JULY 2017

“Oh Bring Back my _____ to me”… benefits of reminiscing

Hello! This issue of Health Beat is being sent to you courtesy of Becky Watson, Owner of Music for Wellness, Enriching the Mind, Body and Spirit with MUSIC! It is our way of saying that you are important to us and we truly value serving you. Please feel free to pass this newsletter on to friends and neighbors. Enjoy!

Famous Quotes Health is like money; we never have a true idea of its value until we lose it. —Josh Billings Health and cheerfulness naturally beget each other.

Summer is here! We see the golden sunshine, we hear the sounds of birds singing and nature and feel the gusty wind and ocean waves with excitement in the air! These hot days of July also welcome a cool glass of pink lemonade and sitting in the cool shade. One of my favorite songs to share during the month of July is “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean” because of the steady rhythm that invites movement, swaying and singing, story telling, and reminiscing. This song also invites creative musical responses from clients living with dementia, including dancing a waltz step, drumming the steady beat, and substituting other names’ for “Bonnie” to use as the lyrics (for example, Billy, Bobby, Wendy, and Shelly). We also reminiscence about things we’d like to “bring back” and what else “could be over (or under) the ocean.” I also share colorful photos of ocean waves, boats and beaches and invite my clients to create a story that is occurring in the photos. Their responses are included in a new verses of the song (there’s no wrong answer)! Continued on Page 2

Music Therapy Informed Engagement Program “Generations in Unison” with Virginia Symphony Warwick Forest Retirement Community

—Joseph Addison You don’t need to know the whole alphabet of Safety. The a, b, c of it will save you: “Always Be Careful.” —unknown Precaution is better than cure. —Edward Coke Someday is not a day of the week. —Denise Brennan-Nelson To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong. —Joseph Chilton Pearce Stories you read when you’re the right age never quite leave you. —Neil Gaiman

Pictured Above: Virginia Symphony Quartet: Lesa McCoy Bishop, Amanda Gates, Jocelyn Smith, Rebecca Gilmore, Andrew (student), and Dr. Christy Havens (VSO Development Director) during the Music Therapy Informed Engagement concert with over 45 residents of Warwick Forest Assisted Living & Memory Care in attendance.

Words from Our Participants We are so fortunate to have the best participants in the world! Many of them tell us how much they enjoyed Music Wellness programs for older adults.

“Very good, enlightening, inspirational on our whole being! Thank you!” - Emelia W, FUNsters, St Pius X

“Oh Bring Back ___”… benefits of reminiscing

Continued from Page 1

Looking for ways to start a creative reminiscing activity? The best way to start communicating with a person living with dementia is to establish the relationship first by connecting at eye level so he/she can see you visually. Then verbally state with a simple gesture (i.e. point to the picture), put the picture in their visual range an state “wow, this looks like a windy day.” Invite their comments, repeating their words to insert in the new verse. Another phrase to invite discussion is: “please tell me more.” It is important to remember there is no “wrong” answer as we are entering “their reality and their world.” Here is an example of a new verse from viewing a picture of the sun The sun is shining so brightly The sun is so yellow and hot The sun is shining to brightly I want to get inside and stop

Pictured above: Sister Regina, during an interactive music wellness program for the FUNsters Senior Group, St. Pius X, Norfolk..

What’s Becky up to: Jul 3,8.17,24, 31: Wburg Pavilion (Gero)

To invite movement of the waves, offer blue scarves and wave up high like ocean waves and swoosh like the wind or moving up/down. It is important to realize that your loved one’s long term memory is preserved through the early stages of dementia …. Invite conversation of summer weather, ocean waves, beaches, birds and nature. If you’d like to learn more on how to use rhythm to engage with your loved one, please contact me at: [email protected]

Jul 3: Spring Arbor Memory Care Wbug Jul 5: Westminster Canterbury Chesapeake and Hoy Health Center, VB Jul 6, 20: Village at Woods Edge, Franklin Jul 7: Maryview Nursing Center, Suffolk Jul 7: Peninsula Agency on Aging Caregiver boomwhacker presentation, Hampton Jul 10-14: American Lutheran Church Musician’s Conference, Minneapolis, MN Jul 15: Virginia Beach TRIAD, Marion Manor, interactive Boomwhacker presentation Jul 17, 25: Beth Sholom Village MEU, VB Jul 18 Province Place@ DePaul, Norf Jul 18, 24: Harbor’s Edge Retirement, Norf Jul 19, 25: Adult Day Care, Innovative Senior Champion Prog, Wburg Jul 20: Colonial Heritage Community Foundation Art Show, Greenfield, Wbrug Jul 21: intergenerational Music Therapy presentation, Young Audiences of VA, ODU Jul 26: St. Bede’s Alzheimer's Assoc, Wburg, Jul 26: Warwick Forest Asst & Memory, NN

Learn how to “connect and engage” through positive approach and rhythm … email: [email protected]

