An Exploratory Essay
Casey J. Lindecrantz
Mrs. Shay
Composition I
April 8th, 2013
Dementia and Music Therapy’s Relationship to the Improvement of Dementia Patients
As dementia becomes a more pressing issue, scientists are trying to find a cure for a currently incurable disease. Dementia is a neurological disorder where the afflicted person partially or completely loses her mental ability, leaving her confused and potentially violent. While this definition of the disorder gives a basic understanding of what Dementia is, it should be noted that Dementia is an umbrella term for the many different forms of the disorder, some of the different forms include Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s Disease. Alzheimer’s Disease, the first reported case of any form of Dementia, comes from the psychiatrist Alois Alzheimer in late 1906 when he described Auguste “from Frankfurt who had shown progressive cognitive impairment, focal symptoms, hallucinations, delusions, and psychosocial incompetence” (Gerbaldo, Maurer and Volk 1546). While drug therapies are the focus of most scientists, they are beginning to find that music therapy is a promising candidate as treatment for dementia.
The first article I looked at was entitled “Dementia” by L.A. Rasar and was published on her own personal website for the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire which is where she is a professor of music therapy. Rasar first starts by focusing on what dementia is and how it affects the human mind over time. Some of the primary goals that are attempted to be fulfilled by the music therapist are “maximizing independent functioning; maintaining self-esteem; developing meaningful activities; creating new living experiences; and providing an acceptable energy outlet” (Rasar). She gives examples and models as to how these goals can be fulfilled, many them taking place in the morning or midday, and many of these models are done in the group setting. When Rasar talks about the group setting, rather
Mrs. Shay
Composition I
April 8th, 2013
Dementia and Music Therapy’s Relationship to the Improvement of Dementia Patients
As dementia becomes a more pressing issue, scientists are trying to find a cure for a currently incurable disease. Dementia is a neurological disorder where the afflicted person partially or completely loses her mental ability, leaving her confused and potentially violent. While this definition of the disorder gives a basic understanding of what Dementia is, it should be noted that Dementia is an umbrella term for the many different forms of the disorder, some of the different forms include Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s Disease. Alzheimer’s Disease, the first reported case of any form of Dementia, comes from the psychiatrist Alois Alzheimer in late 1906 when he described Auguste “from Frankfurt who had shown progressive cognitive impairment, focal symptoms, hallucinations, delusions, and psychosocial incompetence” (Gerbaldo, Maurer and Volk 1546). While drug therapies are the focus of most scientists, they are beginning to find that music therapy is a promising candidate as treatment for dementia.
The first article I looked at was entitled “Dementia” by L.A. Rasar and was published on her own personal website for the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire which is where she is a professor of music therapy. Rasar first starts by focusing on what dementia is and how it affects the human mind over time. Some of the primary goals that are attempted to be fulfilled by the music therapist are “maximizing independent functioning; maintaining self-esteem; developing meaningful activities; creating new living experiences; and providing an acceptable energy outlet” (Rasar). She gives examples and models as to how these goals can be fulfilled, many them taking place in the morning or midday, and many of these models are done in the group setting. When Rasar talks about the group setting, rather
Cited: Brauser, Deborah. "Medscape Psychiatry." 23 August 2012. Medscape News Today. Print. Brotons, Melissa, Kathryn Chapin and Susan M Koger. "Is Music Therapy an Effective Intervention for Dementia." Journal of Music Therapy 36.1 (1999): 2-15. Print. Gerbaldo, Hector, Konrad Maurer and Stephan Volk. "Auguste D and Alzheimer 's disease." The Lancet 349.9064 (1997): 1546-49. Print. Rasar, Lee A. "Dementia." 28 September 2010. Lee Anna Rasar - Music Therapy. Document. Schaeffer, Juliann. "Music Therapy in Dementia Treatment — Recollection Through Sound." AgingWell June 2011. Print. The Michael J. Fox Foundation. Parkinson 's Diagnosis Questions. March 2013. Web. Tomaino, Concetta. "The Music Instinct: Science & Song." 20 May 2009. PBS. Web.