep the brain healthy. Simple measures like reassurance, conversations, familiar objects, and if your loved ones needs them, wearing glasses and hearing aids, help keep the brain healthy while in the hospital. Did you know that orientation once a hour over 8-hours can prevent delirium? It sure can! It helps the brain stay connected to the current reality or situation. It is easy to get the days and nights confused in the hospital. When I re-orient someone, I put it in a conversation.

When I would walk into John’s hospital room, I would say “Hi John, this is Debbie, your wife. It is Monday, October 14th, 2024 and you are in the hospital right now in Rochester, Minnesota. You had a bad infection and are getting help to feel better” Another way to say it would be, “Hey John, it is about 10am on Monday, October 14th, 2024, and I am visiting you in the hospital today. You came here a few days ago because you had a bad infection. It is a cool, fall day and the sun is out” There are many different ways to provide orientation, the most important part is to just do it! Now you try it! You should try to orient your family member or friend at least once an hour.

If you are not there for very long that is okay. Every orientation message helps the brain. If you have to leave, you can help your loved one by setting up a reminder on their phone so they can re-orient themselves. Or direct them to the message board in the room. Or bring in a clock for them. You can also call them on their phone or the hospital phone to orient them to what is going on at that moment.

The brain is like a muscle, you have to exercise it to keep it healthy! Here are some resources if you want more information on delirium and how simple measures can make a big difference to keep the brain healthy or help it recover.

Delirium in the ICU: WWW.ICUDELIRIUM.ORG

Delirium Resources: World Delirium Awareness Day (deliriumday.com)

Delirium Society: WWW.AMERICANDELIRIUMSOCIETY.ORG

Podcast transcript:

Sleep

Make staying at the hospital SO EASY YOU COULD DO IT IN YOUR SLEEP!

Rest your brain at night. Good sleep is hard to get in the hospital. You are in a new environment with unfamiliar noises, people, and things around you.

Wear ear plugs and an eye mask at night to help with sleep. By wearing ear plugs, you may decrease delirium risk by 30%

Tips and tricks for a good night rest

• Avoid naps and stay awake during the day

• Recovering from surgery is tiring. Try to stay awake during the day as much as you can so you can sleep at night. It is okay to take short power naps.

• Ask your healthcare team to change the timing of your medication

• You may need to take medications at night to help you recover. You can ask your healthcare team to group these medications together so you can sleep longer during the nighttime hours.

• Try to get in some physical activity

• Even if all you can do it walk up and down the halls or lean forward and back in your bed, any physical activity can help to tire out your body. Make sure not to exercise to close to bed time in order to avoid an adrenaline boost before you lay down for the night.

• Managing your discomfort

• While in the hospital you might feel sore and in pain. This often makes it hard to fall and stay asleep. You can ask your healthcare team for pain medications

Items to bring with you

• Earplugs or headphones

• Hospitals are noisy at night. Wearing earplugs will help block out the noise from machines and hallways. Listening to soothing music may also help you sleep by blocking out the noise.

• Face-cover or mask

• It can be bright in your hospital room. Wearing an eye mask or sleeping mask might help you relax and block light to help you sleep.

• Bring a comfy pillow or blanket from home

• Having something familiar to you might help you sleep. It is okay to bring a pillow, a stuffed animal, or a neck pillow with you. Keep in mind that the hospital is a busy place and things can get lost easily -so keep an eye on it when your room is being cleaned.

Physical Activity

Any type of activity will help your body and brain stay active and reduce delirium risk. Download PDF

Do these exercises at your own risk and pace. It may be best to check with your healthcare team before trying these.

Reduce Pain and Discomfort

Who knew being distracted could be so helpful?

Believe it or not, distracting your brain can be an effective tool to help you recover from your illness. Distraction can decrease your discomfort and stress while also helping to keep your brain focused.

“Hello, my name is Phil. Right now, I would like to talk to you about the power of distraction. Distraction can take many forms. While one end of the spectrum might have exercises that don’t change much about our day to day activities, such deep breathing, others can have exercises that are a bit more involved, such as guided imagery. However, deep breathing, guided imagery, and everything in-between can benefit your loved one on their recovery journey. So today I am going to give you brief definitions about three of these practices.

First, let’s talk about a simple technique called Mindfulness. Mindfulness involves keeping the mind occupied with surrounding details in order to reduce stress and relax the brain. Mindfulness is a method of focusing the brain on the present by distracting it from negative thoughts about the past and future. This can be accomplished by exploring physical details, such as what the your loved one can feel, hear, and see around them. By focusing on these detail one can refocus their brain and begin to start to take control of things in their grasp as well as lessens any confusion they might be experiencing.

Now that we’ve learned more about mindfulness…let’s talk about another method your loved one can practice to help them relax. The second technique is called guided imagery, and is similar to mindfulness in the way that it focuses attention. However, rather than concentrating on physical details, guided imagery calls upon the subject to create an imaginary scenario, and think about the potential feelings that one would experience in that scenario. Some refer to guided imagery as visiting one’s “happy place.”

Another easy exercise that I mentioned earlier is deep breathing. Deep breathing is almost exactly what it sounds like, can be done from anywhere, and be as short or as long as you’d like. To practice deep breathing, you can take a long, strong breath in through your nose, hold it for a couple of seconds, and then exhale that breath through your mouth. Doing this activity helps the mind calm down and is especially good at helping insomnia.

All three of these techniques can help your loved one destress and refocus their brain. If you’d like to try practicing mindfulness, deep breathing, and guided imagery, there are some resources attached that provide you with an immersive experience in these tactics. If you want to learn more about these types of practices, there are other videos that discuss each one in greater depths along with links to more resources.”

Podcast transcript: What is the art of discraction?

Deep Breathing

Lets practice a technique to help activate the brain and recover! Deep breathing practice can help you manage pain and anxiety.

Lets practice a technique to help activate the brain and recover! Deep breathing practice can help you manage pain and anxiety.