Does anyone use a DayClock? Any good?

Annabelle23

New member
Feb 19, 2019
7
0
Good morning. Does anyone have experience of using the DayClock Plus from Unforgettable. This is the one that connects to the internet so you can send messages from your phone. Just wondering if it is worth the investment?!!
 

annielou

Registered User
Sep 27, 2019
1,917
0
Yorkshire
Not got any experience on the plus version but mum has one that has day time and date on. I got it because she constantly rang me to ask day and when getting food out of fridge to make meals she rang to ask date. Mum put it her kitchen cos she said it didnt look like a living room clock and was too big for bedroom. It worked for a while in helping her check dates on things in fridge but as was in another room she still rang loads asking me what day it was and now she rarely remembers its there. She certainly never thinks to go look at it if wants to know day or date. Maybe if was in living room she might but even if shes in kitchen she only ever notices it in passing now.
 

Andrew_McP

Registered User
Mar 2, 2016
390
0
60
South Northwest
My experience -- and everyone's is different -- is that by the time such things are required, the person you're helping is unlikely to benefit. And if they do, it won't be for long.

The temptation to throw technological solutions at dementia is high. I did it repeatedly, chasing hope like Alice chasing the white rabbit. The trouble is, if we don't try these things, we then wonder if they would have helped. Ultimately what folk with dementia need is people, but I did have some success for a while with a laptop I could Skype into without Mum touching anything. I could get her attention that way. No end of white boards or notes ever managed that. She'd only look at them if I told her to.

But who knows, if your PWD is earlier in the slippery slope it might work. Dementia always finds a way to make us feel freshly powerless though. Good luck.

Edit: for phone typos. I shouldn't be tempted to reply on my poxy phone!
 
Last edited:

Sirena

Registered User
Feb 27, 2018
2,324
0
I agree with the previous posters. My mother had the 'plain' version of a date/day clock which her care agency thought might help as she constantly asked the carers what time/day it was. Of course she just ignored the clock and asked them anyway. I think the problem with introducing new bits of kit is that the person does not remember they exist because they are not embedded as part of their usual routine.
 

Rosettastone57

Registered User
Oct 27, 2016
1,837
0
My experience -- and everyone's is different -- is that by the time such things are required, the person you're helping is unlikely to benefit. And if they do, it won't be for long.

The temptation to throw technological solutions at dementia is high. I did it repeatedly, chasing hope like Alice chasing the white rabbit. The trouble is, of were don't try these things, we then wonder if they would have helped. Ultimately what folk with dementia need is people, but I did have some success for a while with a laptop I could Skype into without Mum touching anything. I could get her attention that way. No end of white boards or notes ever managed that. She'd only look at them if I told her to.

But who knows, if your PWD is earlier in the slippery slope it might work. Dementia always finds a way to make us feel freshly powerless though. Good luck.

I totally agree. My mother-in-law had a day clock, but she didn't have the initiative to look at it in the first place. The care agency used to send out a calendar in advance of who was calling and when. It was a complete waste of time, she would open it ,then put the contents in the bin. She needed the physical presence of someone there to prompt her to look at it. She simply couldn't recognise what it was for.
 

Donkeyshere

Registered User
May 25, 2016
530
0
outside UK
Hi We have an ordinary day clock but by now she does not really get to grips with the day or time - what I have invested in is a nest cam so I and my OH can log in on our phones and keep an eye on the MIL. I thought it was a bit intrusive at first but now I'm used to it and I can check if shes ready for bed etc so I can pop over to her annex and give her a hand etc, see whens shes up and help her dress etc. Its also good if you are out as a quick check - piece of mind - we got ours after she had a couple of falls and does not have a lifeline as she cannot remember to use it. Not a perfect solution but does help - sorry not entirely about your clock but just thought I'd say!
 

Showmino

Registered User
Feb 4, 2019
31
0
Our experience of the ordinary day clock is different. My MIL looks at it often and it really seems to help her to orient to the time of day and date. So maybe we are lucky that her mixed dementia is not severe yet, and it depends how your mum is Annabelle23. My MIL doesn’t ask about time and date but its clear she had no clue about them before she could check with the clock
 

Dimpsy

Registered User
Sep 2, 2019
1,906
0
My mum has the time of day/date clock. She looks at it but the information it displays doesn't register and mum still asks or checks her watch which she always puts on first thing.
OH and I use it though!
 

Thethirdmrsc

Registered User
Apr 4, 2018
744
0
I bought my husband the memory clock which he likes as it is quite bright. The internet is not good for him, and he can’t use his phone now. We had a white board, but he never looked at it, so if I am out I just leave him a note on the kitchen table. I had a google mini, hoping it would tell him when I was coming home, but he would call me saying it had said something!
 

northumbrian_k

Volunteer Host
Mar 2, 2017
4,363
0
Newcastle
My wife used to ask about day and date all the time so I bought her a 'special' clock to help her. She rarely looked at it. If she had it would not have helped her as it was forever going wrong. I threw it out eventually as I was sick of having to reset it. A clock that can't keep time is no use to anyone. A few years on they may have improved but I still doubt their usefulness. My wife soon lost the concept of time, day and date so no longer needed even a simple clock.
 

charlie10

Registered User
Dec 20, 2018
394
0
My BiL recently got a clock for his dad.....one that can be programmed to remind him to take his meds, have his dinner etc. On his last phone call my husband asked his dad how he was getting on with it. FiL said that now he is used to it, he knows what it's going to tell him to do ahead of time.......so we're wondering if he's sometimes doubling up on meals etc, once at 'predicted' time and then again when the clock actually tells him! Or, alternatively, missing out completely cos he decides to wait untl the clock remnds him, then thinks 'I've already done this'. We really can't work out what's going on....maybe it's time to look at 'smoke alarm' nannycams :rolleyes:
 

Sirena

Registered User
Feb 27, 2018
2,324
0
My BiL recently got a clock for his dad.....one that can be programmed to remind him to take his meds, have his dinner etc. On his last phone call my husband asked his dad how he was getting on with it. FiL said that now he is used to it, he knows what it's going to tell him to do ahead of time.......so we're wondering if he's sometimes doubling up on meals etc, once at 'predicted' time and then again when the clock actually tells him! Or, alternatively, missing out completely cos he decides to wait untl the clock remnds him, then thinks 'I've already done this'. We really can't work out what's going on....maybe it's time to look at 'smoke alarm' nannycams :rolleyes:

Unfortunately I suspect he's ignoring it, and fabricating a story about it for your benefit. I don't think PWDs respond to these gadgets in the way we would - their world is just not the same as ours.
 

Lynmax

Registered User
Nov 1, 2016
1,045
0
My mum has two basic day/time clocks, in the lounge and the kitchen. She does use them quite successfully so if I phone her to tell her that I'll be round in an hour, she is able to say what the time is and know when she needs to be ready. If she is in her bedroom, she struggles to read an ordinary alarm clock, getting confused which hand is which and sometimes muddles up the second hand so gets it totally wrong. I think we bought the clocks at an early stage in her AZ and so she is familiar with them now.

However, when we are out, she constantly asks me what day it is, as she wants to know if anyone else is due to call round. Today, having lunch in a pub, I just answered her without particularly registering how frequently she asked me. I was rather surprised when a lady from the next table spoke to me to say how patient I had been
( mum was busy putting her coat on and going through her routine of searching for keys in her bag so did not hear) in answering mums repeating questions about the date - apparently I was able to say pretty much the same thing in many different ways without sounding cross!
 

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