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Understanding the Benefits
of Scrapbooking as an Art Therapy
Intervention for Individuals with Dementia
A Research
Project Presented to
The Faculty of Springfield College
In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree
Masters of Science in Art Therapy/ Counseling
By
Rebekah Mekler
2014
Art Therapy and Dementia ii
Table of Contents
Page
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Participants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Data collection Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Data Analysis and Trustworthiness . . . . . . . . . 8
Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Discussion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
REFERENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
Appendix A. RESEARCH DESIGN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Statement of the Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Definition of Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
Delimitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24
Limitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24
Research Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Appendix B. REVIEW OF LITERATURE . . . . . . . . . . . .26
Types of Dementia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
Current Treatments for Dementia . . . . . . . . . .29
Effectiveness of Art Therapy . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Challenges of Using Art Therapy . . . . . . . . . .36
Scrapbooking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Scrapbooking and Dementia . . . . . . . . . . . . .40
Art Therapy and Dementia iii
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41
Appendix C. PERMISSION TO CONDUCT THE STUDY . . . . . . 45
Appendix D. INFORMED CONSENT FORM . . . . . . . . . . . 46
APPENDIX E. INFORMED CONSENT FORM . . . . . . . . . . . 48
APPENDIX F. WEEKLY GROUP DIRECTIVES . . . . . . . . . . 50
BIBILIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .100
Art Therapy and Dementia 1
Running head: ART THERAPY AND DEMENTIA
Understanding the Benefits
of Scrapbooking as an Art Therapy
Intervention for Individuals with Dementia
Rebekah Mekler
Springfield College
2014
Art Therapy and Dementia 2
The Benefits of Art Therapy with Older Adults
There are a variety of life changes and challenges
that older adults may experience. Loss of sight, hearing
memory, and mobility are potential physical and cognitive
changes that may occur. When older adults are no longer
able to fully care for themselves, relocation to a nursing
home or assisted living facility may be necessary, as well
as losing driving privileges (Stephenson, 2006). Older
adults who have dementia face even more challenges,
including difficulties with organization, planning,
sequencing, and processing abstract information (Stallings,
2010). They may also experience a decline in judgment,
comprehension, and verbal communication. Approximately
1.4% to 1.6% of individuals ages 65-69 years have been
diagnosed with dementia, and 16% to 25% of people over the
age of 85 have the diagnosis (American Psychiatric
Association [APA], 2000).
While current treatments will not cure dementia, there
are interventions that may reduce the effects that the
disease has on an individual's life, and provide the
individual with a sense of hope (Safar & Press, 2011). Art
therapy is one type of intervention that uses creativity
and art making to enhance and improve the mental, physical,
Art Therapy and Dementia 3
and emotional well-being of individuals of all ages
(American Art Therapy Association [AATA], 2013). According
to Stephenson (2006), the visual arts can help individuals
who have dementia and physical impairments further their
creative growth. Some older people who have dementia have
reported a sense of purpose, relief from loneliness,
feelings of achievement, and increased morale from
participating in art based activities (MacGregor, 2006).
Beneficial goals of art therapy with individuals who have
dementia may include focusing on a person's strengths, and
learning to perceive aging as a valuable asset that can
offer life experience and wisdom (Stephenson, 2006). Art
therapy and creativity can evoke the memories and emotions
of older adults, and provide the opportunity to explore
both past and present experiences. Interventions and
activities that incorporate life story work can be helpful
to older people who have difficulties speaking for
themselves (Puyenbroeck & Maes, 2006). Reminiscence and
life review have been used for many years as an art therapy
intervention for older adults and individuals who are
terminally ill (Stallings, 2010). Legacy projects are one
type of life review intervention that is used to assist
individuals and their families in creating a product that
Art Therapy and Dementia 4
can be enjoyed before and after the death of the individual
(Allen, Hilgeman, Ege, Shuster, & Burgio, 2008). A legacy
project may include a family cookbook, typed or audio-taped
stories collected from interviews, and a photo scrapbook
(Allen, 2009).
The use of scrapbooking as a therapeutic tool in the
field of mental health is just beginning to emerge
(McCarthy & Sebaugh, 2011). Scrapbooking in a group
setting may allow participants to feel less isolated, more
connected to other, and the participants can validate each
others emotional experiences (McCarthy & Sehaugh, 2011).
There are currently few studies published about using
scrapbooking as an art therapy intervention for older
adults with dementia (Mizen, 2004). The current study is
designed to better understand the benefits of scrapbooking
as an art therapy intervention for individuals with
dementia. The study will examine how scrapbooking with
older adults who have dementia affects mood, self-esteem,
self-expression, memory, and social connectedness.
The researcher expects to find benefits in using
scrapbooking as an art therapy intervention with older
adults who have dementia. These benefits may include an
improvement in mood, higher levels of self-esteem, and an
Art Therapy and Dementia 5
increase in self-expression. The researcher also expects
to find an improvement in memory and an increase in social
connectedness.
Methods
A qualitative research design will be utilized to
elicit and interpret the thoughts and feelings about the
benefits of scrapbooking with individuals who have
dementia. Individuals who have been diagnosed with
dementia will participate in a 8-week study involving art
therapy. Observations, direct quotes from participants,
and descriptions of participants artwork will be used to
collect data. The subsequent method section includes the
following: Participants, Data Collection Procedures, and
Data Analysis and Trustworthiness.
Participants
Participants will consist of approximately three to
four male and female persons who have mild to moderate
dementia and are between the ages of 60 and 100 years old.
The participants reside or receive services at an assisted
living facility in Western Massachusetts. Participants may
also include care givers, legal guardians, and family
members of the residents. The participants will be asked
to participate over an 8-week span. Participants will be
Art Therapy and Dementia 6
recommended by the activities director of the assisted
living facility and will be selected based on willingness
to participate in the study.
Data Collection Procedures
After approval is obtained from the Institutional
Review Board at Springfield College, the researcher will
request permission to conduct the study (Appendix C) from
the director of the participating assisted living facility.
The researcher will explain the purpose of the current
study and request permission to present the study to the
administration, residents and their legal guardians. Upon
receiving permission from the director of the facility, the
researcher will explain the study and provide Informed
Consent Forms (Appendix D) to the resident participants and
legal guardians, and participating faculty and caregivers
(Appendix E) prior to the initial interview. Participants
and legal guardians will have the opportunity to ask the
researcher any questions and/or voice any concerns
regarding the research and /or Informed Consent Form. The
informed Consent form will be signed by each participant's
legal guardian and returned to the researcher.
Observations, and art directives will occur in a quiet
space at the facility that is away from distractions and
Art Therapy and Dementia 7
noise, to provide privacy, and to protect confidentiality.
The researcher will write field notes during and after each
scrapbooking art group. Field notes will include
observations and direct quotes from the participants. Each
week the researcher will take a photograph of each
participants work without any identifying factors. The
researcher will also include feedback and observations from
the activities director of the facility (Appendix E), who
will be present during each art group.
During each art directive, participants who have
dementia will be observed interacting with the project, as
well as with other residents, family members, caregivers,
and faculty. Field notes will also be taken on each
participant's description of his or her artwork.
Information gained from the art directives, observations,
and verbal interactions will be used for data analysis.
The researcher will obtain data in the following ways:
(a) observations (b) field notes, (c) photographs of art
work and (d) art directives.
Observations. Participants will be observed in the
activities room of the assisted living facility. Field
notes will be taken based on participants' interactions
with the art activity, the materials and with the other
Art Therapy and Dementia 8
participants. Direct quotes from conversations among the
participants and the researcher will be included in the
field notes, as well as photographs of the art work with no
identifying factors.
Art Directives. Participants will be asked to create a
scrapbook over the course of 8 weeks consisting of one 60-
minute session per week. The scrapbook content will vary
for each participant and may include and not be limited to:
family and personal photographs, poems, letters, recipes,
collage, drawings, paintings, and embellishments.
Data Analysis and Trustworthiness
The researcher will code data from the art directives,
field notes, and observations beginning with broad open
coding and then narrowing the data into more defined,
condensed categories through axial coding (Merriam, 2009).
The researcher hypothesizes that participants' mood, self-
esteem, self-expression, and memory will be categories used
in coding. Categories will be condensed into themes until
all data is analyzed and saturation is reached. The
researcher will use observations, photographs, and field
notes, and obtain written and verbal peer reviews from
knowledgeable colleagues, to triangulate the collected
data.
Art Therapy and Dementia 9
Results
The prevalence of dementia ranges from 1.4% to 1.6%
for individuals ages 65-69 years, and rises to 16% to 25%
for people over age 85 years (The American Psychiatric
Association [APA], 2000). There are few studies published
on creating scrapbooks with individuals who have dementia
(Mizen, 2004). Creating scrapbooks in a group setting may
allow participants to feel connected to others, feel less
isolated, and help validate each others emotional
experiences (McCarthy & Sehaugh, 2011). Creating a
scrapbook is a tangible way to preserve family stories,
legacies and celebrate life events (Kohut, 2011).
This study adds to the currently limited published
research on the creating of scrapbooks as an art therapy
intervention for individuals with early to end stages of
dementia. It was observed that participants in this study
were often able to recall the past when provided with
memory prompts. These prompts included items such as old
and more recent photographs of the participants' families
and pets, diplomas, newspaper clippings, and other personal
memorabilia that were provided by the participants'
families to be included in the scrapbook. At times, some of
the participants' short-term and long-term memory
Art Therapy and Dementia 10
functioning would fluctuate, while other times both long
and short-term memory would be intact. There were a few
instances where one participant was exhibiting low
functioning in both short and long-term memory.
It was observed that the participants of this study
that have been diagnosed with dementia were able to express
themselves both verbally and non-verbally. Not all
participants were verbally expressive during each group.
However, all participants were able to express themselves
non-verbally through choice of materials, scrapbooking
paper, color and design, selection and placement of pre-cut
words and images from magazines, and selection and
placement of their personal photographs and memorabilia.
All four of the participants were observed to be in a
happy mood the majority of the time, with the exception of
a two times where one of the participants appeared to be
bored and unengaged with the group. Three of the four
participants were observed to be both responsive and
initiating in conversation in almost all of the eight
groups. There were a number of instances where all four
participants, the two facilitators, and the researcher
would engage in conversations on a variety of topics
including age, work, family, men, hobbies, holidays, and
Art Therapy and Dementia 11
food. It was observed by the group facilitators and the
researcher that all of the participants exhibited positive
self-esteem over the majority of the eight group sessions.
Discussion
Art therapy and creativity can evoke the memories and
emotions of older adults, and provide the opportunity to
explore both past and present experiences (Puyenbroeck &
Maes, 2006). The use of scrapbooking as an art therapy
tool in the field of mental health is just beginning to
emerge (McCarthy & Sebaugh, 2011). The aim of this study
was to understand the benefits of scrapbooking as an art
therapy intervention for individuals with dementia. In
particular, the study examined how scrapbooking affects
mood, self-esteem, self-expression, memory, and social
connectedness.
Four females with dementia participated in the
qualitative research study. All participants live in the
same assisted living community and each utilize a
wheelchair. Participant (HP) and Participant (FT) have
beginning to middle stages of Alzheimer's disease and live
on a residential memory care unit. Participant (MR) and
Participant (MS) have more advanced stages of Alzheimer's
Art Therapy and Dementia 12
disease and reside on a secure unit where they receive
higher levels of memory care. During each of the eight
week groups, the researcher was assisted by Facilitator
(DC), who is the activities director of the assisted living
community, and by Facilitator (AM), who is an LPN and the
memory care coordinator of the assisted living community.
Facilitator (DC) and Facilitator (AM) provided
scrapbooks for the four participants who have dementia, as
well as scrapbook paper, scissors, glue sticks, and
embellishments (letters, stickers, etc.) Each week, the
researcher offered the participants a different theme as a
way of structuring the scrapbooks. The themes chosen by
the researcher were meant to serve as memory prompts. The
researcher would bring in pre-cut words and images from
magazines that relate to each theme for the participants to
use for their scrapbooks. Each of the families of the
participants who have dementia brought in belongings which
included old photographs, letters, more recent photographs
of the participants, their families, and other mementos
that could be used in the scrapbooks.
From the results of this study, the following
responses offer important consideration: Participant (HP)
is a 97 year old female that has beginning stages of
Art Therapy and Dementia 13
Alzheimer's disease, and always came to the scrapbooking
group with a smile on her face and in a happy mood.
