Susan Troyer, Author at A Beautiful Voice

Creating Community
Shortfall Of Comfort Care Signals Undue Suffering For Coronavirus Patients

"Some experts worry that a long-standing shortage of palliative care professionals ― who focus on the physical pain and mental and spiritual distress caused by serious illness — could leave many COVID-19 patients in distress... 'There is already a shortage, which will only worsen as demand goes up because of [...]

Susan Troyer2020-07-05T17:56:22-05:00July 5th, 2020|Categories: Creating Community|Tags: Aging, Alzheimer's, Care partners, COVID-19, Dementia, End-of-Life, Global health watch, Health industry, Public health|Comments Off

Mindful Presence
Compassion Sets Humans Apart

“Like food sharing, health care was part of life for our ancestors—a major aspect of how they worked together to survive hard times. Humans have an instinctive reaction to provide care and empathy for those who are sick or hurt; it works to our evolutionary advantage. It is only higher-level [...]

Susan Troyer2020-07-05T15:33:34-05:00July 5th, 2020|Categories: Mindful Presence|Tags: Caregiver support, comfort those who are in pain, Dementia caregivers, evolutionary advantage, health care, human care, instinctive reaction, interpersonal care, severe pathology|Comments Off

Music as Medicine
Ode to Joy – Savor The Moment!

During COVID-19, musicians from Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra recorded themselves playing Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy.” Savor the beauty of the moment created by this music community. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eXT60rbBVk

Susan Troyer2020-07-05T01:15:36-05:00July 5th, 2020|Categories: Music as Medicine|Tags: Beautiful music, Beautiful music for people living with dementia, COVID-19 and dementia care, music as medicine, Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra|Comments Off

Creating Community
How Being Friends With Someone Who Has Dementia Can Be Good for You Both

This article was written three years ago - July 2017. In the current context of the COVID-19 global pandemic, physical presence has been curtailed to halt the spread of the virus. But as a friend or family member, there is no more important time than this diagnosis to find a [...]

Susan Troyer2020-06-29T14:57:05-05:00June 29th, 2020|Categories: Creating Community|Tags: caregiver roles, cognitive abilities, Dementia caregivers, dementia in a friend, diagnosis of dementia, friendships matter to older adults, interacting well with people who have dementia, prevalence of dementia, social interaction is beneficial for the person with dementia., Talking about dementia, unpaid caregivers|Comments Off

Food for Life
Why We Should Care About Nutrition

A physician asks rhetorically: "Does it really matter what we eat?" His response can be found in this recording of 2:53 minutes: Most deaths in the United States are preventable, and related to nutrition. In case you are not already convinced about the importance of good nutrition in a healthy [...]

Susan Troyer2020-06-28T22:46:41-05:00June 28th, 2020|Categories: Food For Life|Tags: Does it really matter what we eat?, Dr. Michael Greger, Nutrition for dementia caregivers|Comments Off

Music as Medicine
Alzheimer’s and Soul Care

In the mid-80’s, I served as an Adjunct Faculty Member at National Louis University in the Chicago area. It was here that I became acquainted with James Ellor, Chair of the Human Service Department, who provided a classroom support service on a weekly basis during my adjunct experience. Today, he [...]

Susan Troyer2020-06-28T00:15:30-05:00June 27th, 2020|Categories: Music as Medicine|Tags: Alzheimers caregivers, constantly learning new and challenging material, Dementia caregivers, dimension of “soul care”, Dr. Daniel Amen, Dr. Eben Alexander, Dr. James Ellor, Dr. John Geyman, Gerontological expert, National Institute on Aging, What Alzheimer’s disease teaches us about the soul|Comments Off

Mindful Presence
Getting the Temperature Just Right Helps People With Dementia Stay Cool

"Sometimes people with dementia can become agitated or distressed, which can be disturbing for other people around them. This often happens for no clear reason ... This is a big issue for the aged care sector since approximately half of all residents in aged care facilities have dementia." - Federico [...]

Susan Troyer2020-06-27T12:31:49-05:00June 27th, 2020|Categories: Mindful Presence|Tags: aged care facilities, Caregiver support, Dementia and agitation, Dementia caregivers, indoor temperatures, living with dementia, new regulations, psychological symptoms, thermal design|Comments Off

A Sense of Place
How Our News Center Helped to Keep Us Focused on “What’s Next?”

We Have This Moment Used in a music skit at a family reunion, the words from a beautiful Gaither song were written by a talented caregiver on the hot pink heart-shaped prop: “We Have This Moment.” Following our performance, the heart remained forever on our kitchen table as a reminder [...]

Susan Troyer2020-06-27T12:11:04-05:00June 27th, 2020|Categories: A Sense of Place|Tags: Agenda for the day, Dementia care partners, Gaither music - We Have This Moment, Light-weight table top easel, Memory journal entry from previous day, News center FOR and ABOUT Mother and Dad|Comments Off

Creating Community
Could Different Cultures Teach Us Something About Dementia?

Picture two different families, each dealing with a diagnosis of dementia in one of its members. In one case, the patient is a retired executive, whose family tries as long as possible to keep the diagnosis secret, relying primarily on professional caregivers and eventually a nursing home. In another case, [...]

Susan Troyer2020-06-26T16:25:36-05:00June 26th, 2020|Categories: Creating Community|Tags: Alzheimer’s disease, Dementia caregiving, Dementia community, Dementias touch many lives, diagnosis of dementia, irreversible neurologic condition, neurodegenerative disorder, nursing home, professional caregivers|Comments Off

Mindful Presence
The Source of Answers We Need

A voice for change, Dr. Bill Thomas was featured in the very first regional Alzheimer’s Association publication, Spring 1999 issue, which I received after my hometown arrival in late ‘98. It was at a time when the media had only recently begun to describe institutional care of older people with [...]

Susan Troyer2020-06-26T14:33:20-05:00June 26th, 2020|Categories: Mindful Presence|Tags: "Elderhood", Dr. Bill Thomas, EdenAlt.org, Ending ageism, Jude Thomas, The Eden Alternative, The Green House Movement, What Are Old People For?|Comments Off

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About Susan Troyer