MUSIC & THE MIND SO C IA L A C T I O N T O O LKI T FROM INSPIRATION TO ACTION SOCIAL ACTION TOOKITS PRODUCED WITH PURPOSE
MUSIC & THE MIND SOCIAL ACTION TOOKITS PRODUCED WITH PURPOSE
“If music is such an important aspect of people’s lives from the time they are born, why is it that it doesn’t really occur to us, as a society, to provide people with music when they can no longer do what is necessary to provide it for themselves? Music has power, and we need to remember to keep everyone plugged in!” --Petr Janata, PhD Neuroscientist Guggenheim Fellow, UC Davis, Center for Mind and Brain, Music Has Power™ Award Winne r
In Alive Inside and Una Vida, we witness the dramatic effects music has on the mind, memory, and spirit of elderly people living with Alzheimer’s and dementia (and in a couple of cases - mental illness and trauma). We learn that although millions of people in the United States develop some form of dementia as they age, little has been done to treat people beyond the use of pharmaceutical drugs. Oftentimes elderly patients are prescribed strong anti-psychotic drugs that are not appropriate for their condition. While holistic, restorative treatments have demonstrated great success, they are still not widely accepted or used.
GET INFORMED
ABOUT DEMENTIA AND ALZHEIMERS:
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, “Dementia is a general term for a decline in mental ability severe enough to interfere with daily life .” It is characterized by such symptoms as loss of memory, communication/language, reasoning and judgment, ability to focus and pay attention, and visual perception. Patients with dementia are seen as being generally confused and disoriented .
Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia. It gets worse over time, and is also characterized by memory loss and many of the same symptoms as dementia.
WHAT CAUSES ALZHEIMER’S?
Alzheimer’s Disease was named after German psychiatrist and neuropathologist Alois Alzheimer who first discovered it in 1906 . It is characterized by progressive degeneration of the brain (see the image above). What is important to know is that: • Alzheimer’s is not just a part of getting old but a traceable condition in the brain (Alzheimer’s affects the brain’s
nerve cells, or neurons, which in turn affect the brain’s ability to conduct basic tasks necessary to think, learn, and remember). • Alzheimer’s gets worse over time • Alzheimer’s has no cure (treatments only address symptoms)
GET INFORMED WHAT IS DEMENTIA? “Dementia is not a specific disease. It’s an overall term that describes a wide range of symptoms associated with a decline in memory or other thinking skills severe enough to reduce a person’s ability to perform everyday activities. Alzheimer’s disease accounts for 60 to 80 percent of cases. Vascular dementia, which occurs after a stroke, is the second most common dementia type. But there are many other conditions that can cause symptoms of dementia, including some that are reversible, such as thyroid problems and vitamin deficiencies .”
MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT DEMENTIA “Dementia is often incorrectly referred to as “senility” or “senile dementia,” which reflects the formerly widespread but incorrect belief that serious mental decline is a normal part of aging. “
QUICK FACTS - FROM ALZHEIMER’S ASSOCIATION :
Images from 2014 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts & Figures
GET INFORMED ...AND THERE ARE MANY RESOURCES FOR FINDING OUT MORE AND GETTING INVOLVED!
WEBSITES Music and Memory has an excellent website with information about the impact of music with sufferers of Dementia and Alzheimer’s. They have a ton of resources as well as ways to get involved AND take action. The Alzheimer’s Association has a comprehensive website with information, resources, and basic facts about Alzheimer’s and Dementia. Their mission: “To eliminate Alzheimer’s disease through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health .” The Eden Alternative® is an international, non-profit 501(c)3 organization dedicated to creating quality of life for Elders and their care partners, wherever they may live. Through education, consultation, and outreach, they offer person-directed principles and practices that support the unique needs of different living environments, ranging from the nursing home to the neighborhood street. StoryCorps mission is to provide people of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to record, share and preserve the stories of our lives. They do this to remind one another of our shared humanity, to strengthen and build the connections between people, to teach the value of listening, and to weave into the fabric of our culture the understanding that everyone’s story matters. At the same time, they are creating an invaluable archive for future generations.
