Easy Bathing.

I walked into one of our “Spa Rooms” to wash my hands. It’s one of three rooms where we help our residents take baths or showers. 

I paused and looked around.

No wonder no residents want to bathe in here, I thought. It looks like a hospital bathroom!

Think about your bathroom at home. You’ve probably designed it just the way you want it: warm colors, fresh soaps and candles, and a shower curtain you picked out to match the rest of the decor.

Now imagine that you just moved into a community where another person (or two) has to help you bathe. You’re taken into an unfamiliar room, it’s cold, it looks like a facility, and someone helps you take off all of your clothes. You would be uncomfortable and upset—or maybe even angry.

I picked up a copy of Bathing Without a Battle to get some new ideas about how to renovate our bathrooms. 

Here’s what we added, and it completely changed the look and feel of the room:

  • CD player and CDs for residents
  • A corner table
  • Pictures on the walls
  • Flower arrangements
  • A basket
  • A shower curtain

Change up your community’s bathroom, or even the bathroom your loved one uses at home, and see the difference it can make. 

For personalized tips or answers to questions, leave a comment on this post.

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Rachael Wonderlin is an internationally-recognized dementia care expert and consultant. She has a Master’s in Gerontology and is the author of three published books with Johns Hopkins University Press. Rachael owns Dementia By Day, a dementia care consulting and education company.

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