From the heart through the hands : the power of touch in caregiving / Dawn Nelson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Nelson, Dawn, 1943-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Touch--Therapeutic use.

Touch.

Touch--Psychological aspects.

Massage therapy.

Care of the sick.

Older people--Care.

Older people.

Therapeutic Touch.

Medical Subjects:

Touch.

Therapeutic Touch.

Physical Description:

183 pages : illustrations, portraits ; 28 cm

Edition:

New, revised and updated edition.

Place of Publication:

Forres, Scotland : Findhorn Press, [2006]

Summary:

This book is for people who feel comfortable communicating through their hands and for those who wish to feel more ease in transmitting care through touch. It is for people whose responsibility or job or gift is to oversee or to help care for the elderly and ill members of our society. It is for sons and daughters caring for aging parents with physical impairments that effect a role reversal in a lifetime of relating. It is for the courageous men and women who continue caring for spouses or mothers or fathers with dementia-related diseases such as Alzheimer's after such a disease has robbed that loved one of the ability to remember the relationship he or she once shared with the caregiver. It is for companions and family members struggling and sometimes sacrificing to provide care for their loved ones at home.

This book is for doctors who have forgotten or never learned that touch is medicine and for those who are wise enough to know that a five-second hug, offered as a gesture of shared humanity, can often do more to assuage fear and anxiety than a five-minute lecture. It is for nurses and nursing assistants who, once trained in giving back rubs to hospitalized patients to reduce discomfort and induce sleep, in current care systems may be more often in contact with equipment than with people, or spend most of their time dispensing medicines and completing paperwork. It is for the restorative aides, the occupational and physical and recreational therapists in extended care facilities who are searching for more effective and affirming ways of relating to those whom they serve. It is for hospice professionals and volunteers, hired companions, geriatric consultants, guardians, home health aides and others who want to help improve quality of life for their charges and clients. It is for chaplains and social workers and grief counselors who wish to reclaim the power of intentional touch in ministering to the frail, the distraught and the bereaved. It is for massage therapy students desiring to build careers in arenas that combine service with professional and personal growth and for practitioners whose hearts and hands lead them to forge new paths in venues where their skills are sorely needed. It is for anyone who wishes to use touch more consciously and compassionately in relating to the elderly, the ill and the dying.

Contents:

The Power of Presence 7

The Compassionate Touch 11

A Word to Nonprofessional and Professional Touch Practitioners 15

The Efficacy of Touch 19

Physical Benefits 20

Psychosocial Benefits 24

Increased Mobility 27

Experience of Being Nurtured and Cared For 28

Emotional or Energy Release 29

Additional Benefits 30

Benefits for the Giver of Touch 32

Karmic Touch 35

The Power of Touch in Facility Care 41

Stress of Adjustment to Group Community 41

Quality of Life Issues 43

Need for Touch Throughout the Life Cycle 44

The Power of Touch in Alzheimer's/Dementia Care 47

Memory Loss 47

Dementias Defined and Differentiated 48

Differences Between People with Alzheimer's Disease 48

How Touch Can Help as Disease Progresses 50

Benefits Specific to Alzheimer's/Dementia 52

Communication Challenges 55

Caregiver Stress 61

What We Can Learn from People with Alzheimer's 62

Touch and HIV/AIDS 63

Transmission 64

Touch Benefits 66

Guidelines for Touch 67

Taking Care of Yourself 68

The Power of Touch in Caring for Our Dying 69

Communicating with the Dying 70

The Benefits of Touch in Hospice Care 75

A Model for Massage in Hospice 77

Guidelines and Suggestions 78

Emotional Impact of Working with the Dying 80

Signs of Approaching Death and Appropriate Responses 82

Physical Changes Which Occur During and After Death 83

Qualities Worth Cultivating 85

Adaptability 86

Touch Sensitivity 87

Intuition 87

Ability to Focus 88

Ability to Accept the Way Things Are 90

Openheartedness 91

Sense of Self 91

Ability to Put Attention on the Individual 92

Willingness to Face Death 95

Touch Techniques 97

Age-appropriate Massage 97

Attentive Touch 100

Lifting and Shifting 101

Motion and Movement 102

Psychic Touch 103

Accessing Bodies in Wheelchairs and Beds 105

Touch Session Aids and Tools 109

Complementary Relaxation Techniques 115

Aromatherapy 115

Music 117

Pet Therapy 120

Visualization 121

Guided Meditation and Exploration 123

Shared Breathing 124

Communication Skills 125

Active Listening 125

Positive Instruction 126

Reflective Feedback 128

Interpretive Feedback 128

Unique Challenges 129

Guidelines and Suggestions for Touch Sessions 131

Before the Touch Session 131

Protecting Yourself and the People You Touch 137

During the Touch Session 138

Positive and Negative Indicators 140

Medical Equipment and Apparatus 141

Sexual Energy 142

Sympathy, Empathy, Compassion 144

Effects of Changing Environment 144

Ending the Session 145

Caring for the Caregiver 149

Caregiver Stress 149

Self-Care 151

Signs of "Burnout" 152

Processing Grief and Integrating Loss 153

Appendix I Questions and Answers Regarding Touch Sessions 159

Appendix II Dyad Communication Technique 161

Appendix III 10 Warning Signs of Alzheimer's Disease 163

Books for Adults 165

Books for Children 174.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 165-178) and index.

ISBN:

1844090833

OCLC:

74908123

Publisher Number:

9781844090839