The Power of Music To Make an Impact

In this blog post by AFA Teens Advisory Board member, Robbie Hynes, he shares his experiences playing music for residents with Alzheimer's disease and imparts how powerful its effects can be on individuals with the brain disorder.  

For the past several years I have been an active and proud member of AFA Teens. I first learned about the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America when I wanted to get further educated about the effects of Alzheimer’s disease, as well as the many ways in which doctors are working to find a cure for the disease. As a child growing up and witnessing my grandfather’s experience with this disease, I felt that I was unable to do anything but comfort him as much as possible. I concluded that if all of the brilliant doctors in the world couldn’t provide a cure, than what was I going to do?

When I entered high school I became more involved with AFA Teens through concerts that my siblings and I hold at assisted living facilities. I began to think of more significant ways in which I could contribute to help raise awareness of Alzheimer’s disease, and if possible see if music had any therapeutic value for individuals with the disease.

The way my family got involved in music started as individuals and more or less morphed into a traveling ensemble over time. We all play a string instrument. I play the viola; my oldest sister, Maggie, plays the cello; my younger brother and sister, Brigid and Tommy, both play the violin; and my youngest brother, Brendan, plays the viola. So, Maggie and I sat down one day and fished through all of the music we had in order to try and find a few pieces that would suit our wide array of skill levels (ages 7-18). We came across a book of simple classical numbers intended to be played by a quintet, and we rounded up the troops and held our first rehearsal.

It wasn’t long until we scheduled our first performance at the Norwell Knoll, an assisted living facility on the other side of town. When we arrived mid-day the director, Karen, greeted us outside the building and escorted us into the room where we would be playing. It was the first time the facility had had live music there. Karen said everyone was ready and waiting, and neither my siblings nor I had any idea of who or what to expect.

Walking into the room, we were welcomed by dozens of excited and rowdy residents. As my sister Maggie used to say when describing our “debut,” her first thought was, “How will they ever hear us?”

But something very different, very strange and very wonderful happened after we started playing. The room fell quiet, quiet enough to hear the vibrations of the strings, quiet enough to hear an older resident humming along in the back, quiet enough to even hear our own mistakes. And, that continued for 40 minutes until we finished.

The director and other staff members told us afterwards that they had never seen an “audience” there as quiet during a lunchtime event. The reaction we received that day prompted my older sister and me to focus our musical efforts on researching the possible impact of live music on cognition for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease.  It also served to deepen our relationship with AFA Teens, including holding an annual candle lighting ceremony as part of AFA’s annual National Commemorative Candle Lighting event.

As others look for a cure for Alzheimer’s disease, we’re doing our part to see if perhaps music may offer one building block toward improving quality of life for people with the disease.

The Residual Power of Music

In this blog post, AFA Teens Advisory Board member, Liz Pires speaks to the residual power of music, its ability to heal, and how we can help use music to improve quality of life for people with Alzheimer's disease. 
 
It is generally acknowledged that music elevates mood, soothes fear and tension, and solidifies relationships. So how can it heal as well?

Neurologist Frank R. Wilson, who is an internationally respected, Pulitzer Prize nominated-author, labels music one of the hallmarks of humanity (Hodges 17). While most people are neither bestowed with the gift of musical ability nor the ear to distinguish between sharp and flat tones, every human being has the capacity to appreciate and experience music.

People with all types of disabilities are able to understand and enjoy music in a way that fascinates many doctors and scientists – and why is this?

The residual power of music…

Several years ago, an article in Wall Street Journal included information about a 28-year-old man in the Bronx, NY whose recovery from a stroke was helped along by music. The reggae and rap that emanated from his borrowed iPod aided him in walking again (Beck), emphasizing that music has an incredible healing power that is, mostly, indescribable.

In an article in The Wall Street Journal, Concetta Tomaino, D.A, the executive director of the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function, in the Bronx, NY, describes  music as "engaging very basic mechanisms of emotions and listening…stimulating dormant areas of the brain that haven't been accessible due to degenerative disease."  The institute’s internationally recognized programs use music therapy to assist the "awakening and healing" of individuals with various neurological conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease.

