Friday, March 20, 2009

Elderly Drum Away the Pain

Story was taken from the following website:
http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/elderly-drum-away-the-pain/81750/

Elderly Drum Away the Pain
Jewish Home Lifecare Aims To Make a Real Home for Residents

By CATHERINE BILKEY, Special to the Sun July 14, 2008

Paradise View does not actually have a view, but the long-term care residence in Upper Manhattan does have a drum circle.
Ben Parker
Kathryn Montgomery (L) and Christine Karner (R) play in the Jewish Home Lifecare therapeutic drum circle.

The genesis of the drum circle was about three months ago, when Community Coordinator Paul Padial and Cantor Daniel Pincus were playing drums in Paradise View's dining room, and they attracted the attention of residents. "Everybody started coming out to see what all the noise was, and it turned into a dance floor," Mr. Padial said. "We just looked at each other and said, 'This is the coolest thing.'"
Mr. Pincus, who is a member of the religious life department at Manhattan Jewish Home Lifecare, the nursing home of which Paradise View is a unit, and Mr. Padial organize a drum circle for residents. Meeting for an hour every Thursday, it is a success, said staff and residents alike.

The drum circle is part of Jewish Home Lifecare's bid to change what was a conventional nursing home into a real home for the residents, replete with plenty of activities and choices about when to wake up and what to eat. The benefits of the drum circle are more than just musical: Mr. Pardial said it builds community and provides health benefits. "Part of my job is to build community, and drum circles actually mimic a community," he said. "In a drum circle every person has a voice. No one person is more important than the other."

The elderly patients who participate can't seem to get enough of making music. The drum circle last week attracted some 30 residents ages 65 to 102. They sat waiting for drums or other percussion instruments to be handed to them.

"I love it," the oldest member of the group, Laure Gaeckle, who turns 103 in February, said. "They started it up, I joined, and I've been drumming ever since."
Ms. Gaeckle spends much of her time in bed, and never played the drums before joining the circle. Suffering from poor eyesight and having difficulty with mobility, drumming provides a welcome diversion.

"I wish it would go on for another hour," she said. "I don't know if I'll be around to play at 103."
At 85, Ernestine Johnston looks like a trendy Manhattanite, with sunglasses, gold earrings, and a pearl bracelet. While she is not a member of Paradise View, she has been welcomed to the circle.

"We just found out about it and we started coming down. It's new to me so it's fun," Ms. Johnston said, while shaking and dancing even while seated during the musical performance.
"It's very energetic. It really does send blood through the veins," she said.

Staffers at Paradise View said they are seeing higher energy levels and a boost in morale since drumming became part of the routine. Music therapists have long used music to connect to people, and especially the elderly.

"Music is so evocative," the director of graduate music therapy at Long Island-based Molloy College, Dr. Suzanne Sorel, said. "Music can kind of supersede all the emotional difficulty and bring you to an emotional place."

Reaching such a place can be coupled with physical healing, according to some music therapists.
"One thing that drumming can do is access an individual's long- and short-term memory, and decrease agitation," the director of professional programs at the American Music Therapy Association, Jane Creagan, said. "Music is sort of a back door that can be used to access parts of the brain that other therapies can't access."

Unlike speech, music is processed in multiple areas of the brain. The limbic system is activated by the emotional response to music, while the elements of music, such as rhythm, pitch, and melody, activate other areas of the brain. Elderly people suffering from the late stages of dementia often show responses to music, including vocal activity, increased eye contact, changes in facial expression, and physical movement.

The residents at Paradise View are high-functioning and suffer less from dementia than the residents in other parts of the Jewish Home Lifecare system. The medical director at the nursing home, Richard Neufeld, said the drum circle could be used with residents who are suffering from dementia.

"There is no reason why this drum circle can't be used in other units with higher dementia," Mr. Neufeld said. "I'm not sure in a demented unit how many would participate, but we should try it out."
He also said that medical research on the health effects of Paradise View's drum circle have not been tested, but it could "reduce agitation, reduce blood pressure."
Mr. Padial said that perhaps more importantly, drumming seems to alleviate chronic pain. "One resident said that, 'For one hour, I have no pain,'" Mr. Padial said. "It takes them away from worrying about their ailments."

A Kadazandusun speaker/presenter among the thousand speakers/presenter in France







WELCOME
Welcome to the official website of the 19th IAGG World Congress of Gerontology and Geriatrics.“Every four years, the World Congress of Gerontology and Geriatrics represents a unique and irreplaceable event attended by experts from around the world to discuss the latest findings in the field of ageing. The 19th congress, which is taking place in Paris in 2009, is particularly important, as it coincides with an ideological u-turn”.


I will be in Paris this coming July 2009 to present my research work on elderly individuals. I am glad that my proposal abstract was accepted and I will have the opportunity to share my knowledge to the world. A Kadazandusun speaker/presenter from Sabah, Borneo will be one of the thousand speakers/presenters in this World Congress in France.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

...anyone who is interested...?

How do elderly individuals describe and interpret their lived experiences and loneliness around the globe?
What an interesting way to know more about the descriptions and interpretations of loneliness between the Asia Pacific and the Americas and the Caribbean?
Is there anyone who is interested to venture into this study with me?

...always a lesson to learn...


