The Importance of Health and Wellness for Older Adults
What Is Senior Wellness?
Globally, the population is aging rapidly. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), between 2015 and 2050, the proportion of the world’s older adult population over 60 years will nearly double, from 12% to 22%. In absolute terms, this is an expected increase from 900 million to 2 billion people over the age of 60. The good news is that according to Where You Live Matters, people who follow an integrated approach to senior wellness live longer, healthier lives. In fact, lifestyle choices account for 70% of the physical differences and 50% of the intellectual differences between seniors who age successfully and their peers.
Although older adults experience some of the same wellness challenges as other members of society, a healthy lifestyle for senior citizens does include some targeted concerns. It is helpful to review practices for healthy aging through a wellness paradigm. The National Wellness Institute promotes Six Dimensions of Wellness: emotional, occupational, physical, social, intellectual, and spiritual. Addressing all six dimensions of wellness supports a holistic approach to staying healthy and enjoying a vibrant life. It is the whole-person approach.
Emotional Dimension of Senior Wellness
Being able to express and manage one’s emotions is key to having a healthy emotional dimension. However, according to the WHO, approximately 15% of adults aged 60 and over suffer from a mental disorder. The most common mental and neurological disorders in this age group are dementia and depression, which affect approximately 5% and 7% of the world’s older population, respectively. Anxiety disorders affect 3.8% of the older population.
Also, according to WHO, Promoting mental health depends largely on strategies to ensure that older people have the necessary resources to meet their needs, such as:
providing security and freedom;
adequate housing through a supportive housing policy;
social support for older people and their caregivers;
health and social programs targeted at vulnerable groups such as those who live alone and in rural populations or who suffer from a chronic or relapsing mental or physical illness;
programs to prevent and deal with elder abuse; and
community development programs.
Occupational Dimension of Senior Wellness
It may be surprising to see the inclusion of an occupational dimension to the list of senior wellness components. For many older adults, whether they are in a paid or volunteer position, job satisfaction is important. What level of satisfaction is obtained from sharing one’s talents and gifts?
Physical Dimension of Senior Wellness
Unfortunately, stress doesn’t ignore the senior population. According to Healthline, The Senior’s Guide to Staying Healthy Year-Round, one of the top things older adults can do to improve their overall wellness is to learn how to manage stress. Stress is the #1 cause of chronic disease as it increases your cortisol levels. Too much cortisol can disrupt different functions in your body, including your immune system. To reduce stress, increase physical activity, get plenty of sleep, set reasonable expectations for yourself, and explore relaxing, enjoyable activities. Addressing these lifestyle components will support you in staying healthy.
According to the National Institute of Health’s National Institute on Aging, Promoting Wellness in Older Patients. Exercise has proven benefits for older people. It is key to controlling chronic disease. It reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, obesity, colon cancer, and breast cancer. It also decreases the risk of falls and fall-related injuries. Researchers also found that exercise, which can improve balance, reduced falls among older people by 33 percent.
Taking a holistic approach to health, physical and emotional well-being are interconnected. According to the study, the effects of physical activity on anxiety, depression, and quality of life in elderly people living in the community, health problems may negatively affect the psychological and physical aspects of life, influencing the quality of life of older adults. The objective of this study was to analyze the effects of physical activity on quality of life, anxiety, and depression in the elderly population. The prevalence ratio showed that physical activity is a protective factor against anxiety and depression in the elderly.
Social Dimension of Senior Wellness
Mather Institute’s research findings are based on responses from 5,777 residents from 122 Life Plan Communities across the nation.
Residents with higher scores on personality traits of openness to experience and extroversion reported the highest levels of healthy behaviors.
Residents who form strong bonds within their community tend to have better overall health.
Intellectual Dimension of Senior Wellness
The intellectual dimension recognizes the importance of maintaining a life of learning and a sense of curiosity. It is a key way to maintain good brain health. According to HealthCheck360, a healthy mind is just as important as a healthy body, and learning something new keeps your brain developing, even as you age. In addition, learning something new can help reduce stress. They include the following suggestions:
Join a book club;
Listen to a podcast;
Practice mindfulness to think about your day or meditate.
Spiritual Dimension of Senior Wellness
Spirituality is a personal path, one where we honestly explore life’s purpose and our beliefs. As older adults are confronted with end-of-life issues, it can become a more significant dimension than younger family members. According to Elder Care Alliance, spirituality can improve the quality of life for older adults with dementia. Practicing a religion can help slow cognitive decline and reduce or stabilize cognitive disorders. Another benefit of spirituality is the strong sense of community that is at the heart of most faith groups.
