Memories are fundamental and beautiful part of being alive and being human. We draw strength from them, we laugh about them, cry over them, and they play an integral part in the bonds and friendships that we have. However, there are some people who speculate that memories can do much more for someone who deals with Alzheimer’s Disease or Dementia, and this is achieved by using what is known as Reminiscence Therapy for Dementia Sufferers.
What Is Reminiscence Therapy for Dementia?
To reminisce is to remember. It’s about diving into your memories and reliving them in rich detail. Reminiscence Therapy for Dementia is the process of remembering, of being reminded, of being prompted through dialogue with someone discussing your life story with you. What you’re doing is talking about your life, in as much detail as you possibly can. You’ll talk about fond memories, times you had which were fun for you, and how you felt during those moments.
How Does Reminiscence Therapy for Dementia Help?
This process of remembering is incredibly helpful for people. Let’s look at someone with Alzheimer’s or Dementia. The issue which they can be facing is the inability to remember large portions of their past. Now, this isn’t something which is easy for an outside perspective to understand, but it can be challenging, bewildering and often troubling from those suffering. We’re so used to being able to call up a memory and remember small details, that it’s hard to understand what it would be like to not have that ability.
Reminiscence Therapy is something which can help people who suffer from Dementia or Alzheimer’s. You can do this via a song, a photograph or anything which prompts the brain into remembering. It helps to reassure people that they can still recall the events of times gone by because they’re often unable to do so without these kinds of aids. It is a very therapeutic process because it aids in comforting them over their illness, and these kinds of memory sessions help them to retain memories too. The act of reaffirming thoughts, feelings and connections can be really helpful, and it helps to refresh older memories and hopefully stop them from being forgotten. This is important for people who are trying to hold onto their memories and maintain their connection with their past, which is something which can be very important for someone who has issues with remembering at all.
Talking about, recording and reading your life story is a form of Reminiscence Therapy. We have found, through our structured interview process, be it over the phone, Skype video or face-to-face, that many of our clients gain a therapeutic benefit from reminiscing. Triggering and repeating memories provides comfort, self-affirmation, identity, and joy. At Recordalife we have also develoed a specially-adapted Interview process for those suffering from Alzheimer’s or Dementia as an extension of our standard Recordalife Life Story products and experiences.
Overall, Reminiscence Therapy is something which can be of massive aid to people who struggle with memory issues and can help to benefit those people who struggle with Alzheimer’s and Dementia, and it’s difficult for them to remain optimistic in the face of their condition. Losing great swathes of your memory must be a complicated and challenging ordeal for anyone to deal with, and it is obviously a trying experience. Reminiscence Therapy for Dementia helps to change that by making sure that memories are refreshed and described in as much detail as possible, which helps to calm people down and give them some comfort in the knowledge that not all memories are in fact lost to their condition.
To find out more about how Recordalife can benefit you and your loved ones by capturing their Life Stories, and about our tailored offer for Alzheimer’s and Dementia sufferers, please call us on 020 8123 5470. To find out more detail about our Life Story Products, please click here.
