(Chelsea Update would like to thank Marie Knoerl for the information in this story.)
Starting on April 19, Chelsea area seniors will have an affordable opportunity to boost their mental wellness thanks to sponsorship through Chelsea Hospital.
The sponsorship is part of Chelsea Hospital’s work to address the increased need for mental health care in its service area and to improve access to effective, accessible, timely care. Mood Lifters is a novel mental wellness program for people who are ready to make positive changes in their lives. This includes those dealing with stress, anxiety, depression, difficult relationships, and more.
Mood Lifters offers proven, research-based strategies for group members to apply to their own situations and to reach their individual goals. University of Michigan Professor of Psychiatry and Psychology, Patricia Deldin, Ph.D., Founder and Creator of Mood Lifters said, “Chelsea Hospital is again demonstrating their forward-looking vision by providing evidence-based mental-wellness care to Chelsea area seniors for a second time.”
The isolation caused by the pandemic has hit seniors especially hard. Jennifer Smith, assistant director of the Chelsea Senior Center (CSC) shared her concern. “When things began to open, and we welcomed back our members, we noticed big changes in many of our seniors. Isolation and loneliness had taken their toll…The vibrant adults we had known were disappearing before our eyes.”
Smith continued that when the Mood Lifters Program was offered to CSC last spring, “We said “yes, please” right away. The response from our members was great and pretty swift. Feedback was all positive and a small group still meets to support each other with the tools they learned.”
The Mood Lifters program works differently than a therapy or support group. Each week, a trained peer-leader presents the latest science related to a specific topic involving behavior, thoughts, emotions, physical health, and social connection.
After learning about and discussing the topic, group members incorporate the strategies covered in each meeting into their day-to-day life. The support from the group is just another ingredient in the recipe for improved mental health.
Mood Lifters members often refer to the program as a class and say that working with peer leaders in their group is their favorite aspect and find it to be “a supportive place to learn new skills to help cope with the stress that life brings.”
Local resident Amy Heydlauff, has experienced the Mood Lifter program and puts it another way. “Mood Lifters isn’t just for talking it through. It’s learning how to impact your own mood. Learning how to take action and fix the things weighing you down.”
Beyond anecdotes, the program has data-demonstrated effectiveness; showing, on average, significant reductions in anxiety, depression and stress, and better sleep, relationships, and positive emotions.
In the words of a recent senior group member: “Instead of blaming myself if things don’t go as plan – I evaluate and think of other possibilities. I feel so much better about myself.”
Deldin created Mood Lifters to help people who aren’t receiving sufficient mental health care—a worldwide problem that has only increased in recent years. Her intention is to provide people in pain, wherever they are and whatever their means, with instant, broad access to effective, evidence-based mental health treatment. Her dream is to tap into the work of the world’s best mental health researchers and make an expanding set of resources available to improve lives everywhere.
The full 15-week program of Mood Lifters is being offered in person at the Chelsea Senior Center starting on April 19 for only $25 to residents of Chelsea and surrounding communities.
Call the Chelsea Senior Center at (734)475-9242 to register or reach out via email to [email protected] for more information.
