Answers For Elders Radio Network

If you're faced with the daunting challenge of helping a senior loved one find medical assistance after an injury or choose a senior living community to move to, you're not alone. Daphne Davis from Pinnacle Senior Placements in Seattle, Washington joins Suzanne Newman on the Answers for Elders Radio Show to talk about finding a referral agent to help answer those questions. Daphne says, "I have 25...

If you're single, it's much harder to plan financially in advance for retirement, as there are more options available for married couples. To alleviate worries about finances and aging, or the possibility of an unhealthy retirement where you might face a chronic illness, you may want to research alternative living facilities on your own ahead of time, or prepare irrevocable trusts to preserve asse...

Silver Sneakers is the only fitness program that provides financial rewards for staying fit. Members can grow a college fund for a loved one. So even if a senior is on a fixed income, they can actually provide money for a grandchild's college tuition. It's a great motivator to get exercising — people will often do for others what they won't do for themselves. Jan Sheeley explains, "When they go to...

Jan Sheeley from Silver Sneakers joins Suzanne Newman on the Answers for Elders radio show to talk about strategies for making and achieving realistic goals for exercise, in particular to make New Year's resolutions achievable. Jan says, "Tracking things down, writing things down, is helpful. It's the same with fitness. It's the same with food. I'm going to eat one vegetable with every meal. Write...

For people with chronic conditions like arthritis, exercise can be difficult and painful. Jan Sheeley from Silver Sneakers joins Suzanne Newman on the Answers for Elders radio show to talk about free resources at Silver Sneakers to help, and also provides some strategies for getting started with moving and exercise. Jan says "We do have online documentation, stories, an actionable items on the web...

Jan Sheeley from Silver Sneakers joins Suzanne Newman on the Answers for Elders radio show to talk about free fitness benefits available to senior loved ones through their Medicare Advantage program. Silver Sneakers is a free program accessible through certain Medicare Advantage programs. Check the website to see if you are already enrolled in the program. Jan Sheeley is Regional Growth Marketing...

A lot of people choose not to get married. They co-habitate, they mix assets, they'll buy a home, and some even have retirement plans. There are many legal protections for married couples, but some of those protections don't extend to individuals who live together, such as Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid benefits. If an unmarried couple decides to live together, they ought to discuss how to pr...

Dr. Marc B. Cooper sees enormous benefits in using AI to help our senior loved ones, especially in their later age. He joins Suzanne Newman on the Answers for Elders Radio Show to talk about the potential of technology, particularly AI, to combat loneliness among the elderly and improve healthcare management in the future. They consider strategies that can be implemented to help elders feel less i...

Dr. Marc B. Cooper joins Suzanne Newman on the Answers for Elders Radio Show to continue their talk about aging with purpose and intention. They talk about higher consciousness and self-understanding. They ask how a higher consciousness and self-understanding can impact your life. He writes, "After 80 years on the planet, my life’s been anything but linear. In our Western culture, my adult journey...

More about aging with purpose and intention: Suzanne Newman is joined by Dr. Marc B. Cooper on the Answers for Elders Radio Show to delve further into the significance of living with intention and purpose as individuals transition into elderhood. Dr. Cooper highlights the importance of authentic elders in decision-making and the need to redefine aging positively. He describes how to live with inte...

Aging with purpose and intention: Dr. Marc B. Cooper joins Suzanne Newman on the Answers for Elders Radio Show to discuss the evolving role of elders in society, particularly as the population over 65 continues to grow. Suzanne Newman shared her personal experience of being downsized, which led her to establish Answers for Elders. Both Suzanne and Dr. Cooper emphasized the importance of storytelli...

Elder law attorney Andrea Lee from Legacy Estate Planning joins Suzanne to talk more about special needs trusts, comparing first party special needs trusts and third party special needs trusts. Andrea provides an example of a third party special needs trust: "Let's say I am a parent of a disabled child, and my disabled child does not have assets. Maybe they're on Medicaid, maybe I support them, bu...

So many of us have a loved one that may have special needs, a disability. Maybe a spouse has just been diagnosed with dementia and needs care, and they're afraid of losing their house or their money. If you're in that situation, or maybe your parents are, or a child that has special needs, this episode will be important. Elder law attorney Andrea Lee from Legacy Estate Planning joins Suzanne to ta...

