Essential Awakenings® Stimulates Memory Recall, Socialization, Storytelling and Why It Is Important For Our Wellbeing

Having had a mother who had dementia, I visited quite a few Assisted Living Communities for Memory Care and quickly realized that so many seniors living in these communities seemed to be alone and isolated; and that there were no activities for residents to engage in a fun, interactive social exercise involving the sense of smell which is so vital to our emotional and physical wellbeing.

🌌 Fast Forward
It has been 7 years since I developed Essential Awakenings® Smell and Memory Kits to be used by families, caregivers and Program Directors at Assisted Living Communities as a stimulating activity for people living with dementia such as Alzheimer's.

🌌 A Milestone:
It took 3 years (and during COVID) to break through and make multiple sales to one of the largest ALCs in the US.

🌌 Why Is An Essential Awakenings® Activity Important?
It is known that the sense of smell triggers memories faster than any other sensory function we have and when memories are brought back to life they elicit storytelling and this type of communication results in a joyful social activity. (Videos can be seen on my YouTube Channel:

🌌 Who Else Can Benefit From Essential Awakenings®?
Being mindful of our sense of smell is also vital to our emotional and physical well being (imagine not being able to smell fresh baked bread, taste our favorite food, or smell sour milk?). Essential Awakenings® kits can also be used to help stimulate this sensory function by following a daily regimen which is now called Smell Training.

🌌 Anecdotes About Smell Training:
Even before we found out about anosmia from COVID, a friend and former Coty colleagueRosanel Rosario, SHRM-CPsuffered (and thank God she survived) several aneurysms in 2017 and lost her sense of smell. Acting on a hunch and hopes, I sent Rosie a sensory kit and encouraged her to have her son administer the scents "blindly" (not telling her what she was smelling--grass, mint, chocolate, etc.,)--and to make it a daily regimen as we do for any type of physical therapy. According to Rosie, she was able to regain about 85% of her sense of smell back after about 5 months on the regimen.
Once COVID hit, we were learning that anosmia is a major side effect of the virus, I contacted neuroscientistRachel Herzand asked her to review the kits for their viability for Smell Training for which she developed an official Smell Training Guide for any of my customers who purchased the kits for Smell Training purposes and I am proud to say 100% of my customers who purchased the kit for their anosmia are satisfied.

🎥 56, 000 views of one of my YouTube videos (2018) of Jacqui who talks about her family's experience using Essential Awakenings® at Christmas time for a family taking care of a loved one with Alzheimers:  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mGgOehXVFA&t=3s