Join us for Dementia Friendly Conference & Cruise—Nov 11-18, 2017 Rejuvenate, Relax and Learn while getting to know other people living with dementia on this 7 day cruise to the Caribbean. Becky is joining Lori’s team to offer tips and trips on living well through rhythm and music! Contact Becky for details at [email protected] ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Improve Your Mental Health While those suffering from serious mental health problems should always seek professional help such as counseling, there are a number of small and simple tips that everyone can make use of in order to take care of their own mental well-being. One such tip is to limit the use of social media to a minimum. Social media has been linked to anxiety and depression and low self-esteem can be the result of viewing the carefully chosen and subtly edited newsfeeds from Facebook friends. Check social accounts for no more than half an hour per day. Also, the constant checking of emails at work is very un-

Days of Interest National Parenting Gifted Children Week, July 16-22. Parents of gifted children need special understanding in order to raise and advocate for the social and emotional needs of their unique children. NPGC Week celebrates the joys and challenges of raising, guiding, and supporting bright young minds. National Zoo Keeper Week, July 16-22. As the need to protect and preserve our wildlife and vanishing habitats has increased, the zookeeper’s role as an educator and wildlife ambassador has become essential. Celebrate National Zoo Keeper Week; both keepers and animals deserve professional recognition.

productive and outside of work can also result in an increase in anxiety. Canada Day, July 1. A national holiday celebrating the Constitution Act of 1867, which united the separate colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick

If you are feeling anxious or experiencing negative emotions, one way to deal with them is to write them down. Emotional outlets can include a well-being diary or simply a list of the things that are upsetting you.

into a single dominion within the British Empire called Canada.

Music for Wellness creates music products and programs to enhance the quality of life in supporting the health and wellIndependence Day, July 4. being of veterans, community heroes and retirees. We strongly The date of the Declarabelieve our mind, body, and spirit can be enriched with MUSIC! tion of Independence,

Some of the Services We Offer … •

Evidenced Based Music Therapy Programs & Research

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Teepa Snow‘s Positive Approach to Care ® Staff Training

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Energizing In-service & Professional Development

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Interactive/Engaging Key Note Speaker

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Group Music Wellness Empowered Rhythm Events

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Private Piano for Wellness Sessions for Older Adults

Tell a friend! A referral from one of our satisfied clients is the greatest compliment we can receive, and we have a unique (and generous!) way of saying thank you! Please call us for details! We are eco-friendly...if you would like to receive the Health Beat Newsletter in electronic form (to be taken off printed copy), please send us an email.

Email: [email protected] Phone: (757) 563-3488 Discover YOUR Gift to Help Others

formally announcing the separation of the original 13 colonies of the United

States from Great Britain. Official Shark Awareness Day, July 14. Much as we love to fear this predator of the seas, the shark has a key role to play in keeping marine ecosystems in balance. National Mutt Day, July 31. Also known as National Mixed Breed Dog Day, National Mutt Day is all about embracing, saving, and celebrating mixed-breed dogs. (It’s also celebrated on Dec. 2.)

Music for Wellness, LLC Becky Watson, MBA, MT-BC P.O. Box 9372 Norfolk, VA 23505 Website: music4wellness.net [email protected] (757) 563-3488

Good news and information for the friends and clients of Music for Wellness, LLC

Becky’s Key Notes June was a magnificent month full of summer activities, conferences, vacations, and Father’s Day. It was an honor to present during the Generations United Intergenerational Global Conference in Milwaukee and facilitate the closing with an inspirational “Boomwhacker.” And Rod joined me for a get away!! We also conducted a Our Positive Approach to Care staff development training and collaborated with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra on the Music Therapy Informed “Generations in Unison.” This program provides musical engagement programs for retirement communities (including memory care) by collaborating with a music therapist for instrument selection and participation of the residents. R od stays very busy as a SCORE mentor and owner of WatsonMarketingSolutions. Andrew is working at the YMCA Camp Red Feather for summer break. Jessica is enjoying her summer break, going to summer camp and hanging out with friends at the pool on weekends!

Interested in Group Empowerment Drumming?

Contact us immediately for a trial demonstration for your group event, conference, retreat, meeting, etc… we will customize a group drumming program tailored to meet your needs, your satisfaction guaranteed. (757) 563-3488

July 2017

Watch Your Waist in Your 40s to Avoid Dementia Later Carrying belly weight during the 40s appears to increase the risk for dementia in the 70s, whereas carrying extra midsection weight later in life isn’t as accurate an indicator. Researchers say these findings are disturbing due to 50% of adults in U.S. are abdominally obese. Researchers at Kaiser Permanente studied 6,583 people who were between the ages of 40 and 45. An average of 36 years later, 16 percent of the participants—who had been measured for abdominal density—were diagnosed with dementia. Abdominal obesity increased the risk of dementia regardless of whether people had normal overall weight or were overweight or obese overall—and regardless of the health conditions including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and stroke.

Source: Washington Post: http:// www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/ content/article/2008/03/26/ AR2008032602253.html

Email: [email protected]

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