Participant (HP) worked collaboratively with Facilitator
(DC) during each of the six group that she attended. Her
short-term and long-term memory was consistently functional
during every group. Participant (HP) demonstrated that she
had positive self-esteem during each group session. For
example, when the group was having a discussion about age,
Participant (HP) said, with a laugh,“you are only as old as
you feel, and I don't feel that old”. She was supportive of
other group participants and would show interest in other
participants' scrapbooks. For example, in one group,
Participant (HP) responded to a remark made by Participant
(FT) by asking her “where did you dance in West
Springfield, because I lived in West
Springfield?”Participant (HP) was responsive to others and
initiated conversation in every group except for week
three, which may be due to her recovering from an illness.
Participant (MS) is a 83 year old female in the
advanced stages of Alzheimer's disease. Participant (MS)
worked collaboratively with Facilitator (AM) throughout the
eight weeks. Participant (MS) would come to each
scrapbooking group in a happy mood, with the exception of
Art Therapy and Dementia 14
week three, when her mood was fluctuating. Her short-term
and long-term memory would also fluctuate from week to
week. There were two groups where Participant (MS)
demonstrated that both her short-term and long-term memory
were functional. During groups two, three, and four,
Participant (MS) did not demonstrate functional long term
or short term memory. (MS) was verbal and responded to
other participants seven out of the eight groups. She
initiated conversations six out of the eight groups.
However, on week three, Participant (MS) entered the group
appearing confused with fluctuating mood. Participant (MS)
was mostly nonverbal during group three, and demonstrated
that both her long and short term memory was not good, and
she did not respond or initiate conversation. Participant
(MS) would shake her hands, make noises, and appeared very
agitated. Facilitator (AM) determined that Participant
(MS) was too overstimulated and overwhelmed that it would
be best that Participant (MS) leave the group for the day.
With the exception of week three, Participant (MS)
contributed in all eight scrapbooking groups. During the
fifth group session, Participant (MS) explained to the
group that she was a fourth grade teacher, saying: “I had
to keep there minds interested in what I taught. It was
Art Therapy and Dementia 15
never about me but always about them. I always wanted to do
something that helps others.”
Participant (FT) is a 90 year old female with early to
moderate Alzheimer's disease. The researcher worked one-on-
one with Participant (FT) for all eight weeks. Participant
(FT) came to every group in a happy mood and with positive
self-esteem. Participant (FT) demonstrated excellent long
term memory, however, her short term memory was not as
functional. With the exception of two groups, Participant
(FT) would express that she was aware that she was
repeating herself. Participant (FT) was able to remember
events and people from the distant past, including her
childhood and most of her adulthood. For example,
Participant (FT) was explaining to the group about an old
photograph that she put into her scrapbook, and said: “that
was a country house in northern New York, 25 miles from
Canada, and, ah,... what was I going to say? This happens
to me often”. Participant (FT) would often repeat the
same stories and in great detail. Participant (FT) was
very good in terms of social relatedness. Participant (FT)
responded and initiated conversations in all eight groups.
Participant (FT) demonstrated that she has positive self-
esteem and good communication skills. For instance, during
Art Therapy and Dementia 16
the group on week six, Participant (FT) shared with the
group a story about her father in law, saying: “We heard
him on the radio one evening...we didn't have television
yet. We were thrilled because he worked so hard doing what
he wanted to do. We were so pleased that he won!”
Participant (MR) was a 93 year old female who suddenly
passed away two weeks after the last scrapbooking group.
Participant (MR) had moderate to advanced stages of
Alzheimer's disease. Facilitator (DC) worked
collaboratively with Participant (MR) throughout the eight
weeks. Participant (MR) generally came to scrapbooking
group in a happy mood, with the exception of two groups
where she appeared to be bored. Participant (MR)
demonstrated that her short and long term memory was
functional during two groups, and one group where just her
short term memory was intact. However, there were five
groups where her short term memory was not good, and six
groups where her long term memory was lacking. Participant
(MR) communicated verbally during six of the eight
scrapbooking groups. She initiated with other participants
during two of the eight groups, and responded to others
throughout all eight group sessions. For example, when
Facilitator (AM) asked Participant (MR): “How about the
Art Therapy and Dementia 17
word “love”, what does that mean to you?” Participant (MR)
responded with: “I love my family”. Participant (MR)
appeared to have positive self-esteem during all groups
except for the final group.
At the end of the the last scrapbooking group on week
eight, the research investigator asked each participant how
they felt about their experience of creating a scrapbook.
When each participant was asked if she enjoyed
participating in the scrapbooking group, all four
participants expressed that they had liked the experience.
(HP) responded with “I enjoyed it very much!” Participant
(FT) said: “I like to do this... I didn't realize what it
was all about when I came here...I did not
realize...scrapbooks...I just never did, but I have enjoyed
it”. Participant (MR) replied with “Oh, I did!”, and
Participant (MS) said “yes, it was fun! I will probably
look at it (the scrapbook) every day and smile.”
Limitations and Future Research
This research study was conducted from a qualitative
perspective. In order for the researcher to
collect in-depth data, the sample size was kept small, with
only four participants. All participants are female and
between the ages of 83 and 97 years old. All four
Art Therapy and Dementia 18
participants reside in the same assisted living facility.
Future research may include larger sample sizes of both
male and female participants from different assisted living
communities, nursing homes, or private residencies in order
to make the findings more generalizable. The researcher
may also direct the group facilitators to encourage the
participants to share more, allowing for more of an
opportunity for the participants to communicate their
thoughts and feelings. Future researchers might suggest
that the facilitators encourage the participants to make
more of the art related choices and be cautious about
influencing the participants art-based decisions. Future
researchers may want to consider extending the length of
each group session from a one hour time frame used in this
study to an hour and a half. The 60 minute sessions often
did not seem long enough for the participants to finish
working on their scrapbook pages. The opportunity for the
participants to share with the group what they had created
at the end of each session frequently seemed rushed. Also,
future researchers may consider rearranging the order of
the weekly themes into order of perceived importance or
relevance.
Art Therapy and Dementia 19
References
Allen, R. S., Hilgeman, M. M., Ege, M. A., Shuster, J. L.,
& Burgio, L. D. (2008). Legacy activities as
interventions approaching the end of life. Journal of
Palliative Medicine, 11(7), 1029-1038.
Allen, R. S. (2009). The legacy project intervention to
enhance meaningful family interactions: Case examples.
Clinical Gerontologist, 32, 164-176. doi:
10.1080/0731711082677005
American Art Therapy Association. (2013). Retrieved October
4, 2013 from website: http://www.americanarttherapy
association.org
American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and
statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text
rev.). Washington, DC: Author
Merriam, S. B. (2009). Qualitative Research. A guide to
design and implementation. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass
McCarthy, P. G., & Sebaugh, J. G. (2011). Therapeutic
scrapbooking: A technique to promote positive coping and
emotional strength in parents of pediatric oncology
patients. Journal of Psychosocial Oncology, 29, 215-230.
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07347332.2010.548443
Art Therapy and Dementia 20
Mizen, M. B. (2004). Scrapbook photo albums are therapeutic
for Alzheimer's patients. Creative Memories. 1-4.
doi: http://www.creativememories.com/AlzheimersAlbum.PDF
Puyenbroeck, J. V, & Maes, B. (2006). Program development
of reminiscence group work for ageing people with
intellectual disabilities. Journal of Intellectual &
Developmental Disability, 31(3), 139-147.
doi:10.1080/13668250600862988
Safar, L. T., Press, D. Z.(2011). Art and the brain:
Effects of dementia on art production in art therapy. Art
Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association,
28(3), 96-103. doi:
http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.spfldcol.edu/
10.10.1080/07421656.2011.599734
Stallings, J. W. (2010). Collage as a therapeutic modality
for reminiscence in patients with dementia. Art Therapy:
Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 27(3),
136-140. doi:10.1080/07421656.2010.10129667
Stephenson, R. C. (2006). Promoting self-expression through
art therapy. Generations 30(1), 24-26.
doi:10.1080/01609513.2011.60311
Art Therapy and Dementia 21
Appendix A
RESEARCH DESIGN
Individuals who suffer from dementia range from 1.4%
to 1.6% of people ages 65-69 years and increases to 16% to
25% for individuals over the age of 85 (American
Psychiatric Association [APA], 2000). Dementia is a
general term for a decline in mental ability that causes
severe problems in daily living (Alzheimer's Association,
2013). Currently, there are no cures for dementia, but
there are a variety of therapeutic interventions that may
reduce the negative effects that the disease has on the
life of an individual who has dementia (Safar & Press,
2011).
Statement of the Problem
The researcher intends to study the possible benefits
of scrapbooking with individuals who have dementia by
conducting a qualitative study. The researcher will
collect data by writing field notes and making
observations.
Definition of Terms
The following definitions will be used within the
context of this study:
Art Therapy and Dementia 22
Caregivers
For the purpose of this study, caregivers will be
defined as someone who tends to the needs of a participant
who has dementia. This may include a guardian, family
member, or hired attendant.
Dementia
It is stated in the American Psychiatric Association’s
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders,
(2000) that the “essential feature of a dementia is the
development of multiple cognitive deficits that include
memory impairment and at least one of the following
disturbances: aphasia, apraxia, agnosia, or a disturbance
of executive functioning” (p. 148).
Persons With Dementia
Participants of this study will have previously been
diagnosed with having dementia by a licensed physician.
Art Therapy
The American Art Therapy Association (2013) has defined art
therapy as
a mental health profession in which clients,
facilitated by the art therapist, use art media, the
creative process, and the resulting artwork to explore
their feelings, reconcile emotional conflicts, foster
Art Therapy and Dementia 23
self-awareness, manage behavior and addictions,
develop social skills, improve reality orientation,
reduce anxiety, and increase self-esteem.
In this study, scrapbooking as an art therapy
intervention will be the therapeutic modality used with the
participants who have dementia. Weekly group sessions will
focus around using a variety of artistic medium to help
improve mood and self-esteem, encourage self-expression,
and boost memory..
Mood
The Oxford dictionary (2013)defines mood as “a
temporary state of mind or being: angry, irritable, or
sullen.” For the purposes of this study, mood is
operationalized by observations and conversations with
participants.
Self-esteem
The Oxford dictionary (2013) defines self-esteem as
“confidence in one's own worth or abilities: self-respect”.
For the purposes of this study, self-esteem is
operationalized by observations and conversations with
participants.
Self-expression
The Oxford dictionary (2013) defines self-expression
Art Therapy and Dementia 24
as “the expression of one's feelings, thoughts, or ideas,
especially in writing, art, music, or dance”. In this
study, self-expression will be explored through the
creative process of scrapbooking.
Memory
The Oxford dictionary (2013) defines memory as “1)the
faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information
2) something remembered from the past; a recollection”.
For the purposes of this study, memory will be
operationalized by observations and conversations.
Delimitations
The delimitations of this study include the following
factors:
1. Participants will be recruited from an assisted
living facility in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts.
2. Data for this study will be collected over a 8-week
span.
3. The study will focus on mood, self-esteem, self-
expression, and memory as the potential benefits of
creating scrapbooks with individuals who have dementia.
Limitations
When interpreting the results of this study, the
following limitations should be considered:
Art Therapy and Dementia 25
1. The researcher will not be able to conduct formal
interviews with participants who have dementia due to
varied levels of functioning.
2. The results of the study will be limited to the
analysis and interpretations of data by the researcher.
Research Questions
This study will examine the following Research
questions:
1. How has scrapbooking affected mood?
2. How has scrapbooking affected self esteem?
3. How has scrapbooking affected self-expression?
4. How has scrapbooking affected memory?
5. How has scrapbooking affected social connectedness?
Art Therapy and Dementia 26
Appendix B
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Older adults are often faced with a variety of life
changes related to loss (Stephenson, 2006). Physical and
cognitive losses can include the loss of sight, hearing,
mobility, and memory. Many older people experience death
of family members and friends. Independence is often
compromised, by needing to relocate to an assisted living
facility or nursing home and losing driving privileges.
Older adults with dementia may face even more significant
challenges.
The prevalence of dementia ranges from 1.4% to 1.6%
for individuals ages 65-69 years, and rises to 16% to 25%
for people over age 85 years (The American Psychiatric
Association [APA], 2000). It is stated in the APA (2000)
that the “essential feature of a dementia is the
development of multiple cognitive deficits that include
memory impairment and at least one of the following
disturbances: aphasia, apraxia, agnosia, or a disturbance
of executive functioning” (p. 148). An individual with
dementia may have difficulty with planning, organization,
sequencing, and abstract information, and experience
Art Therapy and Dementia 27
decline in comprehension, judgment, and verbal
communication (Stallings, 2010). According to the
Alzheimer's Association (alz.org, 2013), dementia is a
general term for a decline in mental ability that is severe
enough to cause problems in daily living. Dementia may
result from a variety of underlying medical conditions,
including “head trauma, HIV/AIDS, substance use,
Huntington's disease, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's
disease” (Stallings, 2010, p. 136).
