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As activity coordinators, carers and nurses we are trained to observe our patients and residents in a variety of ways, such as medical and social needs. Recognising and interpreting responses to pictures may not be as easy as noticing someone is in pain or feeling lonely.

Interpreting Positive and Negative Responses

Part of my 2006 research for my Master's Honours included surveys at Day Respite Centres and Dementia Specific Units. Diversional therapists shared the completed Moments in Lavender (2005 research) DVD movie and non-verbal photobook with care-recipients in the mid-late stages of probable Alzheimer's disease. Therapists were asked to record responses to different images and emotions in a 30question survey for each media. The same survey procedure was conducted with healthy senior citizens in the community.

Although responses were in line with predictions there was a surprising response from Care-recipients to the image pictured above. The photograph is part of a sequence of images which begins with picking the lavender, drying it, filling the bag and tying the ribbon. The sequence closes with one to three (depending on the media) photographs of little girls smelling the finished lavender scent bag.

The interpretation of responses from some Care-recipients needs qualifying. Although the therapists had observed and recorded the responses correctly, they presented as negative results in the statistics. Some care-recipients participating in the Experimental Group had made comments such as 'messy' or given a 'hands-off' gesture or a crinkled nose expression, which may have appeared to be a dislike for the imagery. However, I see this as indicating a strong engagement with the story portrayed. A recognition of the procedures and the everyday, mundane almost, experiences that we may take for granted. A knowing of the mess those lavender seeds create and the cleaning up required. Perhaps a dislike for making craft objects. We all love to offer our opinion. I feel these reactions to the photogragh were really positive in terms of engagement, recognition and communication. Dislike is not distress. I would love to hear your thoughts and comments.

It is important to be observant. Enjoy sharing my books and movies with your care recipient/s in leisure times or planned activities. More importantly, enjoy the moments of hearing a comment or seeing a non-verbal expression or slight action. A gentle sigh or laugh can be a special communication if we listen.

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Recently I took a couple of my grandchildren to Landsborough Museum. We loved it. Explaining to them about old telephones and operators, ice-chests, coppers and washing sticks was an amazing experience. Seeing things that I used to watch my grandmother use was like being in a time-warp. Growing up in the 50s was certainly different to today. In retrospct it seemed slower. Quieter. If you are talking about retro items, dairy products or using my Oranges and Lemons themed (cooking) movies for activities some suggestions to stimulate reminiscence about milk in the good old days follow.

Familiar Rituals of Everyday Life

I remember I used to love being stirred from my sleep by the sound of early morning milk deliveries. The clanking of the full bottles landing on doorsteps and the clinking of the empty bottles as they were collected. The sound of coins being picked up. The squeeking of the cart wheel as it trailed behind the horse; hooves tripping and echoing over the bituman. The melodic rituals of everyday life in the 50s.

Most people from my generation remember the free half-bottles of milk delivered early morning to our schools - sun-baked and warm by morning break. Yet we drank without question our rich and creamy warm milk. The bottle pictured had an inserted cardboard lid nestled in the lip of the glass. Pressing one's thumb in to remove it usually guaranteed a milky splash. The milk pictured is non-homoginized. Your residents or care-recipient/s may have some stories about pure milk. The yellow glow as it melted  in a cup of tea. Experiences such as scraping the cream off for scones or dessert. Perhaps they made their own butter or cheese. Maybe they had a cow or goat that had to be milked. Talking about and demonstrating some of these procedures may come easily for people with Alzheimer's disease. Other things that they may like to reminisce about are the horse and cart delivery days, the baker, milko and greengrocer. Days that don't seem that far away.

A couple of my regular weekly commitments were postponed for a week or ten days recently. So, I grabbed the opportunity to just concentrate on studio work. I became totally immersed in the work I was doing. That's how painting is, isn't it. I remember when I was a young artist and mother, during the early 80s, I was a member of the Glenroy Art Group in Melbourne. The group used to have weekly meetings, exhibitions and occasionally a weekend painting 'safari' in the great Australian country-side. On these outings an established artist would always attend and demonstrate, teach and give good critique.

One such weekend I was lucky enough to attend. The guest artist said how his wife would continually have to call him for dinner as he would be so absorbed in his work that he just didn't hear her calling him. A couple of other young artist-mums and I gave each other the 'Oh! Wish!!' look of wondering what that must be like. Not having to think about what time to pick-up kids from school, make snacks or start homework and prepare dinner. Well, as they say, All good things come to those who wait :) and by the late 90s I had an empty nest ... although I do still miss those old days of cute cuddles, little Vegemite smiles and muddy footballs. There's just no pleasing me is there!

