EXCHANGE: Stimulating brain activity in dementia patients

Stimulating brain activity in dementia patients

(AP) — Dori Thompson's sample book is filled with beautiful scenes — landscapes with arching trees, rich sunsets, and cheerful flower-filled vases.

The group's founder developed MnemeTherapy, which uses pleasurable experiences like singing, movement, painting and storytelling to stimulate the brain.

On Monday afternoon Thompson made her monthly visit to Bickford Senior Living in Peoria where she works with dementia patients.

Everything about the program is stimulating, from the bright colors of the paint, to the evocative image, to the instruction Thompson issues as the scene takes shape on paper.

"Most of the residents in memory care have an attention span of about 15 minutes, so for them to stay focused on this so long is amazing," she said.

"During the session his vision flip flopped a couple times, and then it turned right-side up and stayed that way," said Thompson, who has been doing MnemeTherapy for about four years.

Though not every therapy session leads to such dramatic results, at the very least the session is pleasurable for residents, said Podrasky, who believes that people with dementia can still have a nice quality of life.