The following review of literature will focus on the
different types of dementia, prevalence, causes, and
characteristics. This review will explore a variety of
creative interventions for dementia, including
reminiscence, collage, life story work, and scrapbooking.
The review will also focus on the effectiveness of art
therapy with clients who have dementia, as well as the
potential challenges.
Types of Dementia
There are ten types of dementia categories (alz.org,
2013). Alzheimer's disease is the most common type of
dementia, accounting for 60-80% of dementia cases.
Vascular dementia is the second most common form of
dementia, and accounts for up to 40% of dementia cases. It
Art Therapy and Dementia 28
occurs because of conditions that block or reduce blood
supply to the brain. The progression of vascular dementia
may be slowed by controlling the risk factors associated
with the disease, such as quitting smoking, lowering high
blood pressure, and high cholesterol (Harrison-Dening,
2013).
Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is caused by clumps of
the protient alpha-synuclein that can develop in the cortex
of the brain, which can result in dementia (alz.org, 2013).
The progression of Parkinson's disease can cause alpha-
synuclein clumps that develop in the brain, which can cause
degeneration of nerve cells that produce dopamine (alz.org,
2013). Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) usually produces
symptoms at a younger age and has a shorter survival rate
than Alzheimer's disease. Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD)
is a rapidly fatal disorder that causes symptoms of
dementia (alz.org, 2013). Normal pressure hydrocephalus is
caused by a build-up of fluid in the brain and can
sometimes be corrected by surgical procedures (alz.org,
2013).
Another disease that causes dementia is called
Huntington's disease, which is caused by a gene defect that
causes abnormalities in brain protein (alz.org). Wernicke-
Art Therapy and Dementia 29
Korsakoff syndrome is caused by a severe deficiency of
thiamine (vitamin B-1), often from alcohol misuse, and
leads to chronic memory problems (alz.org, 2013). Lastly,
mixed dementia is a result of more than one type of
dementia occurring in an individual.
Current Treatments for Dementia
It is stated in the DSM-IV-TR that “the reversibility
of a dementia is a function of the underlying pathology and
of the availability and timely application of effective
treatment” (p. 152). Current therapeutic interventions
will not cure dementia, but they may reduce the effects
that the illness has on an individual's life, and provide
the person with a sense of hope (Safar & Press, 2011).
There are a variety of treatments that are currently being
used to treat dementia. Medications such as cholinesterase
inhibitors and memantine are prescribed for individuals
experiencing cognitive symptoms such as memory loss,
confusion, and problems with thinking and reasoning. High
doses of vitamin E are also prescribed by doctors to treat
cognitive changes from dementia (alz.org, 2013).
Non-pharmaceutical treatments may also be beneficial.
For instance, reading, writing, and doing word games are
shown to combat memory loss, and to increase vocabulary
Art Therapy and Dementia 30
(Hannemann, 2006). Creative therapies, which include
drama, dance, music, and movement activities, have been
shown to enhance communication and self-expression, and
provide pleasure and enjoyment for people with dementia
(Rylatt, 2012). Creative therapies can also help
individuals with dementia cope with their condition.
Cognitive stimulation therapy (CST) is a type of
intervention used for individuals with mild to moderate
dementia (Harrison-Dening, 2013). CST is a non-
pharmacological group intervention that combines reality
orientation, reminiscence therapy, and psychosocial
therapies for dementia (Tuppen, 2012). The cognitive
benefits of CST in slowing mental decline are comparable to
cholinesterase inhibitor drugs, that are used to treat
dementia, and CST is also cost effective (Spector, Gardner,
& Orrell, 2011). Studies show that CST is “effective in
improving memory, judgment and use of language and
reasoning, as well as providing social stimulation”
(Harrison-Denning, 2013, P. 135). It is also the only non-
drug intervention used for the treatment of cognitive
symptoms of dementia that is recommended by government
guidelines (Spector, et al., 2011). A CST group is
typically run by two trained facilitators, and usually
Art Therapy and Dementia 31
include eight to ten participants (Tuppen, 2012). The
group runs for seven weeks, meets twice a week for two
hours, for a total of 14 sessions (Tuppen, 2012). There
are reasons why some individuals with dementia may not be
able to participate in a CST group, such as having severe
sensory impairments, inability to get to a group, or
because they refuse to participate (Orell, Woods, &
Spector, 2012).
Effectiveness of Art Therapy
The creative arts, including painting, sculpture,
music, dance, and theater, have been used since the early
ages as a way for humans to express and symbolize without
using words (Hannemann, 2006). Creating is a part of being
human, and can be done communally or when solitary
(MacGregor, 2006). The creative arts can be adapted to
suit anyone, regardless of age or ability (Stephenson,
2006).
Art therapy as a profession emerged in the 1940s when
psychiatrists began showing interest in the art work of
their mentally ill patients (American Art Therapy
Association, 2013). At about the same time, educators were
discovering that developmental, cognitive, and emotional
growth were reflected in the art of children. According to
Art Therapy and Dementia 32
the website of the American Art Therapy Association (2013),
an art therapist is a mental health professional who uses
“the creative process of art making to improve and enhance
the physical, mental and emotional well-being of
individuals of all ages”. The association goes on to say
art therapy can help people resolve conflicts and problems,
develop interpersonal skills, manage behavior, reduce
stress, increase self-esteem and self-awareness, and
achieve insight.
Creative expression can improve mental and physical
health, promote a sense of well-being, encourage a positive
outlook, and boost the immune system (Hannemann, 2006).
The visual arts can be successful in furthering the
creative growth of individuals who suffer from dementia
and physical impairments (Stephenson, 2006). Some older
individuals with dementia who participate in art activities
reported having a sense of purpose, a feeling of
achievement, relief from loneliness, and an increase in
morale (MacGregor, 2006).
Art therapy techniques can be adapted to meet the
needs of individuals with dementia and to focus on their
strengths and abilities (Stephenson, 2006). Art therapy
can be useful in the rehabilitation of physical problems,
Art Therapy and Dementia 33
and in addressing psychological and emotional needs (Safar
& Press, 2011). According to Stewart (2000), individuals
who have mild dementia and participate in an art therapy
program are often able to include depth, proportion,
appropriate use of color, and a great amount of detail in
their artwork. In cases of participants who have moderate
dementia, three quarters of individuals may include
baselines and skylines, use color in a somewhat appropriate
way, and may attempt to create representational forms and
figures (Stewart, 2004). While some participants with
severe or profound dementia may not be motivated to
participate in an art therapy group, those who do will most
often make scribbles and use colors randomly.
Art therapy tends to place more importance on the
process of creating than the final art product (MacGregor,
2006). Focusing on the strengths of the individual can be
a beneficial goal of art therapy, as well as perceiving
aging as something valuable that offers wisdom and life
experience (Stephenson, 2006). When art therapy is used
with elderly adults with dementia, it can offer a source of
pleasure and involvement, while exercising the parts of the
brain that still function (Stewart, 2004). Art therapy can
also promote self-expression, sensory stimulation, and
Art Therapy and Dementia 34
increase quality of life. Despite the proven benefits of
using art therapy with older people who have dementia, it
is rare to find facilities that offer it to residents
(Stewart, 2004). For art therapy clinicians who do work at
a facility, they often spend limited amounts of time with
the residents because of complicated documentation
procedures.
Reminiscence
Reminiscing is when people remember personal life
events and share their memories with others. Psychologist
Erik Erikson believed that a person can reconcile the past
self with the present self by recalling the past and
reaching integration (Puyenbroeck & Maes, 2006, p.139).
For more than five decades, reminiscence and life review
have been used in art therapy with older adults and
terminally ill patients (Stallings, 2010). Reminiscence
can be effective in improving mood and cognition (Rylatt,
2012). Art therapy and the creative process of making art
can evoke many emotions and memories of older adults, and
may provide an opportunity to explore past and present
experiences (Stephenson, 2006). According to Robert
Butler's theory of life review, it is a natural occurrence
for older people to feel regret and disappointment when
Art Therapy and Dementia 35
reflecting back on their life, and to have issues that are
unresolved (Stephenson, 2006). The process of art making
allows older adults to explore and work through the good
and the bad in his or her life in a safe, nonverbal, and
symbolic way in order to feel comfortable in accepting the
end of life (Stephenson, 2006).
Older adults with cognitive difficulties may find
memory triggers helpful, such as by viewing old photographs
and vintage objects (Puyenbroeck & Maes, 2006). Support
workers can help older people who have difficulty speaking
for themselves, by using interventions and activities that
incorporate life story work. Buron (2010) studied how
creating life history collages for nursing home residents
who have dementia effected the relationship between
residents and the nursing home staff. The information
gathered for the collages included “birth-place, members of
family of origin, where the individual grew up and most
significant previous residence, present family, education,
work experiences, significant past experiences, known
traits and attributes, and life story” (p. 39). The
information about each individual, as well as photographs
to be used in the collage, came from a surrogate who had
known the resident for at least 25% of the resident's life.
Art Therapy and Dementia 36
After collecting all of the data from the surrogates, the
researcher met with a graphic design artist to create a
history collage to be hung in the clients room. The
residents with dementia were passive participants, meaning
that they were not involved in the life story collage-
making. The results of the study showed improvement in the
knowledge of the staff members about the residents they
work with. The researcher did not measure the effects that
the life story collage had on resident's behaviors,
attitudes, or cognitive functioning.
Legacy projects are a family-based intervention for
individuals approaching the end of life (Allen, Hilgeman,
Ege, Shuster, & Burgio, 2008). Legacy activities are
defined as projects “that assist individuals and families
in initiating the process of life review and result in a
product that can be enjoyed by family and friends”. A
legacy project may include a photo scrapbook, a family
cookbook, or typed or audio-taped stories elicited from
semi-structured interviews (Allen, 2009). The family and
the patient work together to create a lasting memento
through the processes of life review and components of
cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).
Challenges of Using Art Therapy
Art Therapy and Dementia 37
While art therapy has potential in slowing the
progression of dementia, there are challenges of using art
with this population. For example, individuals with
progressive dementia may mistake art materials for food,
have trouble cutting with scissors, and may put glue on the
wrong side of the paper (Stallings, 2010). They also may
have trouble recognizing and producing forms in drawings.
Individuals with illnesses such as arthritis can have
difficulty with the execution of some art activities due to
limited mobility, range of motion, and poor fine motor
skills (Hannemann, 2010). When elderly clients are not
able to fully carry out their creative ideas, art
therapists must rely on imagination and artistic abilities
to “empathically carry out the creative intention of the
client” (Stephenson, 2006).
Another factor is that some individuals find art to be
intimidating because they may have been told that they were
not good at it (Stewart, 2004). People who are resistant
to art making and art therapy may become less fearful if
they are reminded that the goal is to find enjoyment in the
process, not to be critiqued. It is important for all art
materials to be safe and non-toxic (Stewart, 2004). Due to
“cognitive loss, decrease in manual dexterity, and
Art Therapy and Dementia 38
increased importance of the tactile sense” (Stewart, 2004,
p. 150), art materials that are considered regressive
actually work well with individuals with dementia, such as
crayons and finger-paints.
Scrapbooking
The art of scrapbooking dates back to the Renaissance
period when scholars and other literary-minded people would
copy their favorite passages or poems into blank books in
order to create their own personal anthologies (McCarthy &
Sebaugh, 2011). These books were known as commonplace
books and would often include “classical quotations,
personal anecdotes, astrological predictions or devotional
texts” (Kohut, 2011, p. 124). Scrapbooking became a
popular hobby in the 19th century with well-known people
such as Mark Twain expressing enjoyment with the pastime
(Kohut, 2011). Twain created more than 300 of what he
called drawing room books that held keepsakes of family
stories, as well as mementos such as feathers and pressed
flowers (McCarthy & Sebaugh, 2011). In the year 1900, the
Brownie camera became accessible to the middle class, which
led to an increase in scrapbooking as a way to capture,
organize, and save scenes and memories caught on camera
(McCarthy & Sebaugh, 2011). Since the 1990s, scrapbooking
Art Therapy and Dementia 39
has become a multibillion-dollar business and one of the
fastest growing hobbies in America (McCarthy & Sebaugh,
2011). There are many styles and approaches to
scrapbooking (Kohut, 2011). A scrapbook cover can be large
or small, store bought or homemade from inexpensive
materials. The papers that go inside of the book come in
virtually limitless colors, prints, and patterns.
