Caregivers can also enhance the impact of the music with meaningful photos of family, friends or by telling family stories and talking about past events. Often, the music can spark memories that were thought to be long gone, or stimulate recognition of a loved one that moments earlier was no more than a blank face.
Music may also help a person with dementia transition more easily throughout the day. Playing lively, upbeat music can be used as a stimulus to help motivate an elder to take a walk or participate in an activity. Alternatively, slower, more calming music will help relax an elder when they are agitated or help them wind down as bedtime approaches.
The science behind music therapy has to do with the emotional connections we make to music throughout our life and where in the brain those connections live. Music stimulates the areas of the brain that are involved in emotion, association and long-term memory processes for people with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia. As a result, musical selections that are linked to emotions and personal experiences can unlock memories and associations.
Senior residential facilities, adult day care centers, and assisted living centers are now using music therapy as part of the residents' routine.
For caregivers, seeing the light of recognition in a loved one's eyes is priceless.
For more information, visit www.musichaspower.org. IMNF works in collaboration with Music and Memory, an organization that encourages the use of personalized music on digital music players, with funding from the Shelly and Donald Rubin Foundation.