He was a writing prof for 50 years and is now content to basically watch tv all day. (He's 77). I'm not sure how much to push him to do things to stimulate his brain. The pandemic has been a disaster for him, as he used to play basketball 3-5 times a week. Losing that, meant losing both the exercise and the social aspect of it. Should I make it my job to continually poke at him to try to keep him going, or leave him be if he's content? (At 66 I just started a new career, not for fun--though I do enjoy it--but because we need the money.)
Your profile says that your husband has dementia: was that diagnosed by a medical professional? I have found in general that along with a diagnosis, you often get recommendations for lifestyle enhancements or changes.
Perhaps a call to his doctor for clarification on how much you should nudge might help.
My suggestion is that if you can get your husband to adopt the use of a tablet, the games on it will keep him busy but are no guarantee to slow his cognitive decline. How would one prove it, anyway?
It may be better to have him do tasks, like sorting, pairing and attaching nuts and bolts, sorting and pairing large piles of colorful socks, building simple things from Duplos or Legos (from a plan), cutting & chopping veggies, doing housework...this will burn both mental and physical energy and gives him a sense of purpose. We do this for my 99-yr old aunt with mod/adv dementia and have her fold large piles of kitchen towels because "we need her help". We also give her colored poker chips to sort and she puts them in patterns (because she was a graphic designer by trade) and have her sort playing cards. You can find other activities for him (that don't require your participation) by searching online or just thinking about the things he did before his dementia (what did he teach?). My MIL began sitting and watching tv all day, but she was never a very engaged person to begin with. We could never get her to do much of anything after her dementia and short-term memory diagnosis. May you gain peace in your heart through this journey!
Geaton, I read your opening & misread tablet meaning *pill* & thought wow I need that! A pill so I can play card games better! 😂😂
We found the game shows help us realize that we can answer some of the questions. The Game Show Network has "Common Knowledge", "The Chase", "Master Mind", where there are multiple choices in part of these games. It's a feel good feeling when you do answer a question :) Even the old game shows like "Match Game" can be fun.
https://www.lumosity.com/en/
If you haven't checked, see if the basketball option has opened up, since many more people are vaccinated. If he was playing that often, perhaps there are other aspects of the game he could explore on line. Say, blogs or vlogs.