Why music is so important for seniors
Barbara Binland is the pen name of a senior, Julie Grenness, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. She is a poet, writer, and part-time English and Maths tutor, with over 40 years of experience. Her many books are available on Amazon and Kindle.
What is the music of your retirement? Music is good for us all. The love of music is as innate as listening to our mother’s heartbeat and breathing rhythm, as babies in the womb.
Essentially, now we are in our retirement, music has many benefits. It is good for listening to enhance our mood. We can listen to calming or classical music at bedtime, to relax and enhance a better night’s sleep. At other times, we listen to our favourite music for the sheer pleasure of enjoyment.
Music can invoke happy nostalgic memories of the iconoclastic musicians and tunes, especially of our teenage years. For example, rock ’n’ roll shall never die. Every generation seems to reinvent the steady beat in a novel approach. Baby boomers still appreciate the classic tunes of the fifties, sixties, and seventies, reminiscing to their favourite musicians. Recall this one: “Are you going to San Francisco?” Did you ever have flowers in your hair? Our world was a lot younger and less cynical then. As we all were, or so it seems.
Additionally, playing music can also be a beneficial experience. Many retirees, in their leisure time, turn to learning or revisiting the playing of a musical instrument. It has been proven to be a relaxing, stress-busting, and good for brain training, pastime. Many hours can pass, and it can be good for social benefits with like-minded musos of any age.
As well as all this, we can exercise to music. It is never too late to develop a healthy physical improvement program. Faster music increases our heart-rate and effort. Music can put a smile on anyone’s face, so grab some ear phones, even for walking, and pace along.
Yes, music possesses great healing effects. It is good for seniors with memory loss. Listening to music is now a trend for rehabilitation for people with strokes, or other aging issues.
So, what is your favourite listening? Relax. Retirement is for our golden years, ‘golden oldies’!