By KT Leong
After a brief hiatus, on 15 October, The Dementia Cafe of Ipoh (DCI)once again held a gathering of people living with dementia, their care partners, families and the community, at the 1Lasam building, located at Jalan 1 Lasam, Greentown.
With the theme of “Laughter is the best Medicine”, the gathering was led by Ms. Jayamalar, originally a trained fitness instructor in London and owned a gym in Glasgow. She completed a certificate in London as a Laughter Yoga Leader, facilitating sessions for companies and organisations.
Although the gathering was an intimate one with only a little over a dozen participants, it was nonetheless very successful. Starting with simple hand, shoulder and breathing exercises, it didn’t take long before for all the participants to raucously roar with laughter and break into dancing sessions.
Laughter’s infectious and one artificial laugh can spread and turn into many genuine ones in a matter of seconds.
Those living with dementia, their care partners and their families, have to deal with a tremendous amount of stress and frustration on a regular basis. Gatherings such as these held by the Dementia Cafe of Ipoh, are a great opportunity for them to meet up with others facing the same issues in a pleasing and judgement free environment. Sometimes these gatherings are educational, and other times, like this October session, they are just an opportunity to get out of the house to let loose and have fun.
Check out Dementia Cafe of Ipoh’s Facebook here, to find out when the next gathering is, so that you can join in: https://www.facebook.com/groups/3516060658667079/
WhatsApp 019-5743572 for more information, and donations can be done to:
Bank: CIMB
Acct: 8011201747
Name: Persatuan Kesedaran Demensia Ipoh Perak