Stickers, ribbons, and stamps are an example of
embellishments that can be used to decorate scrapbook pages
and add a personal touch.
Using scrapbooking as a therapeutic tool in the mental
health field is just beginning to emerge (McCarthy &
Sebaugh, 2011). Scrapbooks can be a helpful coping method
for people experiencing challenging events such as loss,
grief, and recovery (Karns, 2002). Both the process and
the product of scrapbooking can be beneficial to people of
all ages (Kohut, 2011). Creating scrapbooks in a group
setting may allow participants to feel connected to others,
feel less isolated, and help validate each others emotional
experiences (McCarthy & Sehaugh, 2011).
Scrapbooking may be helpful with a variety of
populations as a way for individuals to chronicle important
events, express emotions, and explore ideas (Karns, 2002).
Art Therapy and Dementia 40
Creating scrapbooks have been shown to be an effective
intervention at reducing symptoms for groups of women with
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD; Davidson & Robison,
2008). Visually and verbally sharing stories about
traumatic experiences were found to be beneficial. Another
study by Washington and Moxley (2004) used scrapbooks and
portfolios as interventions to help women recover from
substance abuse. A study by Kohut (2011) about the effects
of a scrapbooking bereavement support group indicated that
creating a memory book can help to resolve grief and
promote healing in a non-threatening and appealing way.
Scrapbooks created for foster children by their foster
parents provide the children with a documented history of
their earlier lives (McCarthy & Sebaugh, 2011). Foster
children often do not have any photographs or written
stories about themselves when they were younger.
Scrapbooking has also been used in neonatal intensive care
units as a way to encourage parents to bond with their ill
infants.
Scrapbooking and Dementia
There are few studies published on creating scrapbooks
with individuals who have dementia (Mizen, 2004). However,
the creation of scrapbooks with this population may be
Art Therapy and Dementia 41
beneficial in enhancing the well-being of the individual
who has dementia, help the family to better relate to their
loved one, and assist caregivers in developing empathy for
the patient. Photographs, family recipes, and stories may
be collected from family members that may be included in
the scrapbook (Allen, 2009).
Creating a scrapbook is a tangible way to preserve
family stories, legacies and celebrate life events (Kohut,
2011). Scrapbooks are an artistic creation that celebrates
life, love, and family from the perspective of the artist.
Photographs, cards, newspaper articles, and souvenirs can
be added to scrapbooks to “create a cherished document that
'tells a story of who we are while preserving our memories
for future generations'” (Kohut, 2011, p. 124). With the
help of a trained facilitator, a scrapbooking group can
help participants to focus on their strengths, develop
connections, learn healthy coping skills, discover ways to
combat stress, and gain support from other members of the
group (McCarthy & Sebaugh, 2011).
Summary
Older adults often experience losses in a variety of
areas that may include visual, hearing, and memory loss,
decrease in mobility, and independence, and death of family
Art Therapy and Dementia 42
members and friends (Stephenson, 2006). Relocation to an
assisted living facility or nursing home is also a common
event. For individuals ages 65-69 years old, the
prevalence of dementia is 1.4% to 1.6% and increases to 16%
to 25% for adults over the age of 85 (APA, 2000). Dementia
is an umbrella term used to describe a decline in mental
ability that interferes with activities of daily living
(alz.org, 2013). This includes having difficulties with
memory and other areas of executive functioning (APA,
2000). The most common type of dementia is Alzheimer's
disease, but there are also ten other types of dementia
(alz.org, 2013).
There are currently no therapeutic interventions that
will cure dementia, but they may help an individual with
dementia in reducing the effects the disease has on quality
of life and provide a sense of hope (Safar & Press, 2011).
There are a variety of interventions used to treat
dementia, including pharmaceutical drugs such as
cholinesterase inhibitors and memantine that are prescribed
to diminish cognitive symptoms (alz.org, 2013). However,
non-medication interventions that include creative
therapies such as drama, dance, music and movement
activities may provide enjoyment, enhance communication,
Art Therapy and Dementia 43
and promote self-expression (Rylatt, 2012). Cognitive
Stimulation Therapy (CST) is another successful
intervention that combines reminiscence therapy, reality
orientation and psychosocial therapies (Tuppen, 2012).
Art therapy is a non-medication intervention that can
help people in a variety of ways such as in developing
interpersonal skills, managing behavior, reducing stress
increasing self-esteem and self-awareness, and achieving
insight (American Art Therapy Association, 2013). Creative
expression can also improve mental and physical health and
boost the immune system (Hannemann, 2006). Reminiscence
and life review have been used with older adults and
terminally ill patients for over five decades (Stallings,
2010). Creating legacy projects is a family-based
intervention used with individuals at the end stage of life
(Allen, et al., 2008). Legacy projects can include making
a photo scrapbook, family cookbook, or typed or audio-taped
stories gathered from semi-structured interviews (Allen,
2009).
Scrapbooking as a therapeutic tool is only beginning
to be used in the mental health field, especially for
individuals who have dementia (McCarthy & Sebaugh, 2011).
Making scrapbooks is a way to preserve family stories,
Art Therapy and Dementia 44
legacies and celebrate life events in a tangible way
(Kohut, 2011). Creative therapies that include art making,
reminiscence, and legacy work such as scrapbooking, can
provide individuals who have dementia with a sense of
purpose and achievement, and help to relieve loneliness and
increase morale (MacGregor, 2006).
Art Therapy and Dementia 45
Appendix C
PERMISSION TO CONDUCT THE STUDY
Department of Art TherapySpringfield CollegeSpringfield, MA 01109
Dear_____________________,
I am in the process of completing my Master's degree in Clinical Art Therapy through a qualitative research project. This letter is to request your permission to conduct my research within your facility with residents who have dementia.
The purpose of this research study is to learn the possible benefits of using scrapbooking as an art therapy intervention for older adults who have been diagnosed with having dementia. Three to four residents from your facility will be selected for the current study. Participation in this research project will involve scrapbook-related art directives, observations during the art process, field notes, and photographs of the art work with no identifying factors. All potential participants will be given the opportunity to refuse to participate.
I would greatly appreciate the opportunity to work with you and your staff. I am enclosing a copy of the informed consent forms that your participating staff, residents and their legal guardians will be asked to fill out.
There is little research concerning the use of scrapbooking as an art therapy intervention for older adults who have dementia. Your willingness to support this project will add to the available body of knowledge.
Please feel free to contact me for any additional information that you might need. Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Rebekah Mekler# 413-265-0148
Art Therapy and Dementia 46
Appendix D
INFORMED CONSENT
CONSENT TO PARTICIPATEVOLUNTARILY IN A RESEARCH INVESTIGATION
Department of Art TherapySpringfield CollegeSpringfield, MA 01109
Dr. Leslie Abrams Rebekah Mekler Responsible Faculty Member Investigator's Name
Participant's name (please print) Date
PROJECT TITLE: Understanding the benefits of scrapbooking as an art therapy intervention for older adults with dementia.
Your ward is being asked to participate in a research study as described in this form below. All such research projects carried out within this department are governed by the regulations of both the Federal Government and Springfield College. These regulations require that the investigator obtain from you a signed agreement for your ward's participation in this project.
The purpose of this research study is to learn the possible benefits of using scrapbooking as an art therapy intervention for older adults who have been diagnosed with having dementia. Three to four participants from your ward's facility will be selected for the current study. Participation in this research project will involve scrapbook-related art directives, observations during the art process, and taking field notes. All potential participants and their legal guardians will be given the opportunity to refuse to participate. The methods used to collect information for this study are explained below.
You are encouraged to ask any questions at any time about the nature of the art directives and the methods that I am using. Your suggestions and concerns are important to me, and you can contact me at any time at # 413.265.0148.
Art Therapy and Dementia 47
I will be collecting data by making observations, taking photographs of the art work, and writing field notes regarding the setting, the participants, and activities or behaviors. The data will be used for academic purposes only.
I guarantee that the following conditions will be met:
1) Your ward's real name will not be in the written field notes; instead, your ward and any other person and place names in your ward's case will be given pseudonyms that will be used in all verbal and written records and reports.
2)You and your ward's participation in this study is voluntary; you have the right to withdraw from the study at any point, for any reason, and without any prejudice, and the information collected will be turned over to you.
Do you grant permission for your ward to be quoted directly?
Yes_______ No______
Do you grant permission for the research investigator to take eight photographs of your wards art work, one each week, with no identifying factors?
Yes_______ No_______
No known risks are associated with participation in the current study. Additional information can be obtained from the Office of Academic Affairs of Springfield College (# 413-748-3959) concerning pertinent questions about the current research study and an explanation of your ward's rights as a research participant.
I CERTIFY THAT I HAVE READ AND FULLY UNDERSTAND THE ABOVE PROJECT. ALL MY QUESTIONS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED TO MY SATISFACTION BY THE RESEARCHER. I WILLINGLY CONSENT TO MY WARD'S PARTICIPATION IN THIS STUDY.
___________________________________________________Signature of Legal Guardian Date
Art Therapy and Dementia 48
Appendix E
INFORMED CONSENT
CONSENT TO PARTICIPATE IN A RESEARCH INVESTIGATION
Department of Art TherapySpringfield CollegeSpringfield, MA 01109
Dr. Leslie Abrams Rebekah Mekler Responsible Faculty Member Investigator's Name
Faculty Name (please print) Date
PROJECT TITLE: Understanding the benefits of scrapbooking as an art therapy intervention for older adults with dementia.
I am in the process of completing my Master's degree in Clinical Art Therapy through a qualitative research project. This letter is to request your permission to participate in my research study. I will be conducting my research at the community where you are employed, with residents who have dementia.
The purpose of this research study is to learn the possible benefits of using scrapbooking as an art therapy intervention for older adults who have been diagnosed with having dementia. Three to four residents from the community will be selected for the current study. Participation in this research project will involve scrapbook-related art directives, observations during the art process, photographs of the art work, and taking field notes. All potential participants and their legal guardians will be given the opportunity to refuse to participate. The methods used to collect information for this study are explained below.
You are encouraged to ask any questions at any time about the nature of the art directives and the methods that I am using. Your suggestions and concerns are important to me,
Art Therapy and Dementia 49
and you can contact me at any time at # 413.265.0148.
I will be collecting data by making observations and writing field notes regarding the setting, the participants, and activities or behaviors. This data will be used for academic purposes only.
Do you grant permission to be quoted directly?
Yes_______ No______
No known risks are associated with participation in the current study. Additional information can be obtained from the Office of Academic Affairs of Springfield College concerning pertinent questions about the current research study and an explanation of your rights as a research participant.
I CERTIFY THAT I HAVE READ AND FULLY UNDERSTAND THE ABOVE PROJECT. ALL MY QUESTIONS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED TO MY SATISFACTION BY THE RESEARCHER. I WILLINGLY CONSENT TO PARTICIPATION IN THIS STUDY.
___________________________________________________Signature of Faculty Member Date
Art Therapy and Dementia 50
APPENDIX F
WEEKLY GROUP DIRECTIVES
Script:
For the next eight weeks we will be working on making
a scrapbook that you will leave here each week. You will be
able to keep the scrapbook and take it home with you at the
end of the last session. This is to see if this is
something that you like and captivates your interest. Each
week there will be materials for you to use for your
scrapbook, including magazine pictures. You may also bring
your own pictures, memorabilia, and other materials if you
would like to use them for your scrapbook.
Weekly Directives:
Week one: What are your favorite hobbies? (music, art,
sports, favorite movies, books, songs etc)
Week two: What are your favorite places? (vacations,
trips, where you have lived etc.)
Week three: What are your favorite foods? (family recipes,
etc)
Week four: What are your favorite memories? (letters,
postcards, invitations, ticket stubs etc.)
Week five: What did you do for a living? (jobs, raising
Art Therapy and Dementia 51
kids, volunteering, military etc.)
Week six: Who is in your family? and/or Who are your
friends? (include photographs if possible)
Week seven: Life lessons, wisdom, favorite quotes.
(additional quotes will be provided)
Week eight: Finishing up and final embellishments.
Art Therapy and Dementia 52
APPENDIX G
WEEKLY GROUP TRANSCRIPTS
Week 1 Notes 2-12-14
-4 participants, all female: HP, FT, MS, and MR, are all
in wheelchairs, but can also utilize a walker.
