In this follow-up article about one successful resident newsletter, we take a deeper look at the power of this tool as a means of enriching relationships, celebrating individuals, empowering residents, and perhaps most importantly, building community. If you have ever considered the value of a community newsletter in your own setting, this article will provide you with some helpful insights, lessons learned, and encouragement. [...]

One of the expressive arts programs I facilitate as an art therapist in a retirement community is the Porch Group. The group’s members developed the idea for a residents’ newsletter which they now produce monthly. This is a retelling of the paper’s origin, wherein I begin to address some benefits provided by such a forum. Identifying the need [...]

The last installment of a six-part series entitled, Dancing Through Dementia, focuses on when to refer a client for dance/movement therapy. This article also provides a review and talks about where this service can be found and how much it can cost.

As I leaned down to release the brake on Pat’s wheelchair, I realized my “bunch of purple grapes” costume might not have been the most practical choice for the Halloween party at the retirement community. I’d pinned twenty balloons to my clothing, making navigation difficult. Still, the crowd clapped and cheered as the Brain Fitness Coordinator in costume as [...]

The fifth installment of a six-part series, this article explores how non-dance therapists can incorporate dance therapy techniques in their work. It is important to know when to refer to a professional. This article will explore this as well as review some principles of dance therapy.

An Opening Ritual I sat with the participants of the art therapy group in the Memory Support section of the retirement community. Each person held a puppet created during past sessions. Ellie* turned to David, and made a sound and gesture using her puppet. David then repeated the sound and gesture he heard to Mollie [...]

The following case studies are brief examples of group movement therapy sessions. The individuals highlighted were participants in an adult day center in Chicago. Both individuals were diagnosed with dementia and were in the mid- to late-stage of their illness. They were both in the “lower functioning” movement therapy group entitled “Feelings in Motion” that took place [...]

Art Corner I tap Harriet* on her shoulder until she raises her eyes to meet mine.“How are you?” I say loud enough for her to hear.“Half left, half right, otherwise fine,” she says.“Would you like to come to art?” “Yes!” This is our weekly ritual before the open art therapy group I facilitate on her floor of a [...]

This third installment of the six part series, Dancing Through Dementia, talks more in-depth about the benefits of dance/movement therapy. Dance/movement therapy, aside from physical benefits, provides many psychosocial benefits to individuals with dementia.

The Challenges of Making Connections Each day I work at the adult day center, I see people that are experiencing various forms of isolation. There are people with aphasia, whose words are becoming tangled or lost; there are those with Parkinson’s disease, whose voices have become a soft whisper. There are those with cognitive processing [...]