Hetty used to visit on Fridays for art activities, hence the name of the book Fridays with Heather – 55 Art Projects for Dementia Care. She has since switched to Tuesdays, which doesn’t make any difference in the big scheme of things. Today is an art day. Hetty always keeps things as simple as possible, adjusts and adapts, and keeps trying new things to see if Heather will engage. This wooden bird painting project is a success, and it’s great to see Heather busy with her paintbrush.
One thing I noticed is that she’s using her right hand to paint today. Over the last few weeks, it was obvious that she favours her left side, even though she’s right-handed. My assumption is that this is related to the brain atrophy in the left hemisphere. The left brain controls the right side of the body and vice versa, so with left-side brain damage, it stands to reason that the right side of her body wouldn’t work as well. Maybe this is good therapy to keep those neural connections active. I saw a smile on Heather’s face when we were talking about the bird painting. Every little smile is a win.
