. . . You can knit a sweater by the fireside . . .
Ruth Weintraub stands in front of her husband Alfred's paintings.
A few weeks ago, we introduced Ruth and Alfred Weintraub. Ruth lives at their apartment in Manhattan, while Alfred, who has Parkinson’s disease, is a resident at the Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale. You can click here for the Weintraubs’ story in its entirety.
One of Alfred’s main interests at the nursing home is creating abstracts in the art studio. Some of his work is on display in the home’s halls, while other paintings are framed on the walls of his room. Alfred’s childhood interest in art was reignited at an assisted living facility, and Alfred now paints regularly.
Click here for a photo slideshow about the Hebrew Home's art studio.
Alfred is not alone. Many Parkinson’s patients have found that being actively involved in creative pastimes – music and art, primarily – helps relieve some of the disease’s symptoms temporarily.
Certified senior advisor Sandra Frank, who has 30 years of experience in the field, said engaging in the arts distracts people from pain, anxiety, depression, and other symptoms. The arts provide a sense of release and accomplishment.
“With art there’s a freedom of expression,” said Frank. “It’s not like there’s a right and wrong.”
Frank tries to help her clients with Parkinson’s think of themselves as artists with a disease, not as people with a disease trying to create art. And when they complain they can’t because their hands shake, Frank tells her clients not to focus on their limitations. Frank says, “Let’s look at what you can do when your hands are shaking.”
What artists with Parkinson’s can accomplish in studios is remarkable, and many revel in it.
When Alfred first began painting, “he was very, very proud of himself,” said Ruth. Now, if Ruth’s visits to the nursing home coincide with the art studio activity, she makes sure to accompany him.
“I’m very lucky in some ways,” says Ruth. She is thrilled with Alfred’s nursing home, she thinks his aide is exceptional, and his painting is source of pride. Not that the situation is perfect – far from it, actually. But Ruth still tries to stay positive. “Even when it’s bad luck, I’m lucky,” she says.