While the news is filled these days of organizations and social groups slowly coming back to life as the country adjusts to a new “normal”  world brought by COVID-19, there is at least one segment of the population that won’t be coming back anytime in the near future. Those would be the hundreds of Eastern Shore seniors that used the several senior centers sponsored by Upper Shore Aging and other agencies in many of the small communities on the Delmarva.

What once had been gathering places for social contact, warm meals, exercise classes and card games have now turned into empty facilities since Maryland’s “stay-at-home” orders in March of this year. And while many of these centers continue to provide such essential services like Meals on Wheels and health information to the aged, centers like the Brookletts Place in Easton,

The Spy talked last week with Childlene Brooks, who manages Brookletts Place for Upper Shore Aging to discuss the impact the coronavirus has had on her facility and the heartbreaking separation she and her staff are experiencing with the countless patrons that consider the Talbot County senior center their second home. Childlene also talks candidly about the current lack of guidelines that would allow Brookletts to open its doors again anytime in the near future.

This video is approximately four minutes in length. For more information about Brookletts Place please go here 

It’s understandable if your exercise routines and self-care habits have been placed on the back burner in this new era of COVID-19.  Several months into this new reality, most of us are now ready, or even borderline desperate, to reestablish a healthy routine!

You may be feeling a bit off. Why, you ask? Our brain includes a system that contributes to daily wellbeing. It is the body’s internal biologic clock. It keeps our body and behavior synchronized with the 24-hour cycle of light and dark.  Predictable routines keep the body’s internal clock running smoothly and help us feel better. However, in times of major upheaval, we may have trouble resetting these biologic rhythms. Try the following tips for 21 days (that’s how long it takes to make a routine a habit) and see how much better you feel!

1. Forget the old and accept the new. Adapt to change and let go of your desire to go back to how things once were. Change helps us grow and become stronger. Also take comfort that everything happens for a reason.
2. Reflect on what is true for you now and create structure around your current reality.  Look at your current schedule and to-do list.  What has changed?  It helps to write down your priorities.
3. Wake up and go to bed at the same time every day.  This stabilizes your body clock and maintains natural rhythms.
4. Make sure you spend some time outdoors every day, especially in the early morning if possible.  Again, your body clock is regulated by the light-dark cycle.
5. Get your daily dose of vitamin D. If you can’t go outside, try to spend at least 2 hours by a window.
6. Plan the day ahead. Set times for a few regular activities each day. Write it down.
7. Be consistent with mealtimes. Eat meals at the same time every day, even it’s just a small snack.
8. EXERCISE EVERY DAY!  Walk, take a strength class or yoga, work out in the fitness center, or try something new and different. 

As someone with 30 years of experience in health and fitness, I can assure you exercise is vital to re-establishing a healthy routine. You must fight for the life that you want! It’s not enough to say you’ll exercise three times a week.  Mark your workouts on your calendar as you would any other appointment, even set a reminder on your phone.  

Obsess less about the frequency and volume of exercise and focus instead on variety. Mix it up! Variety prevents overuse injuries caused by doing the same movement over and over again. Consider adding strength training to your cardio routine. Studies have shown individuals who do both aerobic and resistance training have a lower risk of obesity. Don’t stress about the length of your workout. Frequent, short sessions of movement work very well. 

Release the all-or-nothing attitude and embrace good enough. The imperfect workout you complete is better than the perfect one you never started!  Strategize what to do when your plans fall through. If you’re too tired for the 20-minute walk, do a shorter walk instead.  

Finally, make each day a little different but always keep activity in it. 

REMINDER:  We are dealing with a virus that attacks the lungs.  Exercise leads to more durable, resistant lungs to help fight the pandemic.

The Spy is pleased to welcome Susan Covey as a regular contributor to the Spy.  She is the Fitness Director at Bayleigh Chase in Easton and has 30 years of experience in health and fitness. She was previously  Director of Health and Fitness for about 20 of those years. Susan has a B.A. Sociology and is a certified senior fitness specialist, exercise therapy specialist and FallProof! instructor. She began at Bayleigh Chase as a personal trainer and continues to update her education to develop, modify and enhance her fitness program to keep older residents active and healthy.

It has taken some time in America to realize that there are far more choices than merely working or being retired. In the last few decades, those of a certain age, particularly those over 55 years old, are plotting their path for their later years rather than a limited binary selection.

This phenomenon shows up in the extraordinary number of people who have elected to keep working even though they may have saved enough for retirement. Be it a part-time job, starting a consulting firm, or redirecting their professional skills to non-profit organizations for causes they believe in, many see a new definition of being “active” rather than quickly settling into a traditional retirement.

The same can be said for housing.

Thirty years ago, there were very few choices for senior adults. The first was to keep the house one had, including the ongoing maintenance of a home that had long outlived its purpose of accommodating a growing family. Another was to move into a retirement community, which offered first-rate facilities but also tended to classify residents of being very senior citizens. Finally, there was the choice of renting an apartment but came with the loss of homeownership.

This limit in choices hs eventually given rise to the concept of the 55+ communities where more and more adults are finding a better solution.

According to recent data compiled by TRI Pointe Homes, over 32 million “boomers” will consider these age-restricted communities. Starting in Canada on Vancouver Island in 1987, this new approach to residential living started to become popular in the United States, and now close to 400 of them exist today.

The Spy was curious about this option since these communities have also grown in popularity on the Mid-Shore, and particularly in Queen Anne’s County. We sat down with Kathy Bernard, the manager of Bay Bridge Cove at the foot of the Bay Bridge, to understand in more detail what these communities have to offer.