Top 4 Healthy Treatment Programs for Older Adults
Gong Sound Therapy
Gong sound therapy, aka sound baths, is accessible to all. Since it requires zero physical effort, it is an excellent option to address the physical, emotional, and spiritual components of healthy aging. Simply by allowing the vibrations of the gongs to wash over you, it is possible to easily create a shift in your brainwaves to alpha (relaxed consciousness), theta (meditative state), and even delta (where internal healing can occur). According to a National Institute of Health Study, Medicinal Music: An Anatomy of Music in the Healing Arts, alpha and theta brain wave ranges can combat fear-based brain wave patterns, bring emotional comfort, and restore proper autonomic functioning like a heartbeat, respiratory rate, and blood pressure. Healthy autonomic functions lead to better blood oxygen levels and reduce stress hormone levels, improving cognition and regulating the emotional response to misperceived threats. Since it is an altered state therapy, a gong bath can support one’s spiritual exploration. For all these reasons, it is an excellent (and easy) way to stay healthy.
Kundalini Chair Yoga Class
Kundalini Chair Yoga can mainly address the physical, social, and spiritual dimensions of healthy aging. Practicing yoga is as much about the flexibility of the mind as it is about the body. Kundalini Yoga focuses on the body’s meridians so you can target particular physical and emotional issues of concern.
According to the American Psychiatric Society, Kundalini Yoga was found to enhance cognitive functioning in older adults. In a study comparing Kundalini Yoga with Memory Enhancement Training (MET)—the “gold standard” technique for improving cognitive functioning, only the Kundalini yoga group showed significant improvement in verbal fluency and sustained significant improvements in executive functioning at week 24.
Did you know that because of the mind-body connection, you can visualize yourself doing something (like a yoga pose that causes you pain) and get the same benefits as actually doing the physical pose? So modifying a pose or simply visualizing doing makes a Kundalini Chair Yoga class more accessible. Popular themes for classes include supporting the heart and lungs, improving relationships, increasing intuition, expanding creativity, and strengthening the immune system. So Kundalini Yoga can address chronic health problems as part of a holistic wellness program. This form of yoga is also unique in that it incorporates breathwork, gong sound therapy, and meditation for the ultimate holistic self-care experience for older adults!
Themed Breathwork + Meditation with Mantra Class
Themed breathwork and meditation can support the physical, emotional, social, intellectual, and spiritual components of healthy aging. As I shared in a recent blog on Pranayam, Controlling Your Life-Force, Prolong Your Life, the Harvard Business Review shared, “When we are in a highly stressed state, our prefrontal cortex — the part of our brain responsible for rational thinking — is impaired, so logic seldom helps to regain control. This can make it hard to think straight or be emotionally intelligent with your team. But with breathing techniques, it is possible to gain some mastery over your mind. Research shows that different emotions are associated with different forms of breathing, so changing how we breathe can change how we feel
The breath can be an amazing, zero-cost tool to support your well-being. Benefits include:
Calms the mind;
Reduces anxiety;
Increases focus
Boosts the immune system.
According to MasterClass, the increased intake of oxygen through pranayam breathing helps purge the body of carbon dioxide, which benefits the brain and nervous system. By giving yourself a calming focus, you can help clear your mind and reduce stress and anxiety, which can improve your cognitive brain function.
Research has also demonstrated that pranayam can be useful for individuals with certain chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, asthma, and moderate to severe COPD. The balanced breath was even used to help 9/11 survivors suffering from the painful condition known as ground-glass lungs improve their lung function.
You can take your experience deeper by applying a simple and effective mantra to rebalance your body. Using your own voice is a powerful way to experience your own internal vibration and stay healthy.
Caretaker Private Gong Session
We all need support. As we get older, we may need support from family members and healthcare professionals. Although family members may support older family members out of a sense of love or obligation and professionals are paid for their services, it can take an emotional and physical toll on their well-being. Caretakers tend not to be the best at taking care of their own health, which just compounds the situation.
Having been a caretaker myself, I understand how important self-care is for those who take care of others. So I offer a reduced rate for private sessions in my Alexandria home studio. Restore your mind, body, and spirit with the power of gong sound therapy. You will be cocooned in the vibrations of gongs, clearing your mind & restoring your nervous system.
Stay Healthy Today with SoundWellness
If you are a senior concerned about your wellness or are someone who cares for an older adult, SoundWellness is here to support you and your healthy aging programs. Check out our resources online for research on our offerings. All classes can be customized to meet the needs of an individual or a community. Call or set up a complimentary corporate call today.