Healthy aging is dependent upon a number of factors. A good diet that provides balanced nutrition can extend lifespans, increase energy levels and improve mood. Regular physical activity can strengthen muscles, bones, joints and even internal organs, leading to longer, healthier lives. An active social life is also crucial when it comes to combatting loneliness, depression and other challenges that affect seniors. These areas are talked about a lot when people discuss healthy aging. One aspect that doesn’t get mentioned as much in the discussion about how to enable healthy aging is the power of creativity. When aging individuals engage with the arts, whether it’s through direct creative expression or through simply experiencing them, overall quality of life improves considerably!
Seniors Expressing Themselves through Art
Seniors in our culture don’t have many avenues of expression available to them, unfortunately. We live in a young person’s society, where it seems like everything is catered to the under-40 set, leaving seniors feeling like their voices don’t matter. This leaves many aging individuals feeling like they need to keep their ideas inside.
When a senior engages with activities like dance, painting, music or crafting, it opens up a path of expression that can truly make them come alive. Engaging in these activities brings a sense of purpose into life, plus it has the added benefit of exercising areas of the brain that might otherwise go stagnant in older age.
Music and Dementia
The benefits of exposure to the arts extend beyond what can be experienced through direct expression. As it turns out, seniors don’t necessarily have to be participants in the arts to experience amazing breakthroughs.
Recently, studies have shown the remarkable power of music with its ability to almost miraculously rekindle the cognitive and memory abilities of those suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementia.
Patients who were unable to recall even the most recent memories were able to recount detailed stories of their younger years after being exposed to music from that era. Music stimulates areas of the brain that make it easier to reconnect with memories. It’s also been shown to encourage physical movement, making some family members and caregivers remark that it acts as a sort of time machine.
No other treatments have show as much promise as music therapy in terms of rekindling dementia sufferers’ ability to recall memories that were thought to be long gone.
Elderly and the Arts — Help Is Available!
Are you interested in learning how you can create a plan that integrates the arts into the life of a senior loved one? Are you wondering how a compassionate caregiver might enhance your ability to provide loving support to a family member whose cognitive abilities may have diminished? Always Best Care can help! We have more than 20 years of experience when it comes to senior care, and our team of talented caregivers is ready to help you ensure that your senior loved one lives the best life possible. Call us today at 1 (855) 470-CARE (2273) to learn more.
