Introducing doll therapy

As with all of our activities, Doll therapy offers different benefits. The introduction of dolls is a form of therapy intended to promote feelings of relaxation and pleasure and can be particularly beneficial to someone feeling anxious.
Having the comfort of a doll’s presence can make activities like bathing and dressing less stressful for both the resident and the caregiver. Doll therapy can promote better sleep because the person tucks in the doll at night. “The thinking is, it’s bedtime for my doll, so it’s also bedtime for me.
Holding a doll can be very soothing and often takes people back to a time when they had young children of their own, which invokes feelings of contentment, calm and happiness. As well as holding a doll, giving residents the chance to care for a doll can give someone with dementia a sense of purpose, which impacts their energy levels and mood.

Image courtesy of DementiaHub.sg
As with all of our activities, they are introduced gradually and appropriately for every resident; we explain why they are there and encourage residents to take part in the activity alongside the Care Team.
Rachel, Manager at Needwood House said, “We introduced doll therapy by providing the dolls in a space that the person can access on their own, so they can go over and look when they feel ready. When we present the doll to the person, we always hold and cradle it in a way that would not distress the person if they did think it was a baby.”
We hope doll therapy will offer improved well-being amongst many of our residents in the way we see when we bring in pets and animals and have a positive impact on the overall well-being of our residents.