(AGING WITH DIGNITY CONTINUED)
Sometimes, though, our bodies naturally change in ways that seem to threaten that dignity. Although incontinence is not a normal part of aging, it is common. A report from the National Center for Health Statistics revealed that as many as 50% of non-institutionalized adults aged 65 and older have experienced a urinary leakage. However, many, fearing wounded pride, never discuss this. Incontinence affects people throughout their life spans, therefore it is essential to manage leakages early. These leakages can have significant impacts on wellbeing and can significantly affect quality of life, even after adjusting for other factors. This need not be the case. Incontinence care can be simple, seamless and no threat to autonomy or pride. As one July 2020 study on incontinence care notes, privacy is one key aspect to maintaining that dignity, allowing individuals to feel good about themselves—an important aspect of healthy aging. The same way we protect our dental health by flossing and brushing, wearing an absorbent undergarment can allow the emotional aspect of incontinence to be treated with dignity and allow for improved quality of life. We can thus age just as Cicero advised: with a sense of young vigor. Peter Libby, MD, Cardiovascular Specialist, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Mallinckrodt Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Music, a Centuries Old Tool, Shows a Renewed Power to Heal
Ask a doctor, nurse or patient to describe the sounds of a hospital. They might mention the light rumble of wheels on a linoleum floor, the rustling of patient charts or a conversation between colleagues. Thirty minutes of classical music each day might not top the list, but music may be proved as powerful an intervention as any other. Music is a cornerstone of human culture. When scientists at Harvard University’s Music Lab looked at 315 different cultures, they found that all had some type of music. While musical preferences may stem from our cultural upbringing or be a matter of taste, the effects of music on the mind seem to reach across divides. And the more we learn about music, the more it’s becoming clear that it’s a tool for healing.
Take, for example, a 2015 review in The Lancet that examined 73 randomized, controlled clinical trials analyzing the effects of music on surgical recovery – a total of 7,000 patients. Patients who heard music spent no less time in the hospital than those who didn’t. However, those who listened to music reported superior emotional experiences of recovery. Participants who listened to music before, during or even after surgery, reported less post-surgical pain, less anxiety and reduced painkiller use. They left the hospital feeling more satisfied with their care. A year later, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts teamed up to raise $20 million to recruit neuroscientists, artists and music therapists to better understand why music may be useful for medical providers. The result, as one editorial written by soprano Renée Fleming and Dr. Sheri Robb, a professor of Nursing at Indiana University explains, is that music’s effect on the mind is critical when the body is in repair. Robb and Fleming describe a randomized, controlled trial measuring how music impacts quality of life for heart failure patients. The study examined 159 Italian patients in their early- to mid-seventies who listened to 30 minutes of classical music a day for at least 30 days. Those who listened to music were less anxious and had fewer signs of depression. However, their hearts showed no outward signs of superior recovery. That, Fleming and Robb conclude, suggests that music has the “greatest effect” on mental and emotional wellbeing— both increasingly recognized as central to recovery from bodily illness and, particularly, surgery. While music may not be able to actually repair a damaged heart, medical providers must remember that comfort comes not only from a prescription pad or a procedure, but also from each practitioner’s own ability to heal the heart, not just literally, but also figuratively. To that extent, music has already healed thousands of people.
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