In a recent Dementia class I was reviewing, the following point was made- Behavior is a form of communication and mostly what they are trying to communicate are their unmet needs. Many of us already know and respond instinctively to this. However, it was the first time I have seen it so clearly expressed.

It was definitely the first time that I have seen it recognized and applied to elder adults. This advice is usually connected with children.
It reminded me of a time when I was working in a group home for Developmentally Delayed adults.

One man was a 63 year old "two year old". He was non verbal. He LOVED food!! Eating was his favorite thing to do so when anything was being cooked, he could smell it and he would grow very excited! He showed us his excitement by stomping on the floor and banging his hand on the arm of his recliner. This was not a problem. We all understood him.

It became a problem when a new manager was hired who had never worked with DD people before. His form of communicating irritated her and she insisted that we had to stop him every time he did it.

She interpreted it as "bad behavior" instead of communication of needs. We tried to explain that he was just telling us how happy and excited he was but she didn't get that by telling him to stop, we were basically telling him to "shut up". It was rude and disrespectful of him.

So, next time someone is exhibiting "dab behavior", maybe we can step back and try to determine what needs are not being met...are they cold, hungry, wet, confused, overwhelmed or even all of the above. Then we can solve the problem not just the symptoms.