ing stress relief. Be close; hold your loved one’s hand or stroke their hair. In A Dietitian’s Cancer Story: Information & Inspiration for Recovery & Healing, author and dietitian Diana Dyer found that meditative movement, like yoga and qigong, aided her own healing journey.
Bring something from home to the facility. Family photographs, a favorite blanket or special sweater can help make a strange space feel more person- al and cozy. Some care facilities even allow visits from pets. Pull up a chair and read stories aloud, sing softly and share memories and images of home.
Think positively and hold healing thoughts. Creative visualization can be a vital healing tool. It is the internal process of embracing healing images and good thoughts and then applying them to our experience and our bodies. For example, Dyer references a horse field she saw outside her rural hospital window during an illness that had left her weak. She focused on the horses’ galloping strength and visualized her- self running strongly again.
Every patient needs an advocate to ask questions, take notes and provide a second set of watchful eyes and help- ing hands. It’s a good idea to keep a dated record of procedures, doctors’ comments, test results and care plans. Meanwhile, protect your loved one’s rest while offering small services that provide great comfort—such as com- panionship during meals or helping them step outside for some fresh air. Repeatedly express gratitude to care providers for their services and for incremental gains in healing that bring a loved one ever closer to returning to home sweet home.
For additional insights, visit Health Care Without Harm (
NoHarm.org).
Melinda Hemmelgarn is a registered dietitian and award-winning writer and radio show host, based in Columbia, MO. Her daughter recently spent a month in the hospital while recovering from a fall. Visit FoodSleuth@gmail. com and tune into Food Sleuth Radio online podcasts at
kopn.org.
natural awakenings April 2011 45
Conventional Healthcare’s Nurturing Trends
Complementary Therapies Help Foster Well-Being by Lee Walker
T
he soothing and familiar spaces of our homes are places where we can leisurely engage in the mindful activities of music appreciation, meditation, journaling and personal art forms that help us to maintain mental, physical and spiritual health. When- ever a health crisis requires us or a loved
one to be hospitalized, or spend time in an assisted living or other care facility, we are inclined to yearn for the familiar comforts that nurture us. In Southwest Florida, local healthcare facilities such as NCH Healthcare System and AVOW Hospice, as well as VI, at Bentley Vil- lage, have evolved to meet their patient and resident needs with complemen- tary therapies that nurture well-being in body, mind and spirit.
NCH Healthcare System
NCH’s free Arts in Healing program, initiated in 2002, offers expressive art activities that are designed to promote relaxation, stimulate the senses, open up the mind, encourage socialization and self-expression and provide solace. Although visual arts are Beth Schro- eder’s specialty, she also acts as the
program’s public relations contact and volunteer coordinator, scheduling indi- viduals who provide various therapies and help patients explore their thera- peutic benefits.
Music is performed throughout the hospital by Arts in Healing volun- teers such as Ray Griggs, who plays his original guitar compositions at the Naples campus, although individual sessions can be scheduled in a patient’s room, by request. Live music and a sing-a-long are also offered weekly by NCH volunteers and the Occupational Therapy staff. “Studies show that music has the ability to reduce the anxiety and pain that often accompanies a health crisis,” advises Schroeder. Laughter/performance therapy includes “Clowns on Rounds,” who evoke smiles and laughter. Sometimes
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