Piano at the memory care center

This morning, I got the opportunity to perform on the piano at a memory care facility nearby. When I went into the center, there were seniors of all ages, some sitting on couches, some eating, and others sleeping. As soon as I got seated on the piano bench, I began to play pieces that I had memorized. A few minutes pass, and a senior that was in a wheelchair began to speak words anxiously and seemed as if she was reliving a bad memory. Soon, I started to play Gymnopédie, one of my favorite calming pieces to play. Around two minutes later, she became completely calm. In fact, she slowly fell asleep. Having seen this made me feel more empathetic for all the experiences that the seniors in memory care had to live through. I was proud to see that my musical skills were also making a deep impact on the lives of others.

After playing the piano for around 30 minutes, I headed into the game room in the assisted living facility, where the seniors were ready to play beanbag toss, a classic game that they called corn hole. One of the seniors was the referee, who would keep track of the scores of each player on a whiteboard. There were around 6 seniors: 2 men and 4 women. I would help set up the corn hole board to their individual liking because some of them were in wheelchairs while others were in chairs. We would yell "corn hole!" every time that a senior made it in. The best part of this friendly competition was getting to see the seniors' faces light up when they made beanbags into the hole. Playing corn hole allowed the seniors to forget about all of their worries in the world. Their only focus of the moment was to have a great time socializing with others and win :)

"Iron Lady"

Today, I had the wonderful opportunity to visit a warm-hearted 88 year old woman who I will refer to as Susan. Susan has a series of health issues. These issues includes diabetes, arthritis, heart valve disorder, anemia, neuropathy, and pancreatic disorder. Despite her various conditions, she showed a bright smile on her face which I admire. She was so sweet and I was able to converse with her as if she was a good friend of mine.

Susan lives alongside her son in a small rural town. Her grandkids and kids visit her quite often, keeping her company and keeping those family bonds strong.

My mother asked Susan to perform a test of how long she could walk without getting tired. Determined, she grabbed her walker and began walking around the house with my mom supporting her as well. A couple minutes in, my mom asked her if she was tired and wanted to stop but she wanted to keep on going. She made the amazing effort to walk around her house for 7 minutes! Despite her old age, Susan showed that she wanted to be independent and continues to strive to improve her health.

Learnings:

Seeing Susan allowed me to notice that those who put effort into improving their health and pushing beyond their limits often see great results in health. Health of patients is not improved just through the work of healthcare providers, but also the efforts put in by the patients themselves. Without the efforts of both sides, achieving optimum health is not possible. Determination is key.

Health is Key

I got the wonderful opportunity to travel with alongside my mother, who is a Physical Therapist, to visit one of her patients. Due to maintaining the confidentiality of the patient, I will refer to her as Amy. Amy is a 59 year old woman living alongside her husband, with her daughter living nearby her as well. In the past, Amy had a son of 2 years old whom she unfortunately had to put down because he had a severe case of muscular dystrophy. Muscular dystrophy is a group of genetic diseases that cause progressive weakness and loss of muscle mass when aging. Amy mentioned that she would have regretted if her son lived a life of extreme pain.

Amy is diagnosed with congestive heart failure. Congestive heart failure is a critical health condition in which the heart of one's body cannot pump enough blood to meet their body's needs. Congestive heart failure can become chronic if not treated properly. Due to her diagnosis, Amy has been experiencing severe swelling all over her body. She had amputations done in her left and right feet due to the excessive amount of swelling she experienced in those areas, which could have been life threatening if not taken care of.

Amy is extremely passionate about playing the guitar and piano. Along with congestive heart failure, she developed numbness in her left hand and feet, a condition called peripheral neuropathy. As her left hand has become weaker, she hasn't been able to pick up the guitar or sit down at the piano ever since.

As a Physical Therapist, my mother recommended two components that Amy could encorporate into her life so that her condition would become better. She recommended a plant-based diet and exercise. Plant-based diet reduces inflammation, lowers blood pressure, adds vitamins and fiber, and many more positive effects that I can ramble on about. Exercise also greatly improves heart health because it improves your heart's ability to pump blood to your lungs and throughout your body, which allows more blood to flow to your muscles, and oxygen levels in your blood to rise. As your heart becoms stronger, fluid buildup starts to resolve.

Amy has many ambitions in regards to physical therapy goals. She wants to have the ability to stand up from chairs without much effort. Additionally, she wants to be able to get up from her couch in her living room without experiencing any pain or imbalance. Amy wants to to live a long life as well as have a little bit of fun too!

Teachings:

Amy's condition of congestive heart failure taught me the importance of health to one's lifestyle. Seeing my mother upfront talking out solutions with Amy in regards to improving her condition, allowed me to learn the importance of communication and observation in the medical field. Like Amy, there are thousands of other patients who suffer from chronic illnesses. Helping these patients find ways to relieve their pain and improve the quality of their lives gives healthcare providers a sense of satisfaction, knowing that their efforts are improving the lives of those around them.