Alzheimer Society of Thunder Bay gardening series!

Thursday, 09 July 2009 14:05

The Alzheimer Society of Thunder Bay has a gardening series this summer for people with Alzheimer's disease or related dementia and their families:

People with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias can benefit from Gardening Activities

Alzheimer Society and Willow Springs join forces for three session gardening series

JULY 6, 2009 – THUNDER BAY – For those of us in this northern climate summer has finally arrived. If you aren’t already out there, start thinking about outdoor activities. What better thoughts then those of a beautiful fragrant garden setting. Willow Springs Creative Centre and the Alzheimer Society of Thunder Bay will be hosting a series of gardening sessions for people with Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia and their families starting on Thursday, July 9, 2009. The media is cordially invited to attend.

Joy Nieminen, Public Education Coordinator for the Alzheimer Society of Thunder Bay states “gardening and gardens provide a wide variety of therapeutic activities for all types of seniors including those recovering from surgery and illness, those with dementia, those who need more exercise, or those who simply want to improve their quality of life with a pleasant hobby.”

Research shows that gardening may actually slow down short term memory loss in those with Alzheimer’s disease, which is one of the first abilities to be lost as the disease progresses. This is due to stimulation of the brain that the many activities of gardening involve. There are many reminiscence benefits as gardening, and often bring back many fond memories of days gone by.

“Gardens have been widely used in Alzheimer’s therapy, often with excellent results. Gardening helps stimulate the brain and also gives residents ‘a contained and simple world’ that has a past, present and reality. This can be helpful when the persons’ life may be becoming confused,” says Nieminen.

Participants of the gardening series will receive a garden tour, they will learn how to make seed bombs that can be planted anywhere at any time, and make a small rustic twig planter and plant it up with flowers to take home, and paint up a plant marker for their own garden.