Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Forming rich bonds of love and friendship in assisted living

“I’m believing when I walk down that aisle and he sees me in the dress, the Lord will restore his eyesight,” Ruth Franz told The Middletown, CT Press. Hospice North Hollywood
Ruth Franz is a first time bride at the age of 85. She recently married her long time friend and former business partner, Henry Jones. Both Ms. Franz and her new husband have been retired for many years and recently reunited since the passing of Henry’s former wife.
People who find love in their later years are frequently brought together by shared experiences at a time in their lives when they truly have the time and wisdom to appreciate it.
Although not everyone who chooses to spend their later years in independent or assisted living residences is fortunate enough to find their “soul mate,” some do. Assisted living environments encourage social interaction where residents can share lifetimes of stories filled with happiness, sorrow and life’s rich pageant, which in any context, forms strong bonds.
Ms. Franz’s new groom, Henry, says, “I love her dearly because of the way she thinks. We’re singing off the same sheet and that’s all you could want in life. She’s the most wonderful woman in the world, and she’s beautiful – I’ve always thought she was beautiful.”
Henry was hoping to be careful about shouting, “Hallelujah!” when he saw his bride of 85 on their wedding day.
Poets, novelists and songwriters have described “love” in countless ways, but at the level of biology, love is all about chemicals.
When you catch sight of your beloved and your heart starts racing, that's because of an adrenaline rush, said Dr. Reginald Ho, a cardiac electro physiologist and associate professor of medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The brain sends signals to the adrenal gland, which secretes hormones such as adrenaline, epinephrine and norepinephrine. They flow through the blood and cause the heart to beat faster and stronger, Ho said.
It’s likely the stress hormone, norepinephrine, that governs attention and responding actions, makes you feel weak in the knees, said Helen Fisher, professor at Rutgers University and author of the book "Why Him? Why Her? Finding Real Love by Understanding Your Personality Type."
Fisher's research team did brain imaging of people who said they were "madly in love" and found activity in the area of the brain that produces the neurotransmitter dopamine. Dopamine and norepinephrine are closely related.
"What dopamine does is it gives you that focused attention, the craving, the euphoria, the energy and the motivation, in this case the motivation to win life's greatest prize," she said.
At the level of emotional happiness, finding love, whether it is the romantic type or friendship makes people feel good.
In the case of Henry Jones, it seems shouting “Hallelujah” at the top of lungs on his wedding day might be considered mandatory!
Visit Hospice Granda Hills for more information!

2 comments:

  1. Wow. What a great story. It reminded me of my grandmother. She got married to a friend in her assisted living facility.
    What a great place to meet new people and start relationships.
    I'll be following your blog from here on out!
    Thanks,
    Hospice Ventura County

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for that comment. It is truely amazing the relationships people can form in their facilities. It always nice to hear people can truely be happy in their facilities! Glad to have you aboard!
    I also checked out your hospice site. What a great place for hospice information.
    Your comments will always be accepted on here!
    Thanks,
    Jordan

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