  

I’ve found that music’s click of familiarity possesses a calming feeling, a sense of home for anyone and everyone. Just as our skin feels warm and our head begins to gently bob to the sound of a favorite song slowly making its entrance, an individual with Alzheimer’s disease may be able to do the same. The process of measuring an individual’s ability to react to familiar music can be unreliable; however, music still has a charming, undeniable force. The rush of music can call up distilled memories or just feel recognizable, like warm water trickling into a tired, dry plant. It’s nourishment.

I urge others to explore the magic of rhythm and beat in the face of the devastation of Alzheimer’s disease. One idea that I find to hold colossal potential and requires little effort is an organized music drive to benefit people with Alzheimer’s disease. In every way possible—from stopping by garage sales to asking storeowners, friends and neighbors, collect used and new iPods, CD players, CDs and cassettes to donate to organizations with programs for people with Alzheimer’s disease.  Or better yet, to make this drive even more impactful, find out what types of music the residents have enjoyed in the past and try to collect those songs. In addition, you can find individuals or groups to perform familiar music at senior centers or care facilities.

Easy. With those simple acts, you can make an immense impact on many peoples’ lives and simultaneously involve the community, which would also help raise awareness of the disease.   

Hodges, Donald A. "Implications of Music and Brain Research." Special Focus. Music     Educators Journal, Sept. 2000. Web.

Beck, Melinda. "IPod Therapy for Alzheimer's Patients - WSJ.com." Business News & Financial News - The Wall Street Journal - Wsj.com. 16 Nov. 2009. Web.

How to Overcome the Loss of Communication Caused by Alzheimer's Disease

In this latest post from the AFA Teens Blog, 2011 AFA Teens Advisory Board member, Chris Schloss provides meaningful suggestions on how to overcome the loss of communication caused by Alzheimer's disease.  

One of the many frustrating aspects of coping with loved ones affected by Alzheimer’s disease is the loss of communication. More than likely, over time, the disease strips people of their ability to remember words, communicate thoughts and even to understand the life stories you might want to share with them. This limited communication is a fact that many caregivers find hard to accept.

But, in order to move forward through this sad period, caregivers can make the most out of the time they have with loved ones with the disease by cherishing the precious moments that remain. If a caregiver can proceed to this step, he or she might ask many questions: “How do I make the most out of our remaining time?”, “How can we still communicate if I can’t tell him/her anything?”, and “How can I get help?” Both my grandmas currently have or had Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia. Only one is still here for me now, and I am facing these types of questions as my relationship with her continues to change as a result of her illness. 

Now, whenever I tell my grandma anything pertaining to my personal life, it’s hard to believe that it will only entertain her for a few brief moments at most. Lately, it has escalated to the point where we hardly speak because of the pandemonium. 

I have discovered that the most successful way to bring her to a calm state is simply to reminisce with her over her childhood memories or engage her in discussion about the things that she enjoys. 

Once, during a stretch of long, chaotic days, my sisters and I brought over our black lab. This acted like a quick remedy for happiness; I hadn’t seen her that happy for months. She didn’t stop smiling, laughing and petting the loving dog, and my sisters and I saw a glimpse of how we remembered her a few years prior. Another time, when, things went bad, my mom and I took the advice of another AFA Teens advisory board member and played Puerto Rican Christmas music for her, even though the holiday season was nowhere near. Again, she was ebullient because she still remembered the memories of the carols. 

The most important factor in keeping a loved one relaxed and sociable is to make the person feel as comfortable as possible, at all costs. Sometimes, when all else fails, just sitting quietly and holding the person’s hand is the best way to connect. Making the most out of the time you have with a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease isn’t necessarily figuring out how to communicate your own personal life, but rather stepping back and enjoying being in the moment.

Music and Alzheimer's Disease

In this latest post by an AFA Teens Advisory Board Member, read what Robbie Hynes thinks are the benefits of music therapy for people with Alzheimer's disease and why it's important for teens to form intergenerational connections.

