Addressing Elderly Issues

with John Veltheim

Addressing Elderly Care 6/28/18

Addressing Elderly Issues

with John Veltheim

The Psychology of Aging

• The elderly are the fastest growing population.
• Older adults make up 15% of the current US
population, but account for 18% of all suicides.
• The suicide rate continues to increase as age
increases, so it’s higher for those in their 70s versus
those in their 60s.
• Also, elderly suicide may be under-reported by over
40%. Not counted are “silent suicides” like death
from overdose, self-starvation or dehydration and
“accidents.”

Suicide in the Elderly. (n.d.) American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. Retrieved June 18,
2018 from https://www.aamft.org/AAMFT/Consumer_Updates/Suicide_in_the_Elderly.aspx

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Addressing Elderly Care 6/28/18

Psychological and Emotional Issues

Common issues are related to:
• The idea of getting old, sick and/or disabled
• Approaching the end of life
• Active memories of past events that are still
being held onto
• Unresolved relationship issues
• Depression and loneliness

Reasons for Loneliness

• Loss of spouse
• Friends are dying
• Families are too busy for their slow mode of life or the
families don’t want to overtax them
• Elderly don’t want to be a burden to their family
• It is common for families to only give time to their aging
relatives only when sick or injured
• Lack of awareness of the importance for social connections
and how to establish new ones within their own age group

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Addressing Elderly Care 6/28/18

Impact of Loneliness
Several Denmark studies have been conducted on the link between
poor social networks, health and premature death.

• One study found that feeling lonely was
associated with poor outcomes in ALL heart
patients. It was associated with nearly
doubled mortality risk; and those who felt
lonely were 3 times more likely to report
anxiety, depression and poor quality of life.
European Society of Cardiology. (2018, June 9). Loneliness is bad for the
heart. ScienceDaily. Retrieved June 18, 2018 from
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/06/180609124652.htm
• Another study concluded that “Among middle-
aged and older Danish adults, loneliness was
strongly associated with poor self-rated health,
limited physical ability and multi-morbidity.”
Jessen MAB, Pallesen AVJ, Kriegbaum M, Kristiansen M. (2017, July 7). The
association between loneliness and health – a survey-based study among
middle-aged and older adults in Denmark. Aging & Mental Health. Retrieved
June 18, 2018 from https://doi.org/10.1080/13607863.2017.1348480

Social Connections
Quality of life become more important as one
ages, as opposed to quantity of life.

Another Denmark study clearly demonstrated

that social connections lead to greater
wellbeing:
• Importance of a sense of community –
meeting spaces, playing games, socializing,
senior nightclubs
• Relying on family is not enough
• Importance of having 2 to 3 people they feel
they can totally confide in without being
judged (release past traumas, regrets, etc.)

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Addressing Elderly Care 6/28/18

Maintaining Healthy Connections

Unfortunately, the elderly will sometimes intentionally
injure themselves to gain attention/support; they may
also subconsciously attract sickness or injury to get
attention.

• Healthy options for connection:

• Generational family caring for elderly
• Younger generations can volunteer to visit the elderly
• Pet therapy – animals coming to visit the elderly
• Creating easy and ample opportunities for socialization
(meeting groups, bus transport)
• Referrals to counselors and psychiatrists

Treating Loneliness
• As a practitioner, learn what exists in your community
to help the elderly be socially connected.

• Encourage the elderly to reach out to their families

instead of waiting for family members to contact them.

• BodyTalk:
• Support increased dopamine and serotonin production to
further improve feelings of wellbeing.
• Address Heart Brain around relationships.
• Address Enteric Brain around letting go of the past.
• Address active memories of past traumas and regrets.

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Addressing Elderly Care 6/28/18

Physical Deterioration
• Arthritis
• Generalized arthritis = rigid mind, rigid body
• Specific arthritis, ex. Knee – it will be a concordance
of the water element or a local consciousness, fear of
growing old, coping, unbending will etc.

• Osteoporosis
• A loss of support and rigidity of the bones
• Kidney energy depleted
• Pasteurized milk connection

• Physical corrections using physical

energetics

Physical Deterioration (cont’d)

• Poor Digestion
• This can deteriorate absorption of calcium and other
vital minerals and vitamins
• Natural nutrition
• Microbiome
• Poor diet due to eating alone, too tired, can’t afford
quality food
• Environmental Factors such as pollutants
• Heavy metal toxicity – homeopathy and chelation
therapy
• Water sources and dehydration
• Smoking/drinking or other addictions

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Addressing Elderly Care 6/28/18

Physical Deterioration (cont’d)

• High Blood Pressure
• Medications are sometimes improperly managed
• Less blood flow to the brain will impact thought
processes and inhibit memory

• Poor Memory and Absent-Mindedness

• Build up of plaque and lesions in the brain
• Unable to connect with universal consciousness
to grasp the memories stored there
• We can fragment these lesions
• Work on the elasticity of the brain
• Increase Vitamin A and E absorption
• Learn Mindscape to help

Physical Deterioration (cont’d)

• Impotence and/or low sex drive
• Sensuality and sexuality
• Importance of touch – how to attain that when
lacking
• Incontinence
• Utilize BodyTalk as preventative medicine
• Reposition the bladder
• Relationships between the adrenals, kidneys,
low back
• Depression
• Addressing loneliness as described above (also
dopamine and serotonin)

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Addressing Elderly Care 6/28/18

Impairment of the 5 Senses

(more detail in specific future courses)

• Loss of eye sight

• Varying eyesight – stomach
• Poor focus – muscle control – frontal cortex
• Chronic eye infections – microbiome
• Floaters – Liver/Gall Bladder

• Loss of hearing
• Blockage of ear canal – wax, objects, etc
• Inner ear lesions
• Damaged villi
• Neural pathways

Impairment of the 5 Senses

(more detail in specific future courses)

• Loss of sense of smell

• Inability to taste food as well
• Stomach and lungs
• Taste is how we extract nourishment
• Fear – can’t smell danger
• Lack of experiencing touch and sensuality
• Wei qi depletion
• Lungs
• Microbiome of skin
• Fear of touch and touching
• Social and emotional impacts of
diminished senses

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Addressing Elderly Care 6/28/18

Relationship to Time
• Perception of time distorts
• schedules are either rigid or disruptive
• Sleep cycles
• Pineal (melatonin)
• Dark room
• Too much time left
• friends are all dying
• Not enough time left
• fear of death, reconciliation with life event

Enjoying the Golden Years

BodyTalk can promote health and a
positive outlook in all elderly clients so
they can truly enjoy the Golden Years:

• Letting go of old hurts

(Active Memories)
• Supporting the gaining of wisdom
from life experiences
• Increased empathy and a broader
perspective
• Freedom to pursue missed
opportunities or dreams
• A more relaxed approach to life

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Addressing Elderly Care 6/28/18

The Gifts of Aging

• A Smithsonian Magazine article described several
studies demonstrating the emotional and intellectual
benefits of aging. One study showed that seniors have
better control over their emotions than other age groups,
feel less regret and are less impulsive.

• Another study indicated that seniors have superior

empathetic and social abilities, stating: “Subjects in their
60s were better than younger ones at imagining different
points of view, thinking of multiple resolutions and
suggesting compromises.”

Fields, H. (2012, July). What is So Good About Growing Old. Smithsonian.com. Retrieved June 27,
2018 from
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/what-is-so-good-about-growing-old-130839848/
#2SKIWRBGRHgBr0tg.99

Thank You

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