Bernardo Abreu |April 2023
Enhancing Memory, Emotion, and Connection
It can be difficult to care for a loved one who has Alzheimer's disease or another type of dementia. However, research has shown that seniors with dementia can greatly benefit from the power of music in various ways. Music has a significant impact on seniors with dementia's emotions, memories, mental engagement, and social interactions, making it a useful tool for caregivers and care facilities to improve their well-being.
One of the amazing impacts of music on seniors with dementia is its capacity to bring out certain feelings. It can bring joy and happiness to their day to listen to music with upbeat rhythms or tunes associated with happy memories, while calming melodies can alleviate stress and anxiety. One of the last abilities that seniors with dementia retain is music appreciation, which enables them to connect with others and communicate meaningfully through the sounds, beats, rhythms, and lyrics of a musical composition.
Music can also bring back memories and feelings. Seniors may benefit from forming new associations and memories by incorporating music into daily activities. Familiar songs from a person’s past can bring up recollections of sweet memories., while new songs can bring back connections. When listening to music and singing along, both the left and right sides of the brain are stimulated, resulting in a holistic mental engagement.
Additionally, music has the potential to connect dementia patients with others. Music can encourage seniors with some mobility to dance or engage in other forms of creative movement, promoting physical touch and connection with those around them, despite the difficulties of connectivity associated with Alzheimer's disease. Music can create a feeling of harmony, even amidst mental degradation.
It's lovely to watch how music, regardless of cognitive ability, can cheer up and uplift seniors with dementia. Seniors with dementia can access and enjoy music because it appeals to their natural and automatic responses to beats and rhythms, which are linked to the motor centre of the brain. They get a wonderful chance to decompress, make new friends, and improve their general well-being and happiness by taking part in music.
Music has medical benefits for seniors with dementia in addition to its emotional and social benefits. It is possible to incorporate it into day-to-day activities in practical ways, such as using music to recall older memories, encouraging sing-alongs to break up repetitive behaviours, relaxing music to wind down at night to alleviate symptoms of sundowner’s, and combining music and physical activity to start the day in a positive way. Music can be a simple but effective way to bring joy and interest to the daily lives of seniors with dementia, whether they live at home or in a care facility.
All in all, research has shown that music significantly affects seniors with Alzheimer's sickness and different kinds of dementia. It can potentially enhance their feelings, recollections, mental arousal, social interactions, and overall well-being. Music is a potent tool that can be used by caregivers and care facilities to improve the quality of life of seniors with dementia and make their days more enjoyable and meaningful.
References
"Music therapy for dementia symptoms: A systematic review and network meta-analysis" - Study published in the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry in 2018
"Effects of music on agitation in dementia: A Meta-analysis" - Study published in the Canadian Geriatrics Journal in 2017"The impact of music therapy on language functioning in dementia: A systematic literature review" - Study published in the Canadian Journal of Music Therapy in 2016
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