Practicing At A Veterans Nursing Home

Twice a month I go to a Veterans Nursing Home to practice T’ai Chi Chih. The staff calls it “Move Free” so it doesn’t have an Asian connotation which might be troublesome for some veterans active in various wars. There are 65 (mostly male) residents in this nursing home and over half are past 90 years old. I work mostly with the “runners,” the Alzheimer’s patients who live together in a secured area.

Sometimes when I arrive, many are asleep in their recliners or watching TV. We gather everyone together in a circle of chairs. I take time to walk around, look each in the eye, smile, tell them how happy I am to see them and say their names before we start to practice. They seem to appreciate the individual attention.

We do everything seated; some are in wheelchairs and some follow along pretty well some weeks and not so well other weeks. It doesn’t matter—it’s great that they are there watching, learning, trying and engaging. It is always exciting when someone just watching tries to make the movements. I always get staff feedback about how wonderful it is for them to try to focus and follow along.

When I ask if anyone feels tingling in their fingers, several respond enthusiastically that they do. One participant told me that “it feels like someone else is rowing the boat.” What a great understanding. One morning we were practicing Push Pull and I suggested they let go of what they don’t need and gather all the love they can and put it in their hearts. On this particular morning one of the more vocal participants shouts out, “Yes, let go of the bullsh*t and pull in the happiness.” I couldn’t have said it better myself.

We use empty paper towel rolls (wrapped in duct tape to make them more durable) for Bass Drum, as they seem to love having something to touch and work with. We also use small soft nerf footballs (from the Dollar Store) to practice wrist circles and Carry the Ball to the Side. I also use them to hold in one hand and make big figure eights across the body to loosen the shoulders in order to prepare for the movements.

Mostly my goal is for them to have fun and move together. I was approached originally by the Activity Director to provide these classes twice a month, and I am paid to facilitate them. She had been introduced to the idea of TCC for the nursing home residents after reading a report by local college students on the benefits of Qigong practices for the elderly. We have been offering this for more than a year, and the Activity Director recently asked me to demonstrate and talk to all the Regional Veterans Nursing Homes in Colorado because she feels it has been so successful. If you feel called to work with veterans in nursing homes, I encourage you to reach out. I’m sure Justin would approve.