Category: Caregiving

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For a Loved One with Cognitive Decline, a Smart Speaker Is a Gift that Keeps on Giving

Few gifts are as meaningful and loving as the gift of music.

For a person living with dementia, a voice-activated smart speaker can be a wonderful holiday gift that offers joy, connection, and comfort. That’s because music uplifts the spirit, reduces anxiety, and promotes relaxation—not just for your loved one, but also for you and other care partners.

These compact devices deliver impressive sound quality and are easy to set up.… Read more

People with Dementia Deserve Access to Beneficial Music

Here’s the good news: More and more families and caregivers are discovering the many benefits of enabling their loved ones to enjoy their favorite music as they age—especially if their elders experience cognitive decline.

We’re all drawn to music and spend our lives steeped in our favorites. In fact, on average, people listen to 2.6 hours of music a day and 1.3 million songs during their lifetime!… Read more

How Music Heals

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Michael C. Patterson on his MINDRAMP podcast about how listening to musical favorites can have a life-transforming effect on people with dementia. Here are links to the two short podcasts we did together:

A Music Treatment for Dementia, July 16, 2023

We discuss how I got on my mission to promote the benefits of music, some thoughts on current music usage in care, and my goals for expanding adoption of beneficial music as an effective quality-of-life approach for persons with dementia.… Read more

What to Ask about Music Access When Selecting a Care Home for Your Loved One

Research confirms that people living in care settings are more likely to thrive when they regularly listen to and engage with their favorite music. The music we love can shift our moods, make us happier, even prompt us to sing or dance. So, when your loved one needs to transition to assisted living or a nursing home, access to beloved music will be key to their quality of life throughout the days, months, or years in their new home.

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A Decade Later, Henry’s Lesson About the Power of Personal Music Still Makes Waves

Ten years and 50 million views ago, 92-year-old Henry Dryer’s message jolted us out of complacency. He single-handedly shattered the common misconception that dementia means you are no longer yourself, no longer “there.”

Largely unresponsive for years, he “lit up” when listening to a Cab Calloway song that prompted him to share his life story. Henry’s recorded experience led to the award-winning documentary Alive Inside and made tangible the profound benefits of hearing favorite music.

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Tapping All Five Senses to Ease Dementia: Alban Maino on the Science and Benefits of Multisensory Stimulation from Memory Lane TV

Founder and CEO of Memory Lane TV, Alban Maino is a media producer devoted to integrative health. After several years of product development, he launched this streaming media service, which provides therapeutically designed content that supports the well-being of individuals living with memory loss. Originally from France, Maino is also a US citizen and has just been nominated as Honorary French Consul, representing French culture and promoting economic development in his home state of Maine.

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How to Make Preference-Based Living in Care Settings More than Just Lip Service

The Resident Engagement Institute, powered by the Linked Senior platform, is dedicated to defining a new era in resident engagement by establishing data-driven tools, benchmarks, and strategies that senior living operators can implement to engage residents in meaningful ways.

Recently, I spoke with clinical psychologist Dr. Jennifer Stelter, PsyD, CDP, CADDCT, CCTP, REI’s Chief Engagement Officer, about the Institute’s effort to enhance resident engagement by measuring and elevating psychosocial well-being.

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For Alexane Roy, Creativity is Key to Compassionate Caregiving

Alexane Roy, a French musician, educator, and elder care professional, has learned from the ground up the challenges and joys of improving life for those struggling with cognitive decline. Newly translated from French, her successful book, Living…Loving in Alzheimer’s Land, is an approachable, thoughtful, robust guide for anyone caring for a person with dementia. An accompanying activity workbook, EnLIVEn In Alzheimer’s Land: Recreation and Communication Guide Through Neurocognitive Disorders, presents helpful exercises to put concepts into practice.

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