This video is approximately for minutes in length. For more information about Bay Bridge Cove please go here.

Beyond the physical threats of COVID-19, the one that many people are experiencing, particularly those of a certain age, is the profound sense of aloneness and social isolation.

Feeling trapped in one’s home, and missing family and friends, seniors are increasingly confronting the symptoms and the realities loneliness on a scale never seen before the coronavirus crisis began last spring.

Given these circumstances, the frequent question asked of Irma Toce, CEO of Londonderry on the Tred Avon, is how to keep active in this strange time of COVID-19 for seniors as well as their adult children.

This video is approximately five minutes in length. For more information about Londonderry on the Tred Avon please go here.

From March 15, when the coronavirus crisis canceled our regular “Ask Irma” monthly interview, the Spy hadn’t actually heard from Irma herself. Given that her day job is being the C.E.O. of Londonderry on the Tred Avon, we realized she had many things on her mind, but that didn’t stop a certain worry for her and her community of close to 200 hundred residents that call Londonderry home during a major pandemic.

So it was with great relief that the Spy and Irma finally sat down last week to continue our conversations on aging that we heard everything was ‘a-ok’ on Port Street in Easton. In fact, since COVID-19 hit the United States, Londonderry (knock on wood ) has not had one single case of the virus.

But that didn’t end Irma’s challenges as she and her team found ways to maintain a sense of a community for residents that would not be able to leave the houses for many months to come.

In our latest installment of Ask Irma, we talk about Londonderry’s response to COVID and the importance of staying in touch throughout the day with those in the hood.

This video is approximately three minutes in length. For more information about Londonderry on the Tred Avon please go here.

Based on my experiences with my husband, Floyd, who had Alzheimer’s Disease for twelve years and my recent research I have come to realize how much can be done by care partners to help their loved ones who have dementia. With the additional issues raised by the coronavirus, let me offer suggestions for activities that can be done in or near your home which may help to fill time productively and happily. These activities are based on the Montessori method.

Montessori for Aging and Dementia is a person-centered approach to memory care. In the Montessori classroom, teachers “follow the child.” With older adults with dementia the mantra is “see the person, not the disease.” The focus is on the individual’s perceived abilities and strengths, their interests and roles – past and present, Thus “care partnering” is at the heart of the Montessori approach. 

Jennifer Brush is an international speaker, consultant, researcher and author in the area of dementia care. Ms. Brush works with dementia communities to create environments, based on the Montessori method, that enable those with dementia to flourish.  For more information on this approach, view her video, “Living an Abundant Life: Montessori for Aging” on her website. and/or read her book, “I Care” that fully explains this method. 

Studies have shown that art and music reduce agitation and aggression, stimulate conversations, provide a means of self-expression, facilitate cognitive functions, help with coordination of motor movements. They even help with connection to memories. 

Coloring is beneficial. Anyone can do it. It can be engrossing to the point of meditation. For Floyd I chose oil pastels that are like crayons but are easier to use and have so many vibrant colors. Later we translated his paintings into needlework. However, any medium will work. For example, create a collage with pre-cut magazine pictures chosen based on areas of interest and related words to get the conversation started. Perhaps working with clay will promote movement and the joy of tactile experiences.

Research has shown listening to or singing songs can provide emotional and behavioral benefits for people with Dementia.  Musical memories are often preserved because key brain areas linked to musical memory remain relatively undamaged by Dementia. 

The noted neurologist, Oliver Sacks, wrote that “music brings back the feeling of life when nothing else can.”  Studies have shown that memories and emotions can be recalled and mental performance can be enhanced after singing classic hits and show tunes from movies and musicals. Most enjoyed are “Sound of Music”, “When You Wish Upon a Star”, and “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” In addition, lullabies at bedtime are soothing.

Research has also shown that scores on memory tests actually improve when listening to classical music. 

Reading together is something that may seem unlikely at various stages of dementia, but, in fact, is quite doable and rewarding. Working in collaboration with Jennifer Brush are local author and illustrator, Rita and Ronn Akins, who are writing short stories that enable people with dementia to participate in shared reading with a care partner. Two stories have been completed in a planned series. Each story features “large print text with full page color illustrations.” Visit their website, and click on “Stories for Older Adults” for more information.

Gardening is yet another activity to pursue. Oliver Sacks, wrote, “I cannot say exactly how nature exerts its calming and organizing effects on our brains…I have seen several people with advanced Alzheimer’s Disease, who can’t recall how to perform basic operations … like tying their shoes, suddenly know exactly what to do when handed seedlings and placed before a flower bed.” Research studies have shown that outdoor time can help with sleep by maintaining or resetting circadian rhythms, It makes one feel more creative, reduces pain, helps with relaxation, provides a dose of vitamin D, and makes it easier to concentrate.

The therapeutic benefits of gardening, visiting garden centers and being outdoors are unrivaled. Visiting wildlife refuges, arboretums, and botanical gardens can be a wonderful day out and about. While the outdoor areas are still open, bare in mind that the buildings are not, including needed facilities. 

There is a wealth of materials that are available for people with dementia. Go here. You will find books, puzzles, games, and art activities that can be shared.

There are many resources available to help you as a care partner plan your day with your loved one. With just a general understanding of some options and searching helpful websites, you can better develop a personalized plan for activities and roles that work in your home environment. A whole world will open up to each of you making each day more productive, healthier, and happier thus creating some very good memories.

Barbara Vann was an internal consultant for Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Thomas Jefferson University Hospital where she worked with a broad range of non-medical staff and management to create systems, policies, and training to support high quality patient care. When she moved to Chestertown she focused on creating artwork in a range of media and became active in Chestertown’s arts community.