I was due to have another window installation/exhibition at the Moreton Bay Regional Gallery in January this year (previous installation 2011). Three or four months prior though I had realized that the concept I was developing just wasn't saying what I intended. Thus an extension on the date. So some creative and focused moments alone in my studio have been wonderful to extend the concept beyond the intiial idea. I'll share a sneak-peek closer to the time.  

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I have had fun during the school holidays playing Scrabble with some of my grandchildren. We all love word games and for some of them it was a first time experience. I used to play Scrabble with my boys when they were young. I taught them my tricks and always let them use the dictionary as I thought it was fun way for them to learn new words. LOL!! That all backfired! By the time they were teenagers I was struggling to win a game.

The last couple of weeks I have been talking about how I incorporate nature in my movies and books, even though the title and theme may not indicate it. For some people an interaction with nature is on a daily basis. We may be fortunate to have gardens, balconies or indoor plants to nurture. Perhaps a dog, cat or other pet to chat to and look after. We may take a walk when we want to and enjoy the weather and our surroundings.

Remembering Nature

Assisting a care-recipient to remember their experiences with nature will be supported when using items and subjects that are familiar to them. Our personal experiences or involvemnent with something are a strong support when we are recalling it. As I always say, and use in my work - everyday experiences. An interaction with nature through an experience such as gardening, is very familiar and popular.

A fun way to stimulate memories, social interaction and communication is with the themed crosswords available on The Crozzle Collection DVD. There are several titles based on nature. In the Nature menu are crozzles titled On the Farm, A Rainy Day, and What Bird is That?. Additional nature themes are under Garden Themes. The first is Old Fashioned Garden Flowers; additional crozzles depict our interaction with nature - A man Building a Garden Wall and another man busy doing The Things That Gardeners Do. I have mentioned in a previous post that people with dementia love playing word games.

Create a Tactile Clue for your Crozzle DVD - watch the Crozzle first and select a couple of the clues that would be suitable as tactile clues. Choose something your care-recipient/s can handle, feel or smell to assist them recognize the object and word. Make a note of what number clue this will be and pause the DVD at the end of the previous word. Allow time for tactile experience and guessing the answer before continuing the DVD. (Please leave a comment if you have some additional ideas to share or a query.)

The Crozzle Collection DVD - Demonstration Video 

LOOKING AT NATURE - Part 1  - Part 2  -  LOVERS OF WORD GAMES

Last week I watched children collecting autumn leaves. I think it is one of my earliest memories from my own childhood in which I became aware of nature and my environment. And of course, collecting sea-shells as children is probably familiar to many of us who lived in coastal areas or holidayed at the beach. 

Looking at Nature Part 2

We are very much in tune with our environment. People with Alzheimer's disease and dementia hold many memories of nature and gardens. My 2005 research and surveys indicated that gardening and walking were high on their prefences for hobbies and recreational activities. Some of the nature scenes in my movies are listed below.

Collecting sea-shells and autumn leaves may be considered part of our childhood. A continued hobby for some. Including items from nature, especially something familiar, as part of a Memory Box or display when watching my movies is an additional way to support memory stimulation for care-recipients. Items such as shells may still have some of the sea-side smell which is an further support for reminiscence. The important thing to note is that these movies are versatile. They can be re-played with an emphasis on a different theme within a movie for an activity. Or they can just be played for enjoyment and relaxation.

A Flower Medley is crammed with nature. Not only flowers, but seasons, birds, gardens and paths. Additional information is mentioned in the post: Don't Judge My Movie by It's Cover. A Flower Medley is now available as a RENT A MOVIE in the USA on Amazon. Perfect for playing on a laptop, iPad or tablet, and provides the opportuntiy for relaxing one-on-one times. The movie may be started or stopped at any stage to suit a care-recipients needs.

Oranges and Lemons isn't just about cooking and juicing oranges. The theme of orange and yellow colours is presented through artwork, other fruits and flowers. There are video clips of citrus fruit trees, botanical gardens and the beautiful ring of autumn leaves set against a clear blue sky.

Moments in Lavender: The theme of lavender is also carried into colours in this movie. The delicate mauve flowering Jacarander trees of New Farm Park, Brisbane, are featured in one section with people walking through peaceful parklands.

In the Garden and Gone Fishing movies were mentioned in my last post. I mentioned a couple of things about watching for contrast in nature. The muted, beige tones are very relaxing but not always identifiable, as in my examples.

MOVIE PREVIEWS

My apologies for not posting for a couple of weeks - my computer crashed a couple of days before I went on holdiays and I wasn't able to open my web control from either my phone or the country library.