THE LIFE-GIVING BENEFITS OF SAUNA Sweat the Years Away
WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO COMMUNICATE? Remember that dementia affects each person differently, and one person's ability to communicate will differ from another's. Talk about how your loved one prefers to communicate. Is it face-to-face conversations, emails, or phone calls? Be willing to listen and adapt to what makes them feel comfortable. DON’T ASSUME ISOLATION IS THE BEST BET. Alzheimer’s and dementia can make a person very lonely. In social situations, empathy goes a long way. Would you want to spend all your time away from everyone you love? A person suffering from one of these diseases may even benefit from social activities. And if they feel at ease, it will help you both to be more comfortable. IT’S OKAY TO LAUGH. Laughter is still the best medicine, and accepting that situations may be and cardiovascular health. Traditional saunas use heat to get your blood flowing and promote circulation, and the sweating that goes on during a sauna experience is said to release toxins from your body. It’s a rejuvenating ritual that releases stress along with endorphins. Now, the health journal Age and Ageing has found evidence linking sauna use to a lowered risk for Alzheimer's disease and dementia. Men aged 42–60 who participated in frequent sauna bathing sessions were found to have lowered rates of dementia and Alzheimer’s. If feeling good and warming you up weren’t enough, a healthy mind is a great reason to sauna. And while the simplicity of the traditional sauna is part of what makes it great, some facilities have added a modern twist: infrared rays. Infrared saunas, already hot in New York City and Los Angeles, are starting
to pop up everywhere. If you have trouble dealing with the heat of a typical sauna (average sauna temperatures are kept around 212 degrees F), this latest trend is for you. The average temperature of an infrared sauna is 150 degrees F, making it a more tolerable experience. One New York studio touts infrared’s ability to stimulate collagen production, an added anti-aging benefit. Need another bonus? Infrared saunas are said to release up to 20 percent more toxins from the body than traditional saunas Whichever type of sauna you decide to visit, the potential health benefits speak for themselves. If you don’t get to escape to Miami or Cancun this winter (and even if you do), it’s a relaxing way to warm up and ease winter ailments. Treat your body and yourself to a sauna experience!
Colder weather is hard on our bodies for many reasons. The air dries and cracks our skin, freezing temperatures cause old injuries to flare up and joints to ache, and the conditions make it just plain hard to exercise. What’s a fair-weather bird to do? Head to the sauna! Sauna use has been popular in Finland for thousands of years, and there are compelling reasons why. Not only are there many bodily benefits, but science is telling us it may also protect the mind.
We’ve known for a long time that saunas can help with blood circulation, stress relief,
CARING AND SELF-CARE FOR YOUR LOVED ONE AFTER A DEMENTIA DIAGNOSIS
“What are we going to do about Dad?” This is an example of an important question to discuss with you family after a dementia diagnosis. There’s a lot to take in. Know this: Caregivers of people who need constant care have an increased risk of health problems and depression compared to other caregivers. This means that if you commit to caring for your loved one after their dementia diagnosis, you need to make a commitment to yourself. Self-care is something we could all be better at, but caretakers are more prone than others to forget about their own needs. With a disease like dementia, care for the other person can be all consuming. Caring for someone with dementia is exhausting and frustrating. Communicating with your loved one and making plans in the early stages of Alzheimer’s or dementia helps to alleviate stress and frustration for both patient and caregiver.
humorous to both of you can be a relief. Dementia is serious, but your lives don’t have to be. Above all, don’t be afraid to have these discussions. Start the conversation about how to make yourself and your loved one feel as comfortable as possible with dementia and take a step toward caring for both of you.
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