-HP and FT live on OP (beginning to middle stages of
Alzheimer's
-MS and MR live on PW on a secure unit that also has
Hospice care(end stages of Alzheimer's)
-3 facilitators: AM, DC, and RM. RM is the researcher of
this study. (AM mentioned getting a fourth facilitator so
it will be one on one, for next week) have them sign
informed consent form
Today's theme: what are your favorite hobbies? (music,
art, sports, favorite movies, books, songs, etc.)
The participants interacted with each other and the
facilitators. There was a lot of laughter and joy while
looking through the magazine cut outs, and personal
photographs and memorabilia.
At end of session, I asked the participants if they would
like to share what they have been working on, and all
were willing to share with the group.
I entered the conference room at the assisted living
Art Therapy and Dementia 53
community at 2:55pm. It is a small room with a table and
eight chairs. On the table there was a box filled with
glue, markers, crayons, colored pencils, and scissors,
which were provided by the activities director, DC. There
was also a bag containing four scrapbooks, and two large
pads of square scrapbooking paper.
HP and FT entered the conference room first, and were
helped by staff from their wheelchairs into regular chairs.
Then MS entered the room and shortly after MR came, and
both participants were helped from their wheelchairs into
regular chairs. I introduced myself to each participant,
and they smiled, and told me their names. I then read the
pre-written script from my proposal to the participants,
which explains what the group was about and what we will be
doing. DC handed each participant a different type of
colorful scrap book that she had picked out at AC Moore.
The participants seemed pleased with their books, and
expressed gratitude and smiled. FT and MR each had boxes
that contained personal mementos that their family had
brought in to be used in their scrapbooks. I also provided
a large selection of pre-cut words and images that the
participants could choose from to include in their
scrapbooks.
Art Therapy and Dementia 54
FT, who was setting next to me, spontaneously began
telling me about herself and her life. Based on what she
was telling me, which was mostly about her deceased
husband, and the vacations that they used to take, I was
able to suggest some images and words that she might like
to include in her scrapbook. The images that I offered to
FT appeared to jog her memory about detailed descriptions
of trips that she had taken with her husband when she was
younger.
AM sat next to MS and assisted her in putting together
a couple of scrapbooking pages, while DC worked with both
MR and HP. All participants appeared engaged with the
scrapbooking project, and all were communicating with both
the staff members and occasionally with other participants.
HP spontaneously positively commented on FT scrapbooking
page, and then F.T. looked at HP page and also commented
positively.
The group was supposed to end at 4pm, but since
everyone was so involved with their scrapbooking, the group
ended running over to about 4:05 pm. I encouraged the
participants to share with the group what they had
accomplished during the session. All participants took
turns showing the group their images. AM also prompted the
Art Therapy and Dementia 55
participants to say why they chose the words and images
that they did. All participants were able to articulate
the reasoning behind their choices.
At the end of the group, I thanked the participants
and staff for participating in the first group, and that I
hope they enjoyed the experience, and look forward to
seeing them again next week. All participants expressed
that they enjoyed the group and also look forward to coming
next week.
FT
Images: 1st page: people fishing on a dock with lake and
mountains. People hiking. Airplane
Words: 1st page: All aboard
Quotes: AM: what made you pick an airplane? FT: because I
like to travel...between the time I retired and now,
because I didn't have money before, and I'm not rich, but
anyway. This one reminds me of hiking, and I am not a
hiker, but I've tried, and this reminds me of New Zealand,
for some reason (referring to an image of mountains and
people fishing on a lake). There are mountains, and someone
fishing. I'm not a fisher lady, but the scene reminded me
of that. AM: Have you been to New Zealand” FT: Yes, with
my husband. And this is a plane (referring to image) which
Art Therapy and Dementia 56
reminds me that we had to get on the plane to go. And it
reminds me of vacations, which I like. AM: that's a great
page!
MR
Images: 1st page: women exercising, a couple riding bikes by
the beach, two children sledding, photograph of self
holding up a tee-shirt
2nd page: bowling ball and pins, woman exercising, a couple
riding bikes by the beach, two children sledding, a woman
gardening, photograph of self dressed up as a clown
Words:
Inside cover: start every day full of life, always be
kinder than you feel
(1st page) family, love, paradise
(2nd page) forever young, amazing, imagination
Quotes: AM: why did you pick the word “family”? What does
that word mean to you? MR: A lot of these people miss their
family. AM: how about “paradise”? MR: well, I don't know
about that one...but its, ya know, the beach, waves, and
stuff like that. AM: How about the word “love”, what does
that mean to you? MR: I love my family.
MS
Images: 1st page: picture of a globe and books
Art Therapy and Dementia 57
2nd page: no images
Words:
1st page: mother, never settle for good enough, happy and
healthy, let the good life in, joy, freedom, smiles, family
fun, teach, smart
2nd page: completely inspired, care, hopeful, all about
you, set your soul free, artist, strong, give, living.
Quotes: AM: why did you pick the word “give”? MS: I don't
remember...well, because I like to give things to people
and help people. Why did you pick “strong”? Because I try
to act strong. Why did you pick “mother”? Because I still
think of my mother, her name was =Jane= Group: AM asked all
the participants to say their mothers names, which they
did. AM: why did you choose the word “freedom”? MS: well,
we had to work for freedom...everyone in the world should
work for freedom. AM: why did you choose the phrase “never
settle for good enough”? MS: that's what everyone should
keep working for, for things to be better....I try to...I'm
not always successful, but I try to. AM: That's what
tomorrow's for. That's what its all about, you just gotta
try.
HP:
-2 pages of scrapbook completed today
Art Therapy and Dementia 58
Images: (1st page) a man cooking, a woman gardening, people
dancing
(2nd page) a couple bathing on a boat, a child in bed with
parents beside her, a woman balancing things on her head
while standing on one foot
Words: (1st page) New York City, believe, smile, remember
(2nd page) ready for anything. there's a time and a place
for everything, even going wild.
Quotes: AM: HP, she put “New York City”...why? HP: Because
I love it! AM: how come you've got a violin? HP: because I
played the violin. AM” that's not an easy thing to play.
HP: No. You know why I gave it up? My professor said he's
still taking lessons. I said to my mother, that's it, I'm
not taking any more lessons. AM: you mean because he was
so old and still taking lessons? HM: That's right,
(laughing) and I quit my violin. But we are all musical in
my family, my son plays the accordion and the piano, and my
daughter used to play the organ. AM: wow, amazing! Tell me
why you picked this woman here? HP: Why did I pick her?
Because she's planting flowers. AM: yes she is planting
things, did you do that a lot? HP: No I didn't. AM: then
why did you pick that one? HP: I don't know, I just did,
she looked good. AM: What's on your next page? Why would
Art Therapy and Dementia 59
you pick the phrase “ready for anything”? Why? Tell me why?
HP: well, that's what makes life. AM: you got to be ready
for anything, right FT? FT: that's right! Good or bad!
-RM and AM: Good job everyone! AM: That was our first day
of scrapbooking, did you have fun? Group: yes! AM: Makes
you think a lot, doesn't it? MS did you enjoy this? MS:
yes. AM: we are going to be doing this for the next few
weeks, with a different topic every time, and when were
done you will each have your own beautiful book of things
that mean something to you.
Week 2 Notes 2-26-14
-3 participants, all female: FT, MS, and MR (HP was absent)
-facilitators: AM DC, and RM
-last weeks group was cancelled due to a flu outbreak in
the assisted living community
-MS worked with AM, MR worked with DC, and RM with FT.
-we worked in the conference room as we did the first group
-each participant had a box of photographs, cards, and
other memorabilia that was brought to be used in scrapbooks
from family members
-at the end of the group, the facilitators presented the
participants scrapbooks and mostly spoke for the
participant as opposed to last session when one of the
Art Therapy and Dementia 60
staff invited the participants to share why they chose
specific words, pictures, photographs etc.
Today's theme: what are your favorite places? (vacations,
trips. Where you have lived, etc)
RM: (towards the end of the session) I'm wondering if for
the last few minutes we could all share a little bit about
what we did this week...who wants to go first?
MR
Images: 3rd page: 2 photographs of family members, picture
of sail boat and house by the ocean
4th page: 1 black and white photographs of family members,
1 black and white photograph of friends, picture of statue
of liberty, picture of a Ferris wheel
Words:
3rd page: celebrating, experience, rest, summer
4th page: beauty, friends, company, lucky
Quotes: DC: MR liked the ocean, she loved going on family
visits to the ocean, so these are all MR's children and
their spouses, and this is her Mom on vacation, and we
found this sailboat. And she thought going to the beach is,
like, celebrating, and what did you say? MR: experience DC:
and what did you say here? MS: rest DC: and you like to go
in the summertime. And then MR picked some of her travel
Art Therapy and Dementia 61
vacations she went on...and these are all good friends of
hers that she and her husband hung out with...so they were
friends with company, and she remembered as a youngster
going on Ferris wheels to New York city, and there is her
and her husband. And this is a house she really liked, she
just thought it was a nice house which would be cozy to
live in. FT: I recognize some of that. RM: those are
beautiful, thanks MR!
MS
Images:
3rd page: 4 pictures of buildings in Westfield, MA, picture
of a statue in Westfield, MA
4th page: 3 pictures of flowers, sailboat on a lake
Words:
3rd page: “family's, schools, and communities”, Westfield,
Massachusetts, home
4th page: “travel the world”, Maine!, beautiful, gifts
Quotes: AM: MS and I will go first... RM: ok great! AM: to
MS, “we are going to tell them why we picked the pictures
that we picked, ok? MS: ok . AM: so, MS is from Westfield,
right? MS: thats right! AM: to MS :what pictures of
Westfield do we have? MS: non-responsive (AM continued to
share with the group about the photographs of Westfield,
Art Therapy and Dementia 62
because she had previously went over them with MS's son).
AM: Here is a picture of the Westfield Atheneum, this is
the 1st congregational church in Westfield...MS had a set of
blank cards with the church right on it, so that is the
church, and that is the church. Group: beautiful! AM: And
one of her other places to be with her family was in...MS:
we used to go to Maine every year! AM: they used to go to
Maine every year, they had a cabin, by the lake, right? So,
this is a postcard of Maine FT: oh yeah, I know Maine
some...the early part of my life was New York state, and
then after I was married I lived in Massachusetts, but we
did take some trips up to Maine. AM: (to FT) because
=Jane's= parents were from Maine, right? FT: her parents
live up there. AM: that's right! AM: so these are some
flowers that MS's son =Tom= took pictures of in Maine, some
of her favorite flowers, and we decided we'd put a nice
sailboat because she does like that, and traveled the
world! And MS wanted to put “gifts” because these are all
gifts to her.
FT
Images: 2nd page: FT chose a black and white photograph of
her childhood home
3rd page: black and white photograph of FT lying in a field
Art Therapy and Dementia 63
of grass and flowers
Words: 2nd page: family, home
3rd page: summer
Quotes: FT: I never made anything like this... DC: are you
enjoying it? FT: I am enjoying it RM: good! AM: lets look
at FT's stuff. RM: let's show everyone what you did today!
So, on the first page, FT included a picture of the house
that she grew up in. Group: wow! RM: anything you want to
say about that house? FT: some of those are my grandmother,
my grandfather, and, ah, I'd have to get an Aunt or someone
to identify them, because I don't know...my mother and
father are dead, and so I would have to...someone had
stuffed all the junk that they didn't know what to do with
underneath the porch! And it showed in the picture! Group:
oh no! AM: Hey FT, were you born in that house? FT: yeah,
two brothers and a sister AM: all of you were born right
there in that house? FT: well, mother and father, that was
a country house in northern New York, 25 miles from Canada,
and, ah, what was I going to say? This happens to me often.
Anyway, it had to be enough bedrooms for everybody. So,
there is another house their my friends took me by there,
and I didn't think I'd ever want to go back because I
thought well, I feel badly, but I don't because you go from
Art Therapy and Dementia 64
one spot in your life to the next spot, and that's the way
its been. AM: and that's the way its supposed to be. DC:
yup! Who is that person laying in the grass like that? FT:
that was me!! DC: oh my goodness! Wow, FT lying in the
grass. FT: and I don't know where this is, where this was
taken. I have all kinds of strange pictures. RM: and she
thought of the word “summer” to go along with this picture.
