0

Bexhill care home residents enjoy the benefits of art therapy

Regular art therapy sessions at a Bexhill care home have been sparking laughter, smiles and lots of engagement among the home’s residents who are at various stages along their dementia journey.

The sessions at Ambleside Care Home Bexhill , run by experienced art therapy practitioners and organised through Equal Arts, have provided a multi-sensory approach that has generated many benefits for the home’s residents including increased confidence and self-esteem, improvements in mood, and reduced agitation and anxiety.

Art activities provide a fun, relaxing way for everyone to express their creativity, and for people living with dementia this can be particularly valuable, helping to create a sense of purpose and accomplishment which can have long lasting benefits for health and wellbeing.

Communication often becomes more difficult as dementia symptoms develop. If it becomes a struggle for a person to express their feelings adequately, the result is often stress, anger or even violent outbursts. Creative art activities engage a different area of the brain than the part we use for language so it provides a valuable tool to help people express their thoughts and feelings in a safe way without the need for words.

The wide range of creative activities offered at Ambleside Care Home, ranging from painting and drawing to clay and 3D work, have been carefully designed to bring enjoyment and success – the emphasis being firmly focussed on what residents can do, not on what they can’t.

Prashant Navaratnarajah, owner and director of Ambleside Residential Care Home says:

“The residents who have taken part have thoroughly enjoyed the activity. It has proved very beneficial for brain stimulation and the dexterity of their hands. It has given the residents a real sense achievement and happiness when they see their final creations.”

The art therapy sessions form part of the home’s extensive programme of activities that have been designed to help their residents who are living with dementia stay active, engaged and enjoying the highest possible quality of life.