CHICAGO, IL, November 13, 2026 /24-7PressRelease/ -- A husband and wife, both in their early seventies, were enjoying a drive when the woman, a former art teacher, looked toward the horizon and admired the beautiful purple sky.

Her husband corrected her. The sky was blue, he explained, not purple.

She grew quiet. What might have been a pleasant moment together became an uncomfortable exchange. Embarrassed, she withdrew from the conversation and wanted to go home.

Later, her husband recounted the experience to Dr. Jeannine Forrest, PhD, RN, a dementia educator and founder of Dementia Coach On-Call®. He wondered what he could have said differently.

Forrest posed a question that would become the heart of their discussion.

"What's more important, for them to be happy, or for you to be right?"

For the husband, correcting his wife had been almost instinctive. After years of marriage, pointing out an obvious mistake was hardly unusual. But dementia had changed the circumstances, and the familiar way of communicating was no longer producing the same result.

Forrest suggested that he could have simply acknowledged the beautiful sky and enjoyed the moment alongside his wife.

The exchange illustrates a challenge many families encounter when caring for someone living with dementia: learning when to correct, when to redirect, and when to simply be present.

Learning to Communicate Differently

Forrest has spent decades helping families navigate the changing realities of dementia care. Through Dementia Coach On-Call®, she provides education and practical guidance to caregivers who often find themselves overwhelmed by circumstances they never anticipated.

Some families contact her shortly after receiving a diagnosis, unsure what steps to take. Others have spent months trying to understand changes in a loved one's memory, judgment, or behavior.

Frustration can build quickly, especially when someone repeatedly asks the same question, forgets an appointment, or insists on doing something that may no longer be safe.

"You've got to learn how to think and communicate differently," Forrest explains.

That adjustment is rarely intuitive. Family members have spent years, sometimes decades, relating to someone in a familiar way. They may interpret confusion as stubbornness or respond to repeated questions with irritation, without recognizing how changes in cognitive functioning are influencing the interaction.

Forrest begins by acknowledging those frustrations rather than criticizing caregivers for having them.

She then helps families understand how their own responses can either ease a difficult situation or unintentionally make it worse.

One strategy involves borrowing from improvisational communication. Instead of immediately responding with "No, you're wrong," Forrest encourages caregivers to consider an approach built around acknowledgment and redirection.

If a grandmother insists on taking her grandchildren across a busy street despite concerns about her judgment, a family member might invite her to help prepare their lunches or suggest accompanying everyone to the playground.

The safety concern remains addressed, but the interaction need not become an argument.

"Imagine if you lived in a world where every time you talk to someone, they're saying, 'No, stop, don't do that. You're wrong,'" Forrest observes.

Her point is not that caregivers should ignore risks or agree with everything someone says. Rather, she wants families to recognize that there may be a more constructive way to respond.

What Remains Matters

Forrest also challenges the tendency to measure dementia primarily through what a person can no longer accomplish.

Consider someone who has loved cooking for most of their life but begins forgetting to turn off the stove.

A concerned family member might immediately decide that cooking is no longer permitted. Yet preparing meals may represent far more than a household responsibility. It could be a lifelong passion, a cherished routine, or a way of expressing love.

Instead of eliminating the activity altogether, Forrest suggests finding safer ways for the person to participate, such as preparing ingredients while someone else supervises the stove.

She compares the approach to bowling with bumper guards. The environment changes to accommodate someone's abilities, but the individual is still bowling.

The same principle applies to folding laundry, setting a table, or helping with other everyday tasks. The result may not be perfect, but the opportunity to contribute still matters.

"A sense of meaning and purpose, of value, that's important to all of us," Forrest says. "And that's important to uphold when you're caring for someone living with dementia."

She encourages families to observe what their loved ones can still do, invite their participation, and acknowledge their efforts.

Forrest also emphasizes the importance of speaking directly with the person living with dementia, asking how they feel, listening to their concerns, and involving them in decisions to the extent their abilities allow.

A diagnosis does not automatically eliminate someone's capacity to make choices or express preferences.

The Grief That Doesn't Have a Goodbye

There is another dimension to dementia caregiving that Forrest believes deserves greater attention: the emotional adjustment families experience as familiar relationships change.

A spouse may still recognize the person sitting across the table, yet struggle with the loss of conversations, routines, and shared experiences that once came naturally.

Forrest introduces families to a concept known as ambiguous loss, a term developed by researcher Pauline Boss, Ph.D.

In dementia care, ambiguous loss can describe the experience of loving someone who remains physically present while aspects of their cognition, personality, or ability to relate to others are changing.

The person is still there, but the relationship may no longer feel quite the same.

Forrest explains that caregivers can experience genuine grief even while continuing to share their lives with the person they love.

Recognizing those feelings, rather than dismissing them, is an important part of helping families adjust.

She also reminds caregivers that learning new communication skills takes practice. Years of established habits cannot be undone overnight, and even well-intentioned family members will sometimes respond in ways they later regret.

"Once you know better, you can do better," Forrest says.

Her work is grounded in helping families discover those better approaches without feeling that every difficult interaction represents a personal failure.

And sometimes, the difference can be surprisingly simple.

Forrest recalls a daughter whose relationship with her mother had become increasingly strained by repeated corrections and arguments. After learning to acknowledge her mother's efforts and express appreciation, the daughter noticed a change.

Instead of responding with anger, her mother spoke to her affectionately, calling her sweetheart.

It was a small moment, but for the daughter, it meant a great deal.

Such experiences are not a promise that every challenge can be resolved through communication alone. Dementia is complex, and each person's needs and abilities differ.

But Forrest believes families can benefit from understanding that care involves more than managing symptoms or preventing mistakes. It also means protecting opportunities for connection, belonging, and enjoyment.

Which brings the conversation back to the husband, his wife, and the purple sky.

He knew the sky was blue. His wife saw something different.

Forrest's question invited him to consider whether correcting her was necessary at all.

After all, she was sharing a beautiful moment with the person she loved.

Perhaps that was enough.

About Dr. Jeannine Forrest

Jeannine Forrest, PhD, RN, is a dementia educator, founder of Dementia Coach On-Call®, and Director of Dementia Horizons Academy at the Dementia Society of America. Drawing on decades of professional experience, she provides education, coaching, and practical support to families, caregivers, and care communities navigating the challenges of dementia. Her work emphasizes compassionate communication, caregiver understanding, and preserving the dignity, independence, and quality of life of people living with dementia.

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