FT: and then I went to Australia one time, and I got
another batch of pictures, they aren't here though,
because, I don't know why because...but that was a
beautiful trip. Group: I bet! FT: yeah, that was a trip of
a lifetime! DC: we're going to have to find some stuff from
Australia. FT: and its a shame to just let them (the
photographs) flutter around...this is a good idea! RM: I'm
so glad that you like it (scrapbooking) you have all kinds
of...everyone has all kinds of great pictures to include in
their scrapbooks.
RM: (at end of session) I just wanted to also mention that
the last week, week 8, we will have an opportunity to go
through all of the images that you put in and add things to
it, so if there are words that you feel you would like to
include that you didn't have time to do today... FT: you
could put a new page in? RM: yep, you can put a new page
Art Therapy and Dementia 65
in, and you can embellish what you already have done. And
next week, we are going to talk about favorite foods.
Group: ooh! MR: I hope you have lots of pictures of food!
RM: I do! And some people may have their own recipes. Thank
you all so much for participating.
Week 3 Notes 3-5-14
-4 participants, all female: FT, MS, MR and HP
-facilitators, all female: AM, DC, and RM
-we met in the conference room, as usual
-AM assisted MS on her scrapbook while DC assisted both MR
and HP. RM assisted FT.
-HP, MR, and FT did lots of reminiscing about the past,
family, foods, holidays, and told stories to the
facilitator working with them while they worked on the
scrapbooks.
-according to AM and MS, MS felt overwhelmed and
overstimulated and chose to leave the group about half way
through the session.
-Today's theme: What are your favorite foods? (family
recipes, etc)
-towards the end of session: RM: if we can just have a
couple of minutes and have everyone, maybe, pick one of
their favorite foods and say why they picked it?
Art Therapy and Dementia 66
-participants were encouraged to speak for themselves if
they felt comfortable, and able, and talk about their
scrapbooks.
FT
Images: Eggs, soup, casserole, roast, and brownies
Words: “company's coming”
Quotes: RM: why don't you tell them why you chose, like,
eggs...what made you choose eggs? FT: eggs in the morning
for breakfast and you might have soup, and than casserole
for dinner. RM: and also you were saying to me that eggs
and some of these kinds of things you would eat because you
grew up on a farm, right? FT: well, I might, yes. RM: and
also, who used to make lots of cookies and cakes and
breads? FT: my mother used to make lots of cakes and
desserts, and bread and she does all of those things a
house wife does on a farm. AM: probably a lot more than a
housewife does not on a farm. RM: alright, thank you FT.
FT: (referring to images in her scrapbook done in prior
groups) ...and this is the house I was born in, but it
isn't there anymore because it burned. And this is me in
the grass. AM: very good FT, we love it.
MR
Images: 3rd page: pizza, hamburger, shrimp dinner, salad,
Art Therapy and Dementia 67
photo of MR with children and grandchildren celebrating her
birthday
Words: health, rejuvenate
Quotes: DC: MR, RM would like you to tell her why you
picked these foods, here you have hot dogs...RM: yeah, how
come you picked hotdogs, do you like hotdogs? MR: yeah. RM:
do they remind you of anything? MR: I didn't like toast
with jelly on it, but if I had French toast I liked it.
DC: and then she likes a glass of wine occasionally and she
loves lobster...and this is her and her sister, having a
cup of coffee. RM: oh, look at that! Its perfect to go in
there (the scrapbook). DC: she said she likes salad and
pizza and shrimp and hamburgers and what better way to
celebrate than with family while eating cake. Group: very
nice!
MS
Images: 5th page: ice cream cones, Hershey bar, oreo cookie
pie, cup of coffee, chicken
6th page: smoothie, potato chips, fruit, dinner plate
Words: 5th page: sweet, great morning, Mom's best recipes
6th page: simple, health
Quotes: MS: RM: do you remember working on your scrapbook
last week? MS: no, I don't remember it at all. RM: I am
Art Therapy and Dementia 68
wondering if there are any pictures in here (looking
through MS scrapbook) that you might remember...maybe not
because there aren't any of your personal photos in it yet.
But it looks like maybe you have been to Maine before? MS:
I traveled the world. RM: you traveled the world? MS: no, I
don't think so. RM: have you been to Maine? MS: I've been
to Maine, yes. RM: yeah, these are the images you picked
last week of Maine. MS: yes, Maine, these are all Maine.
RM: Have you ever lived there? MS: no response.
-MS stayed for about half of the scrapbook session where
she appeared confused, would shake her hands and make
noises. AM determined that MS was so overwhelmed and
overstimulated that she needed to leave the group for the
day. Therefore, I was not able to ask MS questions about
her scrapbook today.
HP
Images: 3rd page: shrimp, vegetables, photograph of HP with
her daughter
Words: 3rd page: luxury, moment
Quotes: DC: HP, you went to sister school? Catholic school?
HP: I wanted to be a nun. DC: you wanted to be a nun?! And
then you ended up falling in love and being married...so
much for being a nun of this and a nun of that! I couldn't
Art Therapy and Dementia 69
quite picture HP as a nun of this and a nun of that. HP:
oh, I wanted to be one real bad! DC: you like music, and
you like to dance, and that's why you told me you wanted
that picture (referring to an image in HP's scrapbook.)
HP: yes, I was a violin player. We were all musicians in my
family.
DC: (to HP) tell her what you picked. HP: I picked crab,
and I picked vegetable...DC: HP, hold on one second...MR:
(referring to an photograph of herself and a friend) she
was my good friend and we graduated from Mercy hospital
together, and =Jane= and I were friends for a long time.
Group: oh, thats nice. RM: alright, thank you for sharing
MR. OK, HP is going to share her's now, okay? HP: ok, I
have shrimp here, and strawberries, and I got carrots, and
I got celery and I got bread, and I got tomatoes and
cucumbers and string beans. DC: and who are you in the
picture with? I am in the picture with my daughter. DC: and
what else did you pick for food? HP: I picked lobster and
ice cream and soup and salad. AM: and what type of food
don't you like? HP: I like it all!
-RM: (at end of session) good job, all of you, your
scrapbooks are looking really great, your making a lot of
progress!
Art Therapy and Dementia 70
Week 4 Notes 3-12-14
-4 participants, all female: HP, FT, MR, MS
-facilitators: AM, DC, and RM
-RM worked with FT
-AM worked with MS
-DC worked with MR and HP
Today's theme: what are your favorite memories? (letters,
postcards, invitations, ticket stubs, etc.)
FT
-repeated the story behind the black and white photos of
the Christmas tree decorating five or six times over the
course of the 1 hour scrapbooking session.
Images: 1st page: black and white photo of FT decorating
Christmas tree, black and white photo of FT with a friend
outside in snow
2nd page: black and white photo of FT holding skis in snow,
black and white photo of FT's husband and friend in front
of Christmas tree.
Words: 1st page: Christmas, winter, holidays
2nd page: holiday, Christmas tree
Quotes: RM: so, FT, we started with Christmas, do you want
to talk about these a little bit? FT: at Christmas time,
instead of having a lot of parties, we had a Christmas
Art Therapy and Dementia 71
decorating party. When I was working, somehow I never used
to fit the decorating in, so we would have a party, and
sometimes we'd have a little tree for the kids, and a
bigger tree for the bigger folks. And, ah, more holidays
here. I came from northern New York, about ten or 15 miles
from Canada. I went skiing there. DC: you used to ski FT?
FT: well, the old fashioned kind where you'd put the strap
over your toe, and you'd go downhill, and then you'd carry
your skis back up to the top again. DC: oh wow! AM: I
would have only done it once. FT: well, you can fall down,
and you carry the skis around and you get all kinds of
exercise. RM: very good exercise FT: and this is my
husband and a friend of mine FT: yeah, so the winter, and
the Christmas tree... RM: so the winter/Christmas theme,
and also we started to look at some of the images of
Florida, but we didn't put them down yet, so we're going to
work on that next week. AM: very nice FT! DC: yeah! FT:
Thank you! FT: this way you can do it without spilling it
on the rug (referring to a previous art activity). AM:
yeah, you like this project better, I know.
MR
got fixated on one photograph and couldn't recall who was
in it
Art Therapy and Dementia 72
-appeared bored
Images: 1st page: Black and white photo of MR in nurse
uniform, 3 recent photos of family, magazine cut out of
diamond rings, and orchid flower
2nd page: black and white photo of MR and husband, 3 recent
photos of grand kids and family
Words: 1st page: no words
2nd page: kids, holidays, growing up
Quotes: DC: MR picked...MR was a nurse, so we have the
picture of MS as a nurse...and here is MS husband and her
children, and her grandkids growing up. And she likes
flowers, and then she has memories of her and her husband
when he was in the military. And everyone getting together
for holidays, and all the grandchildren, and doing picnics,
and birthday parties, and Christmas, and all of them
sitting on the stairs, having their pictures taken. RM:
Nice! AM: Nice MR!
MS
-AM began working on MS's scrapbook before MS came into the
room, as MS was late arriving to group.
-MS used to be a quilter, so AM cut out strips of cloth and
put it behind photos
-after having a difficult week last session and needing to
Art Therapy and Dementia 73
leave the group due to over-stimulation, she returned this
week in good spirits, and said she enjoyed working on her
scrapbook.
Words: 1st page: protect, life
2nd page: kids, pets, raise a star student
Images: 1st page: 2 photos of family, one of family dog,
quilt scraps as borders of photos
2nd page: 3 family photos, quilt scraps as borders of photos
Quotes: AM: MS, why don't we go first! Ready, we're going
to tell everyone why we picked all this today. MS:
(laughing) uh huh. AM: so this is our favorite memory
page...who is this? MS: (says name of her husband and
daughter). RM: look at the quilt that you put on there! AM:
yeah all this quilting came from MS old quilting box. RM:
were you a quilter MS? MS: yeah AM: yeah, she used to make
clothes as well. AM: explaining who each family member is
in the photographs. AM: referring to a quote from a
magazine, “MS raised to star students” RM: Beautiful job,
thank you!
HP:
-MS does not have any photographs or items from before
moving to assisted living community
-was involved in the scrapbooking process and chose, glued,
Art Therapy and Dementia 74
and pasted her own pictures, words, and images
Words: 1st page: song, unforgettable (* DC and HP sang the
song “Unforgettable” together during group session)
2nd page: ”you'll never walk alone”, and mom
Images: 1st page: 2 photos of HP participating at activities
at assisted living community, magazine pic of train,
magazine pic of a pool and palm trees
2nd page: HP wearing bunny ears, HP with man?, magazine pic
of hand holding a red flower, magazine pic of a red car
Quotes: DC: so, we got to get caught up (HP). AM: yeah, no
more sick days for you (HP) HP: oh boy, I was sick as a
dog. (Remembering that she was sick with the flu, which is
why she missed one of the scrapbooking groups. AM: I know
you were. DC: Ok, HP, you're going to tell them how you did
your book today. HP: Ok. DC: you did your book about what?
Memories, of what, when you once went on....? HP: the train
DC: and then on an unforgettable what? Vacation. HP: right,
and Atlantic City DC: yup, and you like to do gardening,
memories of gardening, and making your own wreath HP: yup
DC: ok, and then you picked this side, why did you pick
this side? HP: I picked me and =Dave= DC: and she picked
“you'll never walk along”, and she picked this because it
reminds her of her old car, and how she loves flowers, and
Art Therapy and Dementia 75
how Mom (referring to image of HP wearing bunny ears) was
just being silly. RM: aw, love it, very nice! Thank you HP!
At end of session, RM: Next week we are going to be talking
about what you did for a living, like raising kids,
volunteering, you know, things that kept you busy. Alright,
thank you everyone!
Week 5 Notes 3-19-14
-4 participants, all female: HP, FT, MS, MR
-facilitators: AM, DC, and RM
Today's theme: What did you do for a living? (jobs, raising
kids, volunteering, military, etc.)
-DC and RM reflected on how positive the participants
appeared today. All participants were engaged, smiling,
reflecting on the past and present, initiating and
responding, and were verbal. DC said that the sunny and
warm weather today may have played a role in the positive
energy of the participants.
FT
-FT has no children or grandchildren. FT was able to
identify her grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, and
husband in photographs.
-FT needed some redirecting back to the theme of “what did
you do for a living”. She would occasionally get side
Art Therapy and Dementia 76
tracked and repeat stories of Christmas with her family and
friends.