An 90 year old woman said, "I have not complaint, I am very well taken care in this place." She further explained she has delicious food and friendly and loving environment.

This woman has given me the opportunity to look into myself of how appreciative and thankful am I to God's bountiful blessing upon me.


Wednesday, March 18, 2009

...looking for sponsorship to purchase the instruments...

I am looking for sponsors to help me to purchase the instruments to be used for my Rhythmic Tranguility Group. Thank you very much. Description:

The HealthRhythms Collection features Remo world percussion instruments used by doctors, nurses, music therapists, counselors, and other healthcare professionals offering Group Empowerment Drumming programs around the globe. The HealthRhythms Collection complements drumming programs designed by Barry Bittman, MD; Christine Stevens, MSW, MT-BC; and Karl Bruhn. Medical science has recently documented the health benefits of Group Empowerment Drumming, demonstrating immune system improvements on a cellular level in normal subjects. This unique approach has been successfully utilized as a well-accepted, cost-effective strategy in clinical outcome-based programs for individuals facing the challenges of heart disease, cancer, chronic lung disease, and asthma. For new research on the benefits of group drumming for long-term care workers, visit http://www.mind-body.org/.

This collection is designed to accommodate 10 or more people and includes a colorful variety of hand drums and accessories from many different cultures. Due to Remo's special manufacturing processes, the instruments are durable, weather resistant, and easy to clean and disinfect.
Includes the following items:
2 10" Tubanos1 12" Tubano2 10" Pretuned Djembes2 12" Buffalo Drums1 Sound Shapes Circle Pack of 61 Thunder Tube1 16" Ocean Drum1 pair Drumsticks2 Apple Shaker Sets of 122 pairs Claves2 10" Pretuned Tambourines1 3-Toned Agogo Bell1 22" Gathering Drum1 Guided Imagery CD1 bottle Sterisol Disinfectant

A cure of loneliness


A cure for loneliness
Dolgor’s face lights up as a group of visitors enter her ger. At 80, with no family nearby, she suffers from acute loneliness. Or at least she used to, before Munkhtuya, a Red Cross volunteer from Ulaan Baatar, began visiting her regularly.
Dolgor calls Munkhtuya her ‘daughter’ and is very close to her. “She is so good to me,” Dolgor enthuses. “I used to have no company at all, but now I am so happy. Munkhtuya visits me every week and brings me so many things.”
Mongolian Red Cross
When migration to the city takes place, traditional family networks that would act as a safety net are disrupted and the Mongolian Red Cross steps in to fill the gap, particularly with assistance to vulnerable elderly people.
Dolgor is a good example of this. She had two children; one passed away and the other lives far away in the countryside. The local Red Cross branch wanted to support Dolgor, but it took a long time to track her down because she was constantly being forced to move.
This is common in Mongolia, where the law can make it difficult to establish land ownership and the most vulnerable often don’t possess the necessary knowledge to secure the land they are entitled to.
Prize delicacy
Dolgor is over the moon to be visited and she thrives on the company. She whispers excitedly to her ‘daughter’: “What should I talk about? Maybe they would like something to eat?”
Suddenly she remembers a prize delicacy, a boiled lamb’s head prepared earlier, which she enthusiastically offers to her guests. Nothing goes to waste in Mongolia, where food prices have more than doubled in the past year.

...I have a story to tell...


Aging gracefully group met today at 3.00 pm. There were 12 elderly individuals (ages 75- 100) who attended this one hour session.


The topic of discussion was Picture This.


Purpose:

1. To develop a climate for group interaction through self-disclosure.

2. To recognize the impact of positive life experiences.


Materials:

One photocpy of the illustration for each member, pencils, pens, markers, or crayons.


The outcomes with this session was very encouraging.

Members were taking turn to tell their own stories. They even describes their feelings about the depicted scenes and how these and other memorable moment have had significant impact on their lives.


Some words form the participants:

"It gives me the sense of feeling acceptance because nobody judges me of my weakness."

"Now, I understand the power of sharing and listening to others' experiences."

"Thank you for having this "down to earth" session, it makes me "alive as I recalled my own life."

"Each person is unique and the each person's story is powerful."

"When will be the next session, I enjoy this it, it empowers me to appreciate my daily life."

"I always enjoy and love to share and listen to others' experiences.


Monday, March 16, 2009

Sacred hands.......of the elderly individuals...

WHAT ARE THE FINGERS SAYING?



AGING GRACEFULLY



POTENTIALITIES WITH THE HANDS








GENTLE HAND BEATING THE DRUM!










counting your blessings






The following persons were randomly asked to share one of the many blessings of life.


"It is wonderful to have time to pray."

"Everything here is a blessing I thank God every night for landing me here."

"Living at the Motherhouse."

"When my sister dies, I was immersely blessed by the overflowing sympathy, love and support from my Sisters."

"Fortunate to be here at Mercy and for my wonderful family."

"The fact that I'spoiled rotten and I love to be spoiled."

"The wonderful care I get."

""Grateful to be restored to health and be back to my ministry here at Mercy."

"I have a job in a safe and nice place to work."

"God's love, good health."

"Our newly renovated space, with gratitude to all responsible."

"Having a job in place with a homey atmosphere and people."

"The freedom to procalim and share my faith in Jesus Christ in an atmosphere of understanding and support."