Conversation Starters - Questions to Break the Ice

When meeting someone new, it's easy to be worried about running out of things to say.

Talking to older people, especially those living with memory loss, comes with it's own challenges. Asking questions, which require a factual response, can be difficult for the person, if they can't remember.

For example, asking their age, how many children they have or what they had for dinner, might be questions they're unable to answer.

Often it's the recent memories that older people are unable to access, yet they can clearly recall things that happened decades before.

The good news is that there are plenty of questions that you can ask an older person that don't rely on their recent memories, but refer to some of their older memories.

Here's some ideas of open-ended questions that can help to break the ice:

• how are you?
  
• what is your favourite food?
• what sort of music do you enjoy?
• what is your favourite holiday memory?
• what hobbies have you enjoyed?
• who or what are you most proud of ?
• what makes you smile?

This type of question allows an older person to share some of their memories with you, without relying on specific memories they may be unable to access right now.

Why not try using one or more of these open-ended questions next time you're chatting to someone?