Magnolia Manor Blog

One of so many reasons seniors love to live at Magnolia Manor is our truly amazing staff. We know we are blessed to have such dedicated, caring people to assist and support our residents – and our residents know it, too. When we say we treat one another – staff and residents -- like family, it is simply the truth.

From time to time we like to introduce our outstanding staff. So let’s find out more about Charlotte Ingram. Charlotte is the Activities Director at our well-known Mattie H. Marshall Memory Care Center, located on our Magnolia Manor campus in Americus. She works with residents who have Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia or cognitive impairment.

The pandemic continues, and we could all use something new to occupy our time, not to mention our hands and our minds, as we wait it out – especially seniors still deprived of in-person visits with loved ones. So here comes some well-timed good news: January is National Hobby Month.

What better time to reacquaint yourself with an old-favorite hobby, or to take up a brand new one. Focusing on something engrossing and learning new things are proven winners when it comes to re-fueling your mind, body, and spirit.

Pet therapy, formally known as animal-assisted therapy (AAT), is known to provide both physical and mental benefits for seniors with dementia. Prior to COVID-19 concerns, many Memory Care facilities around the country had adopted pet programs of some kind. Some chose to bring in animals as full-time residents, others chose visiting pet programs.

All types of senior living communities are including pets to make their communities feel homier and offer a special kind of comfort and stimulation for residents. However, AAT can be especially beneficial for those suffering from mild or more advanced memory loss.

Medicare and Medicaid are both government programs that provide certain types of health care coverage for seniors. Although the programs are very different, they are often confused. And Medicaid, especially, is often misunderstood. So let’s clear up some of the confusion, to help you know if Medicaid may be a viable financial resource for you some day.

Just as the name implies, art therapy combines the creative process with psychotherapy, to help individuals improve their mental health and overall well-being. Art therapy addresses the mind, body, and spirit – a holistic approach to quality of life that we heartily endorse here at Magnolia Manor. But we appreciate art therapy for another reason, too.

With so much talk about Alzheimer’s disease, it is easy to forget that there are other forms of dementia. Whether you’re getting older yourself, or you care for an aging loved one, it is important to understand the different causes of dementia, and especially the symptoms. The earlier you get medical advice if you suspect a problem, the better the chances there will be help to manage the disease.

Boost Your Brainpower While Satisfying Your Taste Buds With These 5 Foods

As we age, the decline of physical and mental faculties is inevitable. However, just as doctors and physical therapists work hard to keep seniors’ bodies as strong and healthy as possible even in our later years, the mind can also be kept sharper and more active by various means. Aside from finding ways to keep seniors mentally engaged and focused on a daily basis, a big way to keep the brain going strong is to focus on cognitive nutrition--foods that have been shown to improve mental performance and memory.

Searching for that just-right retirement community for yourself or a senior parent can be truly daunting. There are so many different types of facilities to choose from, and each one is unique in its living accommodation options, range of professional services, amenities and overall ambiance. We’ve all heard the expression “aging in place.” In a perfect world, we would never have to leave the home we love just because our mental and/or physical capabilities change. Yet for most of us that time does come. And when it does, choosing a full service retirement community will give you the peace of mind that you don’t have to move again.

Do you ever catch yourself humming or singing along to a song when music isn’t even playing? The power of music is so extraordinary, it gets “stuck” in our heads and can even help us recall memories.

June is Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness Month, and while many of us probably prefer not to think about Alzheimer’s, dementia, and other afflictions of the brain, this is an important topic that affects millions of us each year. In fact, dementia affects 47 million people around the globe.