When I became the care partner to my late husband Robin Williams near the end of his struggle with Lewy Body Dementia (LBD), I saw how the arts could help heal. Sometimes just in the moment, and that was good enough! Upon becoming an advocate, the role of art in my life expanded.
I saw how certain paintings held hidden truths, emotions, and insights that visually revealed what we had gone through. These paintings became teaching tools for me as I tried to raise awareness and help others understand LBD. Through my advocacy work, I was introduced to the emerging field of Neuroaesthetics.
That is when I discovered why art has always felt like medicine to me: making art, even just appreciating it, can change our physiology and thus transform our brain and body health. Like many people, I grew up watching Robin Williams on television. When I was older, I got to be with him up close, as my husband in real life.
He was my love and best friend for seven years and when he began suffering from undiagnosed symptoms of Lewy Body Dementia (LBD) I became his care partner. Those years were brief and yet our time together felt like it spanned a lifetime. In what follows, I share some of my experience from that period of my life and afterwards.
As I walk past my art studio, I notice how dark it is. The easel right where I left it. A soft memory emerges how Robin would walk past my studio doorway then double back and sneak peeks of me painting.
Now I look at that space and my well-worn easel longingly. I have not had my medicine. Underlying anxiety vying for my attention, unmoored.
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