We don't spend enough time finding out everything we need to know. Have you got your legal paperwork done? L.E. "Ellie" Brown from Chateau Retirement Communities joins Suzanne to talk about how to find resources for seniors that many people don't even know exist. Ellie says, "I think there's a cottage industry for everything we need in this. It is out there. But here are some of the ideas. There a...

L.E. "Ellie" Brown from Chateau Retirement Communities joins Suzanne to share how families can best support their senior loved ones. Ellie shares her top three tips for getting through the transition when a loved one starts struggling: 1. Communication. I see that most families are not as open as they could be. If you have siblings, be on the same page. All noticing different things. 2. Have that...

What signs of aging are of concern as we're supporting our senior loved ones? L.E. "Ellie" Brown from Chateau Retirement Communities joins Suzanne to talk about the warning signs and facing up to the various dynamics of denials, not just from ourselves, but also our loved ones. Ellie shared her personal, family experiences with warning signs. She says, "For my mom, her health was clearly in declin...

L.E. "Ellie" Brown from Chateau Retirement Communities joins Suzanne to talk about how to best support our senior loved ones, particularly as they get older and might need to consider senior living. Ellie works with families every day, and shares common situations that she encounters as families try to help their loved ones. Ellie is Vice President Sales - Strategic Market Analysis, Branding &...

People sometimes put their estate documents in a file and forget about it. Elder law attorney Steve Waltar joins Suzanne to talk how to keep your estate plan documents current. Steve explains, “If you buy a car, would it be wise to never, ever maintain it? Of course not. Would it be okay to never fuel it? So that's my analogy, a good car. You would take a look at it, you'd keep it maintained, you...

How do you make updates to your estate plan? Elder law attorney Steve Waltar joins Suzanne to talk about dos and don'ts. Steve says, "Let me first start by saying what you should not do. You should not take out your original will and start crossing off, oh, this person's dead now, this is the new name. You start scratching things up — and there's been cases on this, fights on this, because sometim...

With a new year arriving, it's time to consider reviewing and updating legal documents. Elder law attorney Steve Waltar joins Suzanne to talk about when to update estate plans. Steve says, "The $64,000 question: Hey, when should I update my estate plan, or how do I know? It always depends, right? That's what an attorney says, it depends. I think it's wonderful to to to check in with the attorney a...

Elder law attorney Steve Waltar joins Suzanne to talk about the Corporate Transparency Act, a new federal law made to thwart money laundering, but has overreaching implications for owners of new and existing small businesses and their legal agents across America. Steve explains, "This law is for anyone that created a business in 2024, and there are some exclusions. Nonprofits, the really large cor...

Kitty Norton, director of the film Wine, Women, & Dementia , joins Suzanne to talk about reactions to her documentary. Wine, Women, and Dementia premieres November 2 on PBS. Watch at PBS Online or download the PBS App to stream from your favorite devices. Check your local PBS Member Station for air dates and times in your area. See a list of upcoming local broadcasts here . * Hear more podcast...

Kitty Norton, director of the documentary Wine, Women, & Dementia, joins Suzanne to offer her best advice for caregivers. Wine, Women, and Dementia premieres November 2 on PBS. Watch at PBS Online or download the PBS App to stream from your favorite devices. Check your local PBS Member Station for air dates and times in your area. See a list of upcoming local broadcasts here . * Hear more podc...

Kitty Norton, director of the documentary Wine, Women, & Dementia , joins Suzanne to talk about her movie's premiere on many PBS markets at various times beginning November 2. New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles PBS stations will air it this month. Check local listings to see if it will air on your local PBS station. Wine, Women, and Dementia premieres November 2 on PBS. Watch at PBS Onli...

Kitty Norton, director of the documentary Wine, Women, & Dementia, joins Suzanne to talk about her movie's premiere on PBS. Kitty talks about caregiving for her mom, blogging about everything that she and her sister were going through, using humor to cope and surrender to the moment. She became friends with people across the world who enjoyed the blog. Wine, Women, and Dementia premieres Novem...