The power of memories
For thousands of years, people from different cultures around the world passed on their traditions, beliefs and advice, telling stories. These stories explained the following:
• Life lessons
• How to survive in difficult conditions
• Why it all happened the way they
• Tales of great adventures, tragedy or love
In addition to the wisdom transmitted, we now know that remembering and reviewing life is a proven way for older people to gain self-esteem, learn more about themselves, and pass on the gift of their stories to the next generation. A reminder of life stories should be encouraged in every joke in one life, but above all, when people reach the end of life. There are a number of studies that have shown that memories and life analysis affect people's lives unusually, which stimulates the brain, promotes continuous learning and leads to healthy aging.
Brain fitness and lifelong learning
Our life experiences affect the brain as we age. Each person is completely unique - with different people, events and training that shape us. Wisdom and experience help our brains prepare for the future. Bringing our brains to learning in our lives can help people age in a positive way. A new study shows how the brain continues to adapt and acquire neurons over the years, if the brain is challenged.
“We can make the brain better by simply accumulating more knowledge that builds more networks of connections in the brain. The wisdom we receive can compensate for the decline that can gradually occur, ”says James McGogh, PhD, Dana Alliance for a member of the ULU’s Irvine University of California.
Training strengthens the brain as weightlifting strengthens the body. Focusing on learning can lead to a positive old experience.
Healthy Aging, Wellness and Memories
Human interaction is important for promoting positive brain health. “There is a lot of evidence that other people are the most unpredictable things you can meet. Thus, the actions you do with other people are a fantastic form of brain exercise. ” said Lawrence Katz, a neuroscientist and investigator at Duke University Medical Center.
Opportunities to recreate and learn about each other in autobiography classes show positive results in community settings. People have a chance to go beyond ordinary, typical conversations such as weather, health, sports and food. Now talk about grandparents, neighborhood, school experience, personal values and beliefs is more common. A memory opens the door to a new discovery.
Genetics plays an important role in successful, active aging and a healthy lifestyle, but the choice of people every day is crucial. Cognitive stimulation matters, but the Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives also noted that exercise, diet, social connections, how we deal with stress, and see ourselves and the world in a positive way are also important.
What do the experts say ....
• Dr. Robert Butler, author of Why Survive? Being old in America, coined the term “life review” fifty years ago. Until that time, researchers and doctors saw memory as a step towards aging and dementia. He disagreed with this belief and suggested that as people age, memory and life review are a normal part of healthy aging. Currently, large-scale scientific studies show positive results from memories and life reviews.
• Dr. Jean Cohen, author of The Mature Mind, sees the memory as a critical brain activity, and he recently remarked: “The autobiography for the elderly is like chocolate for the brain.” Cohen cites a 2003 study by Eleonora Maguire and Christopher Frith, who performed brain scans on people 70 years old and 30 years old when they recalled. They found that the entire hippocampus is "lit" and actively occupied by older people, while 30-year-olds use only a small part of the left hippocampal region.
• Dr. Andrew Weil, author of Healthy Aging, encourages older people to keep a record of wisdom, values, and life lessons in ethical will or heartfelt writing to loved ones. He writes: “The ordinary will ... concerns the tangible property of one thing upon death. Ethical will is associated with non-material gifts: values and life lessons that you want to leave to others. At the critical points of your life, take your ethical will and read it. Add to it. Review it and share it with people you care about. Ethical help will help you organize your own experience and focus on who you are. on others ". Life stories can lead to writing from the heart.
Skillful nursing, memory care and memory
Research has shown that communities see remarkable results when memories and life reviews are encouraged.
Increases life satisfaction
With female children from a nursing home, randomly assigned members of a group of memories, discussing current events or the absence of a treatment group. The results showed a significant increase in life satisfaction in the group of memories.
Improves the relationship between residents and employees
Home residents of the nursing home were interviewed without the presence of staff, as well as in the format of the reminiscence / revision of life or in a format that is more focused on the present. Attitudes of residents towards employees improved due to the memories and presence of staff at the interview.
Reduces Geriatric Depression
Recently displaced nursing home residents have gone through a study to see if a life review can prevent clinical depression. Significant positive results were demonstrated in reducing depression at the stage of short-term testing with an additional decrease in depression and hopelessness over a period of one year.
Reduces disorientation, improves social interaction.
The study showed that older people with dementia may retire and that this is important for them, in particular, because of the losses associated with dementia. Another related case study used a life review with groups of people with Alzheimer's disease. They were assigned to groups with some participating in life reviews, while others were not. The results showed the importance for groups of life reviews in reducing disorientation and improving social interaction.
Increases orientation, competence after moving
A case study explored the use of a life review program with newly displaced nursing residents, and found that it reduces depression by increasing orientation, perceived competence, and social interaction.
Increases meaning and purpose.
After group therapy for the elderly in the long-term care setting for an 8-week period, this study showed that two treatment groups differed significantly from the control group, demonstrating an increased sense of purpose and value in their lives.
