As you look back through your life, is there a song that stands out to you in every stage of your life? As you age, this influence of music continues to grow when it comes to memories. No matter your age, music plays a pivotal role in people’s life.
Music can help encourage relaxation, productivity and reduce stress for anyone at any age. For a senior, these benefits are even greater. A senior and their relationship with music can be beneficial as a reliever from stress and in various cognitive abilities. Did you know that a senior can benefit richly from music in many ways, including:
BETTER HEALTH – Music is known to increase relaxation and help influence a positive mood. It has also been shown that music can help blood flow more easily, lower blood pressure and decrease the stress hormone, cortisol.
IMPROVES MEMORY – Music can trigger past good and bad memories and assist in memory recall. Seniors who have difficulty in remembering certain events may be able to “unlock” older memories with the help of music.
HELPS SOCIALLY – Music can help improve speech and cognitive abilities. Music can also help increase the self-esteem and self-expression of the person listening.
ENCOURAGES EXERCISE – Music is known to help increase mobility and even coordination. It can be the right background noise for motivating someone to walk or stretch.
Find music that is familiar, enjoyable and motivating for a senior to listen to. Choose the type of music based on the type of mood you want to help encourage. Some ways to incorporate music into the daily life of a senior include:
- Create playlist for them
- Find a sing-along video for them and play it
- Sing with your loved one
- Play music around the home
- Play music as they exercise
- Play music as they do light work
- Play music as they get ready for the day
We encourage you to use music to help improve communication between you and your loved one, as well as experience fun memories together. The quality of life of a senior can be greatly impacted by the power of music.