Joining Elder Vets & Injured and Wounded Warriors & Families 2 comments

22 Nov 2010 @ 22:43, by Gerald Vest The Power of Touch and Its Influence on the Well-Being of the Elderly by Director Haya Daskal "Does physical touch affect the quality of life of the aged?" In my practical work as a third-year social work student at a day-centre for the aged, I experienced day-to-day relationships with elderly persons and felt their longing for expressive physical touch as opposed to instrumental touch. Studies show that the use of tactile sensation, a primitive sensory sense, decreases with age and communication is replaced by other means, such as sight and hearing. In old age, when these or other senses are functionally impaired or disappear altogether, both the psychological and physical needs arise to experience the primary sense - physical touch. In our times when life expectancy is prolonged, the chances of remaining alone after one's partner has died are greater. A situation is created in which elderly persons live alone for many years without experiencing the power of touch. Our Injured Warrior Community Project to wrap-around integrative health practices is going well. We are reaching out and opening our network to others who share their visions and opportunities and resources for our injured warriors and their families. As we move into 2011 we will have a team of interested community veterans, Elders, friends of our vets, and health practitioners to engage and welcome our injured warriors with the knowledge, skills and practices known to improve the quality of lives, health and relationships deserving our great warriors and their families. Do interact with us if you wish to be added to our community of caring health practitioners and volunteers. We will be introducing our "StressOut"- partner meditation-massage with acupressure and mindfulness with the Elder Community of the City of Las Cruces in late December or early January. Learning to engage our warriors by introducing and administering training programs we will expand and extend our healthy touch program into every senior program in southern NM and beyond. Our cadre and volunteers will be able to introduce and give our stressout to every vet and their family in our community and in every elder program to establish a foundation of basic trust, empathy, respect and caring. This program does not require licensing; however, we have established "guidelines for the use of safe, skillful and nourishing touch." You will love this experience of exchanging energies at high levels of awareness--uniting your skillful touch with the vitality of breath--producing the empathic and welcome home connection and relationship. Come Join With US!!! Picture - SFC Victor Morales-Bustamante Family - Thank you for your trust, openness and participation in our Program - I appreciate all I learned with your great family.

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