The Vital Role of Reminiscing for Seniors

Holding a doctorate in psychology and master’s degrees in psychology and education, Robert Fettgather, PhD, has taught extensively in various settings. A member of the Mission College faculty for nearly four decades, Dr. Robert Fettgather has taught topics such as human growth and development, a birth to death psychology. Interested in the aging process, Robert Fettgather has studied physical, cognitive and psychosocial changes associated with aging.

As individuals advance in age, the practice of reminiscing takes on a profound significance. Reminiscing, the act of recalling past experiences and memories, holds a unique and vital role in the lives of seniors. This essay explores the importance of reminiscing for seniors, highlighting its therapeutic, cognitive, and social benefits that contribute to enhanced well-being and a higher quality of life.

Reminiscing serves as a therapeutic tool for seniors, helping them cope with various challenges associated with aging. Emotional Healing: Revisiting cherished memories from the past can provide emotional comfort and solace. It allows seniors to process unresolved emotions and find closure, particularly after the loss of loved ones or significant life changes. Reducing Anxiety and Depression: Engaging in reminiscence can alleviate symptoms of anxiety and depression. Focusing on positive memories can help seniors counteract negative emotions and foster a more positive outlook on life. Sense of Continuity: Reminiscing helps seniors maintain a sense of continuity and identity, especially when faced with age-related memory decline. By recalling their life stories, seniors can retain a firm grasp on their personal history and a sense of self.

Reminiscing has a profound impact on the social well-being of seniors: Strengthening Relationships: Sharing personal stories and memories with family members and friends deepens emotional connections. It creates opportunities for bonding, empathy, and mutual understanding. Bridging Generational Gaps: Seniors can bridge generational gaps through reminiscing, offering younger family members insight into historical events and life experiences that shaped their generation. Community Engagement: Senior communities and care facilities often incorporate reminiscence therapy as a means of fostering a sense of community and belonging. Group reminiscing activities promote social interaction and combat feelings of isolation.

It is crucial to recognize the value of reminiscing for seniors and encourage its practice in various settings, including family gatherings, senior living communities, and healthcare facilities. By embracing and promoting the act of reminiscing, we can contribute to the well-being, happiness, and overall quality of life for our aging population, allowing them to relive and share the precious moments that have shaped their lives.

Self-Acceptance

Robert Fettgather was a psychology student during the Human Potential Movement. There he discovered humanistic psychology and has studied the discipline ever since. Robert Fettgather enjoys nature and natural settings that shape the concept of flow and acceptance. 

Maslow is probably best known for his theory of motivation. He argued that when a need is not being met, a state of tension motivates us to meet it, leading to the reduction of the drive. His hierarchy of needs explains the organization of human needs, which are universal and ordered in terms of their strength. Maslow was particularly interested in self-actualizers, people who continually seek to reach their fullest potential even as they accept themselves as they are.

Rogers suggested that we all have an innate urge to move toward situations and people that will help us grow and to avoid those with the potential to inhibit growth. He highlighted the importance of self-concept, which refers to our knowledge of our own strengths, abilities, behavior patterns, and temperament. Rogers proposed that people often develop an ideal self, which is the self-concept a person fervently strives to achieve. Rogers believed that problems can develop when a person's self-concept is incongruent with his experiences in the world.

According to Rogers, people need to feel valued and basically accepted for who they are-not necessarily what they do. As parents and caregivers, it is important to show children that we value them all the time, not just when they obey us. He believed that the behavior is what is unacceptable, not the child. Carl Rogers once said, “It wasn’t until I accepted myself just as I was, that I was free to change.”

Psychologist Tara Brach addresses the fear of Radical Acceptance based on the false assumption that if we accept ourselves just as we are, we’ll never have the motivation to improve or change. Instead, Brach (like Rogers decades before her), believes it is that deep, unconditional tenderness and acceptance toward our own being that actually creates the pathway to the freedom and change we seek.