Images: 1st page: large photograph of FT from the past
2nd page: black and white photograph of FT' with her
graduating class from either high school or secretarial
school, FT's diploma from secretarial school
3rd page: FT and her husband's “Bachelor of Square Dancing”
diploma
Words: No words used besides what is on the diplomas
Quotes: RM: Do you want to go first today and share with
the group? FT: ok. RM: So, this is Fran's book, do you want
to say a little bit? Who is this? FT: yeah, that was was
when I graduated, I believe. AM: High school? HP: look how
pretty you were! Beautiful. Group: wow!! AM: beautiful,
FT! Yeah, I can see you in there! DC: Yeah, I still see her
face features. RM: So, this is your high school picture,
right? And this was your high school class? FT: there were
only eight or nine people in my graduating class, it was
kind of small.....I went to secretarial school, and this
might have been that because that's me right there. I
didn't know these pictures existed! FT: we used to be in a
square dancing class in Chicopee, and this is our diploma.
HP: where did you dance in West Springfield, because I
Art Therapy and Dementia 77
lived in West Springfield? FT: It was at the school, it was
always at the school, the high school. MS: Very nice! AM:
FT, MS likes your work!
HP
-HP was a baker.
Images:1st page: black and white photo of HP's kids, black
and white photo of HP and her husband, color photo of HP
modeling a dress, magazine photo of a mother holding a baby
2nd page: old photo of HP with her husband on their wedding
day, two old photographs of HP.
Words: 1st page: eye witness a miracle, fashion, beauty,
pets
2nd page: muffin, pie, box of sugar
2nd page: talk, good, experience, home
Quotes: DC: HP was a baker, she made cakes at home, but we
couldn't find that, but we found a couple other things.
What was important to HP was family, and these are her two
children. She lost thirty pounds and came in second place
in this dance in 1963. And that is her and her husband. And
she said that being a mother was a full time job but it was
a beauty, and she loved pets. And then here, we focused on
talk and food and sweets and home and you needed sugar to
make a lot of things. She was very busy exercising a lot,
Art Therapy and Dementia 78
so we made sure to put her exercising. And this is her at
the beach in her younger days. Group: oh wow!! DC: So she
said that she had much experience. And that was (Pointing
to a picture). HP: my two children DC: her two children's
first communion Group: very nice (clapping) RM: good job!
MR
-MR needed redirecting back to the topic of “what did you
do for a living”. MR also needed reminding of who was in
the pictures from her past.
Images: 1st page: black and white photo of MR with her
husband, 3 recent photos of MR's family (grandchildren)
2nd page: black and white photo of MR's husband, 2 family
photos, magazine image of a mother holding a baby
3rd page: photo of MR when younger, photo of MR's
grandchildren, magazine image of a woman exercising
Words: 1st page: kids, holidays, growing up
2nd page: share, healthy, goals, simple
3rd page: cookbook, saver, create, miracle
Quotes: DC: MR, as you know, was a nurse. The things
growing up in her life that were important to her were her
family, and her grandchildren, and they all had goals, and
it mattered to her that they were happy, and that they
shared things, right? And she said “life was simple”. And
Art Therapy and Dementia 79
here, she was having a cup of coffee. She said she was a
saver, she liked to create, that family can be a miracle,
and that she liked to cook, so we found a cookbook. RM:
nice job MR! DC: here she's having a cup of coffee with her
sister. AM: what was your sister's name? MR: =Susan= AM:
did you call her =Susie=? MR: =Susie=, and =Jenny=was my
older sister.
MS
-DC described MS as “witty, funny, and enthusiastic” today.
-MS was sharing a lot about her past and what she felt were
important lessons that she had learned in life. AM was
transcribing quotes from what MS was sharing today.
Images: 1st page: magazine image of little girl wearing
mothers dress shoes, magazine image of stack of colorful
books
2nd page: 2 awards from agricultural fair
Words:
1st page: kids, history, play, homework, help (AM
transcribed quotes of MS talking today)
2nd page: a piece of paper with a shamrock on it that says:
“ I pledge my head to clearer thinking, my heart to greater
loyalty, my hands to larger service, my health to better
living, for my club, my community, my country”.
Art Therapy and Dementia 80
Quotes: AM: MS was a teacher...what grade?... She was a
fourth grade teacher. Here is what MS said about being a
teacher. “ I felt like I was really helping the children to
learn. The fourth graders were excited to learn as long as
I made them anxious to experience learning” MS: we had a
lot of fun, we had time for fun and lots of time for work.
And if they didn't do their work, they lost their fun. AM:
She says here” teaching fourth grade was not all work and
no play, I had to keep there minds interested in what I
taught. It was never about me but always about them. I
always wanted to do something that helps others.” DC: ahhh,
very nice! AM: and what do we have here? What is this? MS:
my 4H pledge. AM: and these are just some prizes, the
Westfield young people's awards. RM: nice job MS!
-RM: (at end of session) So, we are actually going to have
group again tomorrow. Tomorrow we are going to be talking
about who is in your family. We can continue on for those
of you who have already started that, and also talk about
your friends, and pets, and so it should be another fun
class! AM: good, so we will be back again tomorrow guys!
Week 6 Notes 3-20-14
-4 participants, all female: HP, FT, MS, MR
-facilitators: AM, DC, and RM
Art Therapy and Dementia 81
Today's theme: Who is in your family? and/or Who are your
friends (include photographs if possible)
RM: The theme is “who is your family?” this can
include..friend can be considered family too, pets, maybe
if you had a dog or a cat that felt like a family member.
So, I think everyone has pictures of their family members
still, right, that you can include in your scrapbook? AM:
I used a little too many, though. DC: I used a little too
many too. RM: That was my fault. AM: no it wasn't. RM: and
also, I put pictures of homes, you know, that might remind
you of a childhood or family home, and there should be
words and animal pictures too (spread out on the table)
FT
Images: 1st page: large black and white photograph of FT's
grandparents, aunts and uncles in front of the house that
FT grew up in.
2nd page: black and white photo of FT, her husband, and
family on her wedding day. Black and white photo of FT's
parents in back of wedding cake on FT wedding day. Magazine
cut out of two wedding rings.
Words: Clippings of FTt's engagement announcement and
wedding announcement from old newspaper. FT's wedding
invitation.
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Quotes: HP: ok FT, lets see! RM: FT, do you want to tell
everyone about this picture? FT: I think that's my
grandfather and grandmother, and these are four aunts, not
bugs, and that house was built by my grandfather. AM: by
your grandfather? FT: well, at his direction...he wasn't a
carpenter necessarily, but he had it built, their were four
bedrooms upstairs, and a kitchen and a dining room and a
living room and another bedroom and a bathroom, way back
then! AM: how many acres? FT: on the farm? AM: yeah. FT:
well, that is probably something I knew and don't know
anymore. I don't know. AM: I can ask (name). FT: yeah, ask
her. RM: what about the next one? HP: look at all those
handsome men! DC: look it, she goes after the men
(laughing). AM: that's your wedding! FT: yep! RM: so she
has her wedding invitation, wedding announcements,
engagement announcements, this is an actual photo of... FT:
yes, this is my husband, that is his brother, that was a
good friend of his, that is my brother, and here are
=Steve= and I here. His name was =Mike= but he encouraged
everyone to call him =Steve=. AM: was that his middle name,
or he just chose that? FT: well I think he kind of chose it
and encouraged his friends to call him (name). Oh, and
that's my mother and father there. RM: and was that your
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wedding? FT: I think it might have been. HP: that is
wonderful! AM: I can't believe you still had the cut outs
from the newspaper of your marriage announcement, that is
awesome!
MR
Images: 1st page: 2 photos of MR's children and
grandchildren. Magazine cut out of a living room, and
magazine cut out of a golden retriever.
Words: 1st page: support, health, goodness
Quotes: DC: Hey MR? Do you want to show them what you did
today? MR did...here we talked about family, so this is her
daughter and husband with their three grandkids, and MR
said they had a dog growing up, but this was as close as we
could find. And with family, she always hoped for support,
and she said that living room kind of reminded her of the
living room like she used to live. And that is her daughter
and her husband and her granddaughter down on the bottom.
And MR put in her group “love” for her granddaughter right
here, and her son used to be in basketball, so we found a
basketball player, so we figured we'd say stories about it.
And then she has her great-granddaughter down here, so we
put “inspired”, her great-granddaughter is extraordinary,
and she of course loves flowers, and when she saw Mickey
Art Therapy and Dementia 84
Mouse, she had to have him! Group: awww! RM: very nice MR!
MS
Images: 1st page: 5 images of birds that MS had cut out of
magazines many years ago
2nd page: 2 magazine pictures of birds, card with a light
house
Words: 1st page: no words
2nd page: Hand written note that says “ Mom, I still
remember the multitudes of lady slippers in our yard in the
springtime...(MS)”
Quotes: AM: MS, let's tell them what we did today, ready?
Tell them what we did today. MS: what did we do? AM: we
made bird pages Group: oh, that's beautiful! Gorgeous!
(referring to bird pictures). AM: When we were looking at
all of these clippings over the week, MS said “I used to
clip out stuff all the time” and her son sent her a folder
of a whole of stuff she used to clip out so we used it.
Here is her monogram (said MS initials). AM: read card from
son (see above). DC: That's nice MS! AM: and she loves
cardinals, and they say that when you see a cardinal it is
someone coming back to say hello, so keep that in mind when
you see a cardinal that it is someone saying hi. RM: and I
like the fact that you had cut those out so long ago, and
Art Therapy and Dementia 85
it is perfect, perfect for this project. Nice work!
HP:
Images: 1st page: black and white photo of HP and husband.
Color photo of HP. Magazine pictures of a fish and 2 owls
2nd page: black and white photo of HP, colored photo of HP
and child, colored photo of HP daughter?
Words: 1st page: perfect, amazing, time is precious
2nd page: good, time, grow
Quotes: HP: I'm 97 and I'm willing to go out AM: (to HP,
referring to MS) You could be her Mom! (to MS) look at her,
she could be your Mom! She's 97, your not even 80. DC: HP,
I'm going to be 56 HP: you're a baby, for God's sakes. AM:
HP, I'm 33 HP: you're full of baloney! AM: I am, I was born
in 1980. Group: laughing. AM: how old are you RM? RM: I
will never tell. AM: are you serious? Group: how old are
you? RM: guess, take a guess. AM: 26 RM I'm 33 AM: me too!
We're the same age. AM: do you really not tell people how
old you are? HP: you're only as old as you feel HP: you
know, when people are entertaining here, they will always
come up to me and ask me, would you mind telling me how old
you are? When I tell them, they say “you're kidding”
(laughing) AM: really, why would you lie at 97? DC: she
even goes as far as to say to the handsome men when the
Art Therapy and Dementia 86
come in “ do you want to know how old I am? I'm available!
Group: laughing HP: you are only as old as you feel, and I
don't feel that old.
DC: OK, HP, why don't I hold it up and you tell them about
your picture here, OK? Who is this? HP: that is my husband
and I. DC: OK, and why did you put this here? Because you
guys are, what? Love birds! So, then there is a picture of
you fishing...how long was that fish? 18 inches long! HP:
18 inches long. I did a lot of fishing, caught a lot of
fish. DC: There she is with her granddaughter...and HP used
to raise Beagles, and there is her daughter and her son,
and how they were growing. Group: nice (clapping). RM:
yeah, very nice!
-End of group. RM: Next week we will be talking about life
lessons, wisdom, favorite quotes. So, its going to be a
good opportunity for you to share the things that you have
learned in your life. HP: oooh! DC: What have you learned
in your life? We got to start thinking about them and
writing them down now! DC: yep, never give up at one
marriage or two marriages, go for three (to HP, who has
been married three times). AM: you know what I'd say? Never
get married! HP: I'd never get married again. Group: no?
HP: Not at 97! RM: you never know! DC: I know people who've
Art Therapy and Dementia 87
gotten married at 100! HP: Oh my God! AM: OK! Class
dismissed! AM: Oh, MS, HP wants to know if you'd get
remarried at 97? MS: Would I? No! AM: Me neither! DC: would
you? (to RM) RM: I don't know, I would have to see at 97.
AM: yeah, we don't know, Bill Gates could propose when
we're that old. DC: Donald Trump too! But he'd have to cut
his hair first.
Week 7 Notes 4-2-14
-4 participants, all female: FT, MS, MR (HP did not attend
today's group)
-facilitators: AM, DC, and RM
Today's theme: Life lessons, wisdom, favorite quotes
(additional quotes provided)
FT
Images: 5th page: Old music written by FT's father-in law.
(FT showed and expressed a lot of pride regarding the
music. RM took notes and will type up quotes for FT to
display in scrapbook next to the music.)
