Therapy Techniques

Engaging Activities for Family Visits

For many residents the move into aged care can be very traumatic. They have exchanged their familiar world for a new one that is so foreign to them it can cause many varying emotions. Some residents have lived on their own and then suddenly find they lose their independence and the familiar comfort zone of their own home. Some have had a spouse who is no longer there and they are thrust into a new world with none of their familiar memories to comfort and sustain them. Some have lived in families and they miss the interaction and activity. It can be a very confusing and traumatic shift in their lives.

It can be a time of grief, questioning their own self-worth and identity, and a time of feeling their independence and control has been taken from them. This grief can manifest itself in many different behaviours and it is difficult for the staff in aged care activities and facilities to bridge this void of loneliness and isolation their residents feel.

NeuronsVR have proved shared experiences are a great way to communicate and interact, evoke memories and share new ones to keep the family bond alive and bridge that void.

Sharing Therapy experiences via VR with a family member can be a highlight in their day, strengthening the family connection and giving comfort.

With our extensive library of travel destinations around the world, Diversional Therapists can encourage social participation and interaction by scheduling trips on a monthly activity calendar.

Neurons VR promotes Cultural Inclusion and Embracing and Understanding Cultures through Therapy experiences via VR.

Visiting Japan and having sushi for lunch on Monday, going to Rome and having pasta for lunch on Tuesday are some of the many ways to learn about and appreciate different cultures and make all residents feel at home. Remove the isolation and loneliness barriers that language and cultural differences can create and encourage a respect and interest in sharing heritage.

Ensure the special needs of our older residents from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds are being heard and understood.

Another benefit of armchair travel is for residents with the urge to wander, who will find it calms the need to keep moving, because they are kept fully occupied watching the changing scenes.

Sometimes calming and immersive experiences are just what our residents need, so we set the scene relevant to the experience they will share. Our Library has many experiences that encourage the sense of touch and feel, whilst seeing and listening. Engaging more of the body’s different senses as they watch one our library’s experiences can enhance the success of the therapy.

One such experience is a visit to the beach. Set the scene on the outdoor verandah to feel the breezes. The sound of the ocean along with calming frequencies makes a virtual trip to the beach very engaging. A beach towel draped over the chair armrests, their bare toes wiggling and splashing in a bowl of water on the ground, their fingers sifting through a tray of sand and seashells in front of them while they watch, and then finish the morning with a lunch of fish and chips.

A TOTAL experience using NeuronsVR’s Dementia Virtual Reality & Aged care therapy through VR.

With experiences designed to promote exercise and physio movement, NeuronsVR gets residents up and moving through fun and stimulating environments that take “the work” out of occupational therapy.

Many dread the daily or weekly physio sessions, but participating in a movement session whilst watching one of our experiences has taken away the negative feelings and encouraged enthusiastic responses, delighting the occupational therapists with the positive attitudes and producing faster results.

Therapy for aged care through VR has been shown to be effective in speeding up recovery time and aged care activities, as physical therapy it helps to keep the residents in a positive frame of mind and to motivate them week after week.

Knowing your residents and choosing sessions that are relevant to them helps to bring out their stories, sparking their interest and so much enjoyment for them. Empathy and connection are especially important in Memory Support / Dementia Environments. NeuronsVR’s Dementia Therapy Techniques makes this easy for staff and carers with many experiences to choose from.

Conversations and sharing stories of life experiences help a person with dementia feel valued and reduce their feelings of isolation, anxiety and apathy. Our experiences encourage and stimulate memories and sharing, brightening their days and bringing back their joy in life.

One of the most successful ways to engage elderly minds is to reflect on the past experiences of well-lived lives. For many residents who are living with Dementia, memories of long ago become vividly clear, reminding them of happy, youthful times and what better way to connect and interact with them than to share those memories with them?

Aged care therapy through VR is able to take them anywhere, they can visit places that will evoke long-forgotten memories that result in them sharing and engaging in meaningful conversations. Some of our biggest successes have been the result of Reminiscence Therapy, our MAGIC MOMENTS. We share some of these videos on our website. Look for the MAGIC MOMENTS stories we share in our blogs.

Most people experience trauma, loss or grief in one form or another at some time in their lives. With the right tools in place, trauma can be more easily identified and managed, improving the individual’s quality of life and recovery.

NeuronsVR offers resources such as guided meditations, relaxation and immersion to help both staff and residents when dealing with trauma. Our feedback from staff, about the positive benefits in their own cases and in observing the benefits their residents have experienced, has proven the success of the resources we provide.