Music Helps My Mom's Alzheimer's Disease

Music helps brain development and cognition. Music is good for adults and children. Music changes the way we deal with everyday life. When I'm feeling down I can put on a good song and suddenly my mood has changed from bad to good! Music helps memory. My mom has Alzheimer's disease and the only time she becomes present is when she's listening to music. She taps her feet in time to the music and her eyes light up. She will turn to me and say "this is good, I like this". What a wonderful experience for my mom to have. What a wonderful thing for me to witness. The other evening Austin City Limits was on the public TV station and Los Lobos was on. My mom doesn't really know who Los Lobos is but she starting tapping her hands and feet and actually humming with the music. She was having a very present moment! Now usually, with Alzheimer's she is not present from moment to moment and even becomes quite confused. When music is on she's not confused, she's just in the moment. No drug can help her be in the moment but music brings her there! Thank God for music as it enables my mom to have long lucid periods and it enhances our lives. There is no cure for Alzheimer's. Besides music there are some helpful tools that can be put into action. Here are some tips: Non-drug approaches Non-drug approaches to managing behavior symptoms promote physical and emotional comfort. Many of these strategies aim to identify and address needs that the person with Alzheimer's may have difficulty expressing as the disease progresses. Non-drug approaches should always be tried first. Steps to developing successful non-drug treatments include:

Recognizing that the person is not just "acting mean or ornery," but is having further symptoms of the disease

Identifying the cause and how the symptom may relate to the experience of the person with Alzheimer's

Changing the environment to resolve challenges and obstacles to comfort, security and ease of mind Coping tips

Monitor personal comfort. Check for pain, hunger, thirst, constipation, full bladder, fatigue, infections and skin irritation. Maintain a comfortable room temperature.

Avoid being confrontational or arguing about facts. For example, if a person expresses a wish to go visit a parent who died years ago, don't point out that the parent is dead. Instead, say, "Your mother is a wonderful person. I would like to see her too."

Redirect the person's attention. Try to remain flexible, patient and supportive by responding to the emotion, not the behavior.

Create a calm environment. Avoid noise, glare, insecure space and too much background distraction, including television.

Allow adequate rest between stimulating events.

Provide a security object.

Acknowledge requests, and respond to them.

Look for reasons behind each behavior. Consult a physician to identify any causes related to medications or illness.

Explore various solutions.

Don't take the behavior personally, and share your experiences with others. Hope this was helpful. Here is a link to the Alzheimer's Association where you can find other pointers and help in your area. CLICK HERE May Music Be With You Always

Music Helps My Mom'sAlzheimer's Disease

Music helps brain development and cognition. Music is good for adults and children. Music changes the way we deal with everyday life. When I'm feeling down I can put on a good song and suddenly my mood has changed from bad to good! Music helps memory. My mom has Alzheimer's disease and the only time she becomes present is when she's listening to music. She taps her feet in time to the music and her eyes light up. She will turn to me and say "this is good, I like this". What a wonderful experience for my mom to have. What a wonderful thing for me to witness. The other evening Austin City Limits was on the public TV station and Los Lobos was on. My mom doesn't really know who Los Lobos is but she starting tapping her hands and feet and actually humming with the music. She was having a very present moment! Now usually, with Alzheimer's she is not present from moment to moment and even becomes quite confused. When music is on she's not confused, she's just in the moment. No drug can help her be in the moment but music brings her there! Thank God for music as it enables my mom to have long lucid periods and it enhances our lives. There is no cure for Alzheimer's. Besides music there are some helpful tools that can be put into action. Here are some tips: Non-drug approaches Non-drug approaches to managing behavior symptoms promote physical and emotional comfort. Many of these strategies aim to identify and address needs that the person with Alzheimer's may have difficulty expressing as the disease progresses. Non-drug approaches should always be tried first. Steps to developing successful non-drug treatments include:

Recognizing that the person is not just "acting mean or ornery," but is having further symptoms of the disease

Identifying the cause and how the symptom may relate to the experience of the person with Alzheimer's

Changing the environment to resolve challenges and obstacles to comfort, security and ease of mind Coping tips

Monitor personal comfort. Check for pain, hunger, thirst, constipation, full bladder, fatigue, infections and skin irritation. Maintain a comfortable room temperature.

Avoid being confrontational or arguing about facts. For example, if a person expresses a wish to go visit a parent who died years ago, don't point out that the parent is dead. Instead, say, "Your mother is a wonderful person. I would like to see her too."

Redirect the person's attention. Try to remain flexible, patient and supportive by responding to the emotion, not the behavior.

Create a calm environment. Avoid noise, glare, insecure space and too much background distraction, including television.

Allow adequate rest between stimulating events.

Provide a security object.

Acknowledge requests, and respond to them.

Look for reasons behind each behavior. Consult a physician to identify any causes related to medications or illness.

Explore various solutions.

Don't take the behavior personally, and share your experiences with others. Hope this was helpful. Here is a link to the Alzheimer's Association where you can find other pointers and help in your area. CLICK HERE May Music Be With You Always