Chosen quotes: 1st Page: “Friends are the joy of life”. 2nd
page: “There is only one happiness in this life, to love
and be loved”-George Sand. 3rd page: “The only true wisdom
is knowing you know nothing”-Socrates. 4th page: “No one is
in control of your happiness but you; therefore you have
Art Therapy and Dementia 88
the power to change anything about yourself and your life
that you want to change”- Barbara de Angelis. “Count your
age by friends not years. Count your life by smiles, not
tears”-John Lennon.
Quotes: Regarding the song that FT's father-in-law
composed: “Songs for Sale was the name of the program on
the radio. This music and lyrics was written by my father
in law (A.J.T). He was German and came over by ship with
dreams to seek better things in this country. He entered a
contest to write songs and won the contest with “To be with
you”. We heard him on the radio one evening...we didn't
have television yet. We were thrilled because he worked so
hard doing what he wanted to do. We were so pleased that he
won! -FT. RM: are you ready FT? Do you want to read it?
FT: Reads chosen quotes (above) out loud. FT: I have to
explain this a little (regarding music written by father-
in-law). My father-in-law was German, and he and his family
came to this country many years ago with no money, and all
of these things reminded me of him, because my husband and
I lived with him in MA for awhile, and we didn't have a lot
of money, so we shared one room, well, a regular house on
(name of street) in MA. Here are sayings that reminded me
of him. (reads chosen quotes). Group: oh wow! Clapping.
Art Therapy and Dementia 89
Great! Good job!
MR
Chosen quotes/ words: 1st page: “Hope, dream, wish, live,
laugh, love, repeat”. “Keep love in your heart. A life with
out it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead.
The consciousness of loving and being loved brings a warmth
and richness to life that nothing else can bring”. Oscar
Wilde. (MR added, always take time to smell the flowers!)
2nd page: “Today is a good day to be happy”. 3rd page: “ “How
far you go in life depends on your being tender with the
young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the
striving, and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because some
day in life you will have been all of these” -George
Washington Carver. “May you live every day of your life”-
Jonathan Swift. (MR added, “If you're healthy, have your
family, if your loved, it makes life complete”). Words:
absolutely. embrace the day. Healthy. 4th page: “No matter
what age you are, or what your circumstances might be, you
are special, and you still have something unique to offer.
Your life, because of who you are, has meaning”.- Barbara
de Angelis (MR added: “you all are so very special to me.
You are my family and you all are very special and unique,
love, MR”.) 5th page: “Love with the deepest part of your
Art Therapy and Dementia 90
soul.”
Quotes: MR: Read out loud to the group the quotes that she
chose and wrote (see above). RM: Oh MR, that's beautiful!
DC: good job! Group: clapping
MS
Chosen quotes/ words: 1st page: (MS had saved this poem from
a long time ago because it is one of her “all time favorite
quotes”). “ For the new year, a short course in human
relations: The six most important words: "I admit I made a
mistake." The five most important words: "You did a good
job." The four most important words: "What is your
opinion." The three most important words: "If you please."
The two most important words: "Thank you," The one most
important word: "We" The least most important word: "I"
-Author unknown. “ Life is meaningless only if you allow it
to be. We each have the power to give life meaning, to make
our bodies, our time , our words in to instruments of love
and hope” - Thomas Head. “When I hear someone say “life is
hard”, I am tempted to ask “compared to what?”. To
(children's names) “Always, always, do unto others. Love
Mom.”-MS.
Quotes: AM: MS, read this to everyone. MS cut this out in
the 1970's! MS: read out loud to the group: the “6 most
Art Therapy and Dementia 91
important words”. Group: very nice! Profound! MS:
(continues to read her chosen quotes, but has trouble
seeing it) Am: do you want me to read it? MS: yes AM:
continues reading MS chosen quotes. AM: oh, there is one
more funny one...one that made her giggle said “a joyful
heart is content in all things”. The reason it made MS
giggle is because MS said: “this is only true if that heart
is truly content”. Group: laughing, so true!
Week 8 Notes 4-11-14
-4 participants, all female: HP, MR, MS, FT
-facilitators: AM, DC, and RM
Today's theme: Finishing up and final embellishments.
-Beginning of group: RM: This is our last scrapbooking
group today. So, today is going to be kind of
relaxed...there may be things that you haven't gotten to
put in your scrapbook, so now is a good time to add them.
DC: so we can add anything we want? RM: yes, anything you
want! If you are looking for words or pictures, I have them
in those envelopes...any kind of embellishments that you
want to make...and at the end, maybe we can just kind of
reflect on the group and how it was for everyone. DC:
sounds good to me!
HP
Art Therapy and Dementia 92
-HP did not attend week 7 group, so she and DC got caught
up by finding quotes to add to her scrapbook.
Images:2nd page: photo of HP. 3rd Page: photo of HP
Chosen quotes: 1st page: “Live, laugh, love.” 2nd page: “We
all have our own life to pursue, our own kind of dream to
be weaving. And we all have some power to make wishes come
true, as long as we keep believing”- Lousia May Alcott.
“When someone loves you, the way they say your name is
different. You know that your name is safe in their mouth”-
Jess C. Scott
3rd Page: “There are only two ways to live your life. One as
though nothing is a miracle. The other is as everything is
a miracle” -Albert Einstein
4th page: Live a joyful life!
Quotes: HP hand wrote a letter to her children included in
on the last page of her scrapbook: “ To (name of daughter
and son), I love you dearly, I miss you (son), but I know
you are busy and I love you with all my heart. My
(daughter), I love you dearly, you have done so much for me
and I love you with all my heart. Remember all the great
times we had, all the laughs. (Son), the accordion,
(daughter), the organ and violin were all music to my ears.
I love you, “Mom” xxoo.
Art Therapy and Dementia 93
DC: HP was out last week, but what we did was we made up a
page from last week of all the sayings that HP found that
she liked, and she has a couple pictures of her and her two
kids, and of course she loves flowers, and what we did was,
“live laugh and love”, we saved this page blank because we
have some pictures of her husband that are going to go in
there. Then we found another saying with a cute Polish
picture of HP because she says she's Polish. And there's
another one, and we saved these two for her daughter who
said she will be bringing in more pictures. Group: very
nice, clapping. DC: HP, did you enjoy doing this? HP: I
enjoyed it very much! RM: oh good, I'm so glad!
FT
-FT's long term memory is very good and can recall past
events and people in great detail. Her short term memory
is not good and she repeats the same story over and over.
-DC says that she “never has seen FT talk as much as she
did in scrapbook group”.
-FT chose a background and added the quote about her
father-in-law's music next to the music sheet. She then
told RM that she felt she was finished with her scrapbook
and felt good about what she had done. RM and FT looked
through the scrapbook together and admired FT's work and
Art Therapy and Dementia 94
all of her accomplishments.
Images: FT added her High school graduation program because
there was an empty page in the book that needed to be
filled.
Words: none
Quotes: RM: Ok FT, should we share with the group the last
couple things that we did? Do you want to give the group a
little explanation of what this is? FT: My father-in-law
used to write songs, and why did he write songs? Because he
wanted to be rich like other people. Anyway, he wrote a
song and submitted it to a radio station way back a long
time ago, and he submitted this son “To be with you” and he
won first prize! Group: oh wow! FT: but that did not
include, of course, printing, which was expensive, and so
he didn't do that, but anyway, it was on the program “Songs
for sale” by (father-in-law's name), and then there is an
explanation of it over here...its a shame he wasn't able to
go further, but that was a dream of his. He was born of a
family, a very poor family, who were immigrants from
Germany, and they came to this country. So to him,
something like that was really success, and I think he
thought because they printed it for him he would go on
further, but he did not happen to do that, but he had
Art Therapy and Dementia 95
pleasure doing that. I know this was way back before
television, and here we were, back in =Boston=, MA, and we
were all with our heads stuck to the radio, listening, and
we could hardly hear anything, but here was my father-in-
law telling them about his dream on the radio! Group: wow!
Ooh! AM: he was famous! FT: yeah, that, but, he had to have
the money to have it published, and recorded, and all of
that, which takes money that he didn't have. But, we always
felt quite proud of him, there we were, all of us stuffed
in the living room with our heads in the speaker of the
radio, and we could hardly hear it, and he goes on to
describe why he wanted to do it and everything. We were
trying to stop him, but he was going to tell! Group:
laughing AM: what a good memory! DC: very good! RM: thank
you! Did you enjoy doing the scrapbooking FT? FT: I like to
do this... I didn't realize what it was all about when I
came here...I did not realize...scrapbooks...I just never
did, but I have enjoyed it. RM: good, I'm so glad to hear
it! AM: and now its yours! RM: yep, its all yours now!
Group: clapping.
MR
-DC said that MR did not want to come to scrapbook group
today.
Art Therapy and Dementia 96
-MR did not initiate and was not very responsive today and
would repeat the same thing over and over. -MR was fixated
on her father dying when she was 7 years old.
-When DC handed MR a pen, she started writing and became
very engaged in writing to her children.
Images: none
Words: Letter MR wrote: “To my children, my whole life has
been filled with much love. You all are so very special to
me. Somewhere over the rainbow is where you will find me. I
love you all very much. All of my children and
grandchildren, you've been a very special part of my life.
Love, Mom, grandma, daughter, friend, granddaughter.
Quotes: DC: MR, I found, was very successful today. MR
wanted to write something to her children, and at first, I
wrote it for her, but then when I gave her the pen, she
wrote it herself, so we started it “To my children” (see
above). And we saved a couple pages in case her kids want
to add something. RM: that's lovely! Thank you! DC: MR, did
you enjoy doing this? MR: Oh, I did!
MS
-MS told AM, while looking at a photo of herself, that she
had a “fat face”. AM informed RM that MS has “struggled
with an eating disorder and self esteem issues her whole
Art Therapy and Dementia 97
life”.
-MS long-term memory was not good today, and neither was
her short term memory.
-MS had a lot of trouble hearing today.
Words: none
Images: 1st page: puffins. Dog. Son's husband with dog. 2nd
page: pictures of quilt patterns.
3rd page: Note from AM to MS: Dear MS, It has been so fun
and amazing working on this memory book with you! You are a
strong and beautiful woman. I love you! Love, AM. The quote
on card: Hope you know the reason why you're thought about
so much...its just that every thought of you is warmed by
friendships touch!
Quotes: AM: MS, we're going to show everybody the last two
pages, OK? MS: what? AM: we're going to show them. MS:
what? AM: look at me, we are going to show everyone the
last pages, ok? AM: MS loved birds, and a long long time
ago, she cut out all of these magazine pictures and cards
and calendars of birds, and her son gave them to me a few
weeks ago. I'm talking 20 years ago (that she cut them
out). So, here are some Puffins, and who's that? MS: who's
that? AM: that's a dog named (dog's name), that kept MS
company. Group: cute! Ooh! Cute dog! AM: This is (name),
Art Therapy and Dementia 98
that's her son's partner and their dog when it was a little
baby. MS used to quilt and make patterns and do all sorts
of sewing and knitting, and this came from one of the
pattern books that she had...and this piece right here came
from a bag of old scraps of fabric that she had for years,
so we just put it in there. RM: beautiful! Yeah! MS, can I
just ask...did you like doing the scrapbook? AM: MS, did
you have fun making this book? MS: yes, it was fun! RM:
good, I'm really glad to hear that. What did you enjoy?
AM: what will you do with this book? MS, I don't know, I
will probably look at it every day and smile. Group: good!
Alright! RM: thank you so much for doing it, I really
enjoyed having you in the group! MS: oh, your welcome! I
like this group a lot!
RM: (at end of group), Every week, I looked forward to
this, I just really loved being with all of you, and
watching you participate, and look through old photos, and
then look at your book the next week and were “oh, this is
what I did”. You all did amazing, amazing work, and, ah,
yeah, thank you! Yeah! AM: a caregiver for FT was here
today and she said what a wonderful thing this is, because
when she comes in almost every day, FT talks about the book
and asks about the book and its made her family members,
Art Therapy and Dementia 99
even, very happy, and kind of anxious to see the finished
product. RM: oh, wow! DC: HP's daughter was asking me
yesterday when she can see the book, and I said tomorrow is
the last day, and she said “I can not wait”. RM: oh good! I
mean, they are beautiful! They are just amazing, all of you
did amazing work! So, I think the last thing is if I can
just take pictures of the last pages that we did today....
AM: and I think we have to thank RM and give her a round of
applause, because it was all her idea! Group: clapping. RM:
thank you so much! AM: good job everyone! AM: what we'll do
is, we will take everyone back because she has to take
pictures. DC: yeah, she has to take pictures, and I will
bring the books up after.
Art Therapy and Dementia 100
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