HirschmC

One of my favorite ideas for bed bound is hand massage with lotion. It really seems to relax the resident and they open up and talk. It is also a good intervention for depression or just giving comfort. Also depending on cognitive ability, oral crossword puzzle at bedside. They are so proud when they know the right answers. Crosswords come in varying difficulty.

We had a camel visit our facility. The camel's name is Kazzy and is over 8' tall. The owners also brought a miniature horse, and two exotic birds. The camel sat in our living room walked through the therapy room and sat there. The couple who own Kazzy visit facilities in our area. The residents loved it.

Hi A successful program for me is a men's group with a theme like Burma Shave, Route 66, Diners, Classic Cars, Trains, and Motorcycles. We set up a toy train and the men took turns being Engineer. Complete with hat and scarf. Local enthusiasts may be willing to "show and tell" about their classic car or motorcycle. Incorporate food when ever you can. Milkshakes, french fries, and hamburgers, or rootbeer floats. Music from the 50's. Amazon.com has videos about all of the above. Burma shave still sells, shaving brush and soap. Reminiscing about their first car, armchair travel a road trip to a favorite location. I have a wicker suitcase that I just keep adding items for this theme. Hope this helps.

Greetings Sounds similar to my residents! Some ideas are: have local authors come to do a book signing. Sometimes they will read portions of their book, and have copies available for sale. Have an avid reader in your group be a book critic and post their suggested read for the month with their comments. A poetry corner for reading or writing poetry or creative writing. Also passing down family history or personal wisdom to family in writing, recording or video. Another popular class is ~ Memory improvement. Working on remembering everyday things like peoples names or lists of items. Easy to do research on memory improvement and put a class together.Doing projects that contribute to charities in the community has been very successful. Like putting together small gift bags for children who may be in a shelter. Theme parties such as the Titanic or a foreign country. Arm chair travel to your residents favorite country. (Include food, music, video, art.)We raise Monarch Butterflies and release them. Oral Crossword Puzzle as a group. Ladies tea as Red Hat Society. Gentlemens program about Burma Shave, Route 66, or Trains. Liven up your exercise class with props like scarves for juggling, colorful pinwheels for breathing technique, colorful balls. Call your class Fun Fitness, Sit and Be Fit, Let's Keep Moving, Moving with Music....Easy Exercise...hope these help. I wish you well.