4th of July, around the corner, is a perfect time to use reminiscence with elders
Reminiscence isn’t new. Before the printing press, storytellers and bards were how history was recorded-
Oral storytellers gave us the Odyssey and another valiant tales. History exists in their family, and Ulysses or Penelope might be sitting at your barbecue this coming 4th of July- in the form of your aging parents.
Capture Aging Parent’s Memories Before They are Gone
But story telling only works if the teller remembers the lines. Family history has to be captured when the older person still remembers. So holiday events are a perfect time to tap into that font before it flickers.
Here are some tips to use if you want to capture these family tales during 4th of July weekend with aging parents—a perfect time to do this. Use empathetic listening if you can. Make all the messages you are are giving the older person— tone, how fast you speak, how they are sitting- say, “I want to listen to them.”
TIPs TO Capture Those Memories Before they Fade
Ask questions with reminiscence prompting the story but don’t make judgments. If there are going to record the family tale, do it in a way that doesn’t distract or stop the older person from talking.
With reminiscence -start somewhere. If the elder isn’t going to tell stories on his or her own, start the story and see if they will follow along.” Did you go to 4th of July parades when you were a kid or march in one after the war ( pick his war).” Did your parents have barbecues to start the summer”Music is just next to memory in the brain shown by Alive Inside So 60’s Bruce Springfield Rock and Roll 50’s , Little Richard , Bill Haley and if the are older early 50’s the Four Freshman
Two technology tools to help you with Reminiscence for your older client
Story Worth is a legacy building tool that can help families create a book of memories through weekly
easy prompts of questions to ask the older person the create a weekly story about their life resulting in a book after one Year . My daughter gifted it to her Dad and he and the whole family loved the legacy book that was created
Quick Voice Recorder to catch the memory on your phone and used Dictation to transcribe the memories into written word to print.
Check out my Book Handbook of Geriatric Care Management with more tools for legacy building written by David Lindeman Director Of the Center for Technology at UC Berkeley and Julie Menack of 21 st Care Solutions
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Reminiscence isn’t new. Before the printing press, storytellers and bards were how history was recorded-
a family can use a practice called reminiscence therapy to help combat the frustration, confusion, and depression that can often accompany dementia and even bring joy to the older person
Easter eggs, create easter baskets, do an Easter egg hunt, serve an Easter brunch or dinner, get them involved, let them watch, allow them to help if possible, serve them ritual food or to taste it and ask when how they experienced these rituals, when they were young. If you have old albums of pictures from their childhood of them at Easter, look and the photos with them. Then listen.
Labor to lower the standard of care of investment advice fiduciaries, and this represents a dramatic and unprecedented reversal of the intent of Congress in enacting ERISA.
for the parent, and thus will find it difficult to provide the practical and emotional care that their aging parent needs. The challenge to the adult child of the dysfunctional family is how to meet the dependency needs of the here and now old-old parent when the parent did not meet them dependency needs as a child. That is why they need a highly experienced 