GET INFORMED BOOKS
Being the Caregiver, Taking Care of Someone with a Terminal Illness by Cheryl Patrice Derricotte Personal Growth/Caregiving Being a caregiver is challenging. When you’re called upon to make choices about life and death, you want to know that you’re making the best possible decisions. The lessons in this book are drawn from real life. The author boldly shares her experience taking care of her mother through her battle with one of the most aggressive cancers and the estate management tasks after her death. Una Vida: A Fable of Music and the Mind by Nicolas Bazan, M.D. Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain by Oliver Sacks
From Musicophilia: “The inexpressible depth of music, so easy to understand and yet so inexplicable, is due to the fact that it reproduces all the emotions of our innermost being, but entirely without reality and remote from its pain...Music expresses only the quintessence of life and of its events, never these themselves.” -Oliver Sacks, Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain
ARTICLES “Tools You Can Use: A Non-pharmacologic Toolkit for Addressing Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia” - The John A. Hartford Foundation “The Sense of an Ending” - The New Yorker “My Dementia: Telling Who I am Before I Forget” - Slate Magazine
GET INFORMED VIDEOS
Check out this video for more facts about Alzheimer’s and dementia:
Creating Home - The Eden Alternative
“How often does anybody have a chance to affect the lives of a million or more people?” -Dan Cohen, Founder of Music and Memory
TAKE ACTION
1
1-3
MINUTE
ONE MINUTE ACTION
CONNECT
Connect with these awesome organizations working towards restorative treatment for Alzheimer’s and dementia on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram! Music and Memory The Eden Alternative Alzheimer’s Association Add your name to pledge advocacy for ending Alzheimer’s
3
THREE MINUTE ACTION
DONATE
Donate to an organization working for restorative treatments for Alzheimer’s and Dementia patients: Music and Memory The Eden Alternative Alzheimer’s Association
TAKE ACTION
5 -1 5
5
MINUTES
FIVE MINUTE ACTION
GET YOUR NETWORKS TO TAKE ACTION! Post one of these videos about the power of music and other restorative treatments for patients with Alzheimer’s and dementia on your social networks to raise awareness and excitement.
Use these hashtags to connect to the wider movements:
15
#UV4alz
#endalz
FIFTEEN MINUTE ACTION
DONATE AN IPOD Donate an ipod and give the gift of music and memory! Music and Memory accepts all ipods, but they are currently facing a shortage of $49 iPod shuffles.
TAKE ACTION
1-2
HOURS
1
ONE HOUR ACTION
BE AN ADVOCATE FOR THE POWER OF MUSIC Bring the power of music and memory to a family or loved one living with Alzheimer’s/Dementia. Ask a parent for a list of your grandparent’s favorite songs. Add them to your iPod, press play, and share your story on social media to inspire others. Don’t forget to tag your new social network connections! You can also record and share your loved one’s storytelling session via the Storycorps Do-It-Yourself Interview app
2
TWO HOUR ACTION
HOST A SCREENING Host a Screening of Alive Inside Contact Music & Memory to set it up and use this toolkit to inspire people to take action afterwards! Walk to end Alzheimer’s! Register here to join the walk in Los Angeles on Sunday, November 2nd, 2014! Go here to register for other walks.
TAKE ACTION
ONGOING ONGOING ACTION
VOLUNTEER Ongoing Actions
BECOME A MUSIC AND MEMORY VOLUNTEER TO HELP IN ONE OF THE FOLLOWING AREAS: Help organize an iPod Donation Drive - collect a few or a hundred iPods! Host a Music and Memory fundraiser Get your school or organization involved in a Music and Memory Service Project Become a Music and Memory ambassador and bring the power of music to a nursing home near you Join the Music and Memory Certification Program Do you work with elderly people? Or are you a caregiver to an aging family member? a In just three 90 minute webinars, you can prepare yourself or your organization to have a Music and Memory program!
FOR MUSICIANS Are you a musician? Advocate for using music as restorative treatment: Join the Music and Memory Advisory committee Tell your fans you support the work - Tweet! Use Facebook! Encourage your fans to get involved!
Watching Alive Inside and Una Vida, it is easy to be struck by just how attainable widespread alternate therapies for Dementia and Alzheimer’s sufferers could be. We also learn those who are the most impacted by Dementia and Alzheimer’s are the least equipped to fight for change. As Dan Cohen struggles to shift the minds of nursing home administrators who rely on drug treatments alone, it is easy to ask ourselves, “Why aren’t music and other restorative treatments already the norm?” We can help make it the norm. There are already campaigns, movements, and networks of people committed to this shift in place. All you have to do is Join In. This is a movement that touches people across boundaries of race, class, religion, geography, or ideology. Are you ready to take a stand and work for the kind of change we see when Henry comes to life? Will you take part in a movement to do what is right for elder human beings? You won’t be alone in this movement - and the possibilities this change can bring are wonderful.
PRODUCED BY:
WWW.CINECAUSE.COM
SOCIAL ACTION TOOLKIT TEAM:
JLOVE CALDERÓN, JANA LYNNE UMIPIG, CLARA WALOFF
SPECIAL THANKS TO THE FILMMAKERS AND PRODUCING TEAMS OF UNA VIDA, ALIVE INSIDE, AND LANDFILL HARMONIC
DESIGNED BY:
KAILEY STRACHAN KAILEYSTRACHAN.COM
MUSIC & THE MIND SO C IA L A C T I O N T O O LKI T FROM INSPIRATION TO ACTION SOCIAL ACTION TOOKITS PRODUCED WITH PURPOSE