Donated headphones will help awaken minds at GreenAcres
THE FAMILY of a resident at GreenAcres Dementia Specialist Care Home have raised money to purchase headphones to help those living with the condition.
They heard about the effects of music played through noise-cancelling headphones for those with dementia on a TV documentary.
Eddie Bolger’s daughter, yoga teacher Jess Kergalvis, taught a special class to raise money to buy 20 of the kits.
‘We watched the documentary Alive Inside, which showed how playing music can help those with dementia.
‘I posted a video of dad listening to his headphones on Instagram and the Alive Inside Foundation ‘liked’ my post,’ she said.
The foundation’s aims are to help people who are affected by Alzheimer’s and dementia to understand how music, film and stories can ‘awaken’ the mind.
‘I decided to do a ‘‘Chari-Tea’’ yoga class at St Martin’s Parish Hall. Astrid from Halo Eats also donated her time and provided vegan cakes.
‘We were aiming to raise £500 but did closer to £1,400. It’s amazing to find something that really enlivens all of the residents,’ she said.
Oliver Bolger said his father, 65, who had been going to the gym an hour each day a year ago and now uses a wheelchair, responded immediately to having the headphones on.
‘We knew that he was always into music, it touches something in his brain. Before he even came to the home I would put music on and it was really powerful. He can remember the words to the songs. These are wireless headphones used for ‘silent disco’ parties because they seemed pretty robust.
‘Being in a room with lots of other people and noises can be distressing for people with dementia, the headphones cancel that out,’ he said.
Mr Bolger’s wife of 40 years, Penny, said everyone with dementia had different symptoms and coping mechanisms but that all the residents who tried the headphones so far had reacted well.
‘You can see immediately the change and the connection. There’ll be people who like different music, so they can all listen to whatever they like on each pair of headphones.
‘Ed likes to listen to classical. We tried them out at the home’s meat draw on Friday and a lot of people were asking for Frank Sinatra,’ she said.
Care manager at the home Moira Boyd said the home really welcomed the support from families.
‘We’ve had a lot of donations to the care fund and this is another example, we tried out two pairs last week and you could just see the faces of the residents light up,’ she said.
