Glossary

What is Redirection?

Redirection is a caregiving technique for dementia in which, instead of arguing with a distressing belief or request, the caregiver acknowledges the feeling and gently shifts attention to something else.

If a person insists on going to work at a job they left twenty years ago, correcting them tends to produce distress and no change. Redirection agrees with the emotion, suggests a cup of tea first, and moves on. It is not lying so much as declining to have a fight that cannot be won.

It takes practice and works better than reasoning in the middle and later stages.

Why it matters

It is the single technique that most reduces daily conflict, and most family caregivers are never taught it.

Redirection where you live

The local guide on this, for each city we cover.

Related terms

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