Like many other teens, Alzheimer’s disease has had a significant impact on my life. My grandfather was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease seven years ago, and I have witnessed first-hand the effects that this disease has on families. When I was in elementary school I looked forward to visits from my grandfather a few times a year. In recent years, however, I have only been able to see him a handful of times. When I speak with him on the phone I sometimes feel as if I’m not even speaking with my grandfather anymore. It is a struggle to maintain a conversation since he will address me by different names, and I can sense the increasing difficulty he has putting cogent thoughts together. I find myself having to remind him about my life when I talk to him in order to carry on the conversation, and this has made me very sad. When I first became aware of his condition, I did not understand how over the span of a few years, my grandfather, who has known me my entire life, could forget almost everything about me.

Then, a few years ago, when my older sister was doing research on the positive impact live music might have on those living with Alzheimer’s disease she introduced me to AFA Teens. My family was very excited when we found this organization and wanted to find a way in which we could help contribute to its cause. AFA Teens is an organization that by virtue of its very existence provides a “home base” for families and specifically young members of those families who have a relative with Alzheimer’s disease. One avenue we have used to attempt to “connect” with individuals with the disease is tied directly to one of my family’s major interests: music. Music has played an important role in all of our lives, and we were fortunate to find a way in which we could help raise awareness for Alzheimer’s disease and have a fun time doing it. My siblings and I first formed a quartet and later a quintet that consists of two violas, two violins and a cello. We began to contact local nursing homes and assisted living centers and volunteered to come and play our music for their residents. Many of the residents at these facilities are affected by Alzheimer’s disease, and our goal was to observe how they would react to the music. It was astonishing to realize how much of an impact our music actually had on many of these people. We were even more surprised at how thankful the residents and staff were that we took the time to visit.

Our first concert was at a nursing home in our town, and we had put together a program of five songs to play. As we unpacked our instruments and prepared for the performance, the crowd of elderly people was quite loud and talkative. I distinctly remember a person in the audience shouting at me to ask when we were going to start. Prior to the concert, the head of the nursing home had informed us that many of the residents had Alzheimer’s disease and that they could be loud and restless. So, we were not entirely surprised by the initial reaction when we first arrived. Then, we introduced ourselves and began to play our first song. As we began to play, a silence fell over the crowd; all you could hear was the ringing sound of string instruments. This caught me entirely off guard, and it was clear to me that our music was acting as a sort of therapy for the residents. I was very excited by this because now we were not only doing something we enjoyed to help raise awareness for Alzheimer’s disease, but our music was acting as a way to soothe people affected by the disease.

Just a couple of months ago I saw my grandfather for the first time in a few years, and he insisted that I play my music for him. I was very curious to see if he would react just like the people at the nursing homes have—and he did. As I played, I sporadically glanced over at him to see him sitting there mesmerized by the music. It was a very rare occasion to see my grandfather able to sit down and concentrate on one thing for more than a few minutes, and I felt very proud of myself that I was able to provide a temporary respite from the disease for those 10 minutes during which I played that day.

But there is more work that can be done to make lives better for both people with Alzheimer’s disease and their families. Even though all of us do not play music, perhaps there are other modes of interaction that can help people in assisted living facilities. . Just as one of our family’s concerts breaks the monotony of the day-to-day routine, perhaps getting more young people involved in visiting these centers might also be beneficial. In a day and age when everyone’s schedule seems stretched to the max, maybe it is time for teens to step back and assess what they can do, what they can personally do, to help make things better.

AFA Teens has created a forum for young people to exchange experiences and possible solutions for the myriad problems facing families dealing with Alzheimer’s disease. However, taking full advantage of that forum requires all of us to take the first step, take the initiative, and make an effort to bring what can be a positive vision to life. Our older population will continue to grow over the coming years; so will the number of individuals (and families) coming to terms with Alzheimer’s disease. Hopefully the number of teens willing to step up and become involved will grow as well.