How Music Helps People with Dementia
The Music’s Role in Dementia Support
Dementia is a tough diagnosis. Regardless if it touches a family member or a close friend, it’s a real earthquake that changes lives forever.
As a teenager, I didn’t really know what it meant to be dement, I just thought it was what old people experience when they become senile, that it happens to everybody regardless. As I grew older, I understood that Alzheimer’s disease could “touch” people way younger than I thought. This thought started to scare me. According to the Alzheimer’s Association:
Alzheimer’s disease accounts for 60–80% of dementia cases and is considered to be younger-onset Alzheimer’s if it affects a person under 65.
The numbers are alarming: worldwide, more than 55 millions people have dementia with 10 millions new cases each year. Dementia is currently the seventh leading cause of death and one of the major causes of disability and dependency among older people globally.
And now, somebody I work with got diagnosed with Alzheimer. It came as quite a shock as she is only 59 years old. Her whole world was been shaken up, her family and friends are trying their best to help her and we all know it’s going to be a difficult ride. Watching her physical abilities change over the course of a year has been pretty scary and sad. She is not as quick, articulate and sharp as she used to.
She describes it as her mind wanting to do a specific movement but her body doesn’t respond or is doing something different. As a trainer, I was wondering how I could help or what could help her.
Then I stumbled upon “The Dementia Choir” TV show here in Norway. Demenskor, broadcasted by NRK this year, has stolen many Norwegian hearts. The show is following a group of people with dementia singing in a choir led by Kim Wigaard, an international artist with a bubbly personality.
In the show, we follow a dozen of participants learning songs and having fun singing together, with their closest family as witnesses, often moved to tears to see their loved one thrive. As their leader explains:
We see them get their spark and personality back and the illness is hidden away in a corner when they sing together. It is like a haven for them. — Kim Wigaard
If the initiative of a dementia choir is not new, as the british actor Vicky McClure started her own in the UK in 2018, the goal of this Norwegian show remains the same: put the spotlight on an illness often misunderstood and often looked over.
After weeks of training at the choir, the participants are running a show in a local theater, singing their best selection of songs. A touching moment for them, their families and the few hundreds of people present that day.
As Plato in his time said: “Music is the medicine of the soul.”
If you want to help the cause of dementia, here is what you can do:
- Educate yourself and others about dementia and share it on informative plateform, as social media: it might help people around you understand the illness better.
- If you know someone with dementia, try to spend time engaging in activities together, singing, dancing, playing sports etc.
- Research or create support groups that encourage community initiatives like a local Dementia Choir
- Offer your help with daily tasks and transportation.
- Volunteer time or resources for organizations supporting people with dementia.
Remember: People with dementia should be met with respect, patience, and understanding. Small gestures can make a significant positive impact.
If you want to read more about health, here is two related articles that I wrote.
