THRIVING IN TIMES OF STRUGGLE

Comments? Send me a text message. This episode continues our conversation with gerontologist and psychologist Mario Garrett. In this part of the discussion Mario describes his priority to put care over cure. He argues that American society puts far too much emphasis on searching for a cure to Alzheimer's and much too like time, energy and money into actually addressing the needs of people who...

Comments? Send me a text message. Gerontology professor Mario Garret offers a straight-forward, no-nonsense critique  of current approaches to Alzheimer's research, particularly the overwhelming focus on addressing the Amyloid Cascade Hypothesis.  Garrett proposes that we broaden our understanding of the true nature of the dementia syndrome and consider psychological as well as biological cau...

Comments? Send me a text message. Jesse Wiley of Sage Bionetworks talks about his involvement with TREAT-AD, which is an exciting open-science, community approach to developing data-drive hypotheses that may lead towards new kinds of treatments for Alzheimer's disease.  These new approaches will go beyond the amyloid hypothesis that has dominated research and drug development approaches over...

Comments? Send me a text message. Jesse Wiley discusses his work on the TREAT-AD project and their attempt to identify new candidates for drug development to protect against Alzheimer's. Jesse explains that he and his team have identified 15 biological domains that are associated with the development of Alzheimer's (not 18 as I say in the podcast).   Intriguingly, Mitochondrial malfuncti...

Comments? Send me a text message. The FDA recently approved the first new drug for Alzheimer's in the last 18 years. .   Why are we not celebrating? Because there  are a slew of concerns about the approval decision. Ten out of eleven members of an independent review board voted against approval. The eleventh couldn't decide.  At least three of these reviewer have resigned in protest. In...

Comments? Send me a text message. Angel Duncan has a unique background that combines rigorous scientific research, psychology and the arts. She has worked on clinical trials searching for drug treatments for Alzheimer's disease and has an extensive background as an art therapist.    In this podcast interview, we discuss the failure of the drug industry to find an effective way to treat dement...

Comments? Send me a text message. I once read a sound piece of advice that said we need an "avocation" to provide us with a sense of meaning and purpose when we retire. As I was writing an article about this idea I realized that - for me - an avocation is required, but not sufficient. In addition to an avocation, I need an audience. I need someone who shares my passion and interest in th...

Comments? Send me a text message. Chris Palmer has, by all measures, lived a great life. He now wants to plan for an equally great death.  In this short segment of a longer interview, Chris outlines his thoughts on both important topics.  Support the show If you want to support my work, click above, subscribe to the MINDRAMP  Podcast, or sign up for the free Flourish As You Age newsletter for revi...

Comments? Send me a text message. Chris Palmer has been a wildlife filmmaker, an environmental activist, a teacher and an author. He has taught classes and written extensively on how to design a good life. In this podcast, Chris shares his early struggles and how he overcame them by learning to design the kind of life he wanted to have.  Now, at age 74, Chris maintains a detailed Longevity Mission...

Comments? Send me a text message. If you are a dedicated rock climber you may already know of Madeleine Sorkin. She has made quite a name for herself as one of the premiere rock climbers in the world.   Madaleine has recently founded an organization called the Climbing Grief Fund, which is dedicated to helping climbers cope with grief, PTSD and tragedy. Too many of Madaleine's friends and ass...

Comments? Send me a text message. Dick and I are late-life buddies. He is the father of my son-in-law and lives in a house he bought a few years ago with his son and my daughter. I really got to know Dick after he packed up his life in Houston and relocated in Los Angeles. Dick is 10 years my senior at age 82. Watching how Dick copes with change, adversity and loss has been an inspiring lesson in...

Comments? Send me a text message. We can increase our emotional intelligence by expanding our vocabulary for emotional words.  This is the core idea of the theory of emotional granularity put forth by neuroscientist  Lisa Feldman Barrett. During a road trip through southern Utah and western Colorado my wife and I expanded our ability to articulate our feelings of wonder and delight.  We invented t...

Comments? Send me a text message. I find myself in the surprising position of being the eldest male in my immediate family.  In these troubled times, As such i should be a positive role model for my family and could think of no better role model for myself than Fred Rogers of children's television fame.  I met Mr. Rogers when I worked for PBS and got to see the man in action in a variety of s...

Comments? Send me a text message. Greg Finch is a good friend and a successful executive coach, so he was the first person I thought of when I decided to do some podcasts about the value of personal coaching and the role it can play in our effort to promote brain health.   I am convinced that coaching can be a valuable boost to any brain health program.  Even when we  have a plan to keep our brain...

Comments? Send me a text message. The brains of men and women are more alike than they are different. That said, there are some unique characteristics of the female brain that are highly significant.  When we fail to recognize these differences, we put women at greater risk for premature aging, cognitive decline and dementia.  This episode is drawn from a radio interview Roger and I did with Robin...

Comments? Send me a text message. Bad habits are incredibly hard to break. But the process of replacing bad habits with good ones can be much easier if we follow tips from behavioral psychologists who study the process. One of the best researchers in the field is Katy Milkman, who offers her insights in a new book called HOW TO CHANGE. Inspired by this book and my investigations of behavior change...

Comments? Send me a text message. In this podcast I  read an article I wrote recently for 3rd Act magazine  on the importance of balancing the influence of our right and left hemispheres.  One of the most provocative books I read in 2020 was THE MASTER AND HIS EMISSARY by Iain McGilchrist. It was first published in 2009 with the expanded edition - which I read -coming out in 2019. McGilchrist expl...

Comments? Send me a text message. Why is there resistance to wearing hearing aids? As a culture, we seem to have overcome the  stigma attached to wearing glasses, but for some reason wearing a hearing aid is still discomforting for many people. Is it because hearing loss is a sign of old age? Is it because hearing aids are a pain in the . . . ear?  According to audiologist, Dr. Monika Sharma, mode...

Comments? Send me a text message. One in 3 people over the age of 65 suffer from hearing loss. After age 75 half of all people have trouble hearing. Hearing loss that goes untreated can get worse and can cause people to withdraw and become depressed. Hearing loss has been identified as a clear risk factor for dementia. Nevertheless, many people still resist going to an audiologist and wearing hear...

Comments? Send me a text message. This is a reading of an article written by Michael C. Patterson for the magazine 3rd Act: Aging With Confidence.  It explores why humor and mirth exist and how they strengthen our brains and minds.   Support the show If you want to support my work, click above, subscribe to the MINDRAMP  Podcast, or sign up for the free Flourish As You Age newsletter for reviews o...

Comments? Send me a text message. My partner, Roger Anunsen, learned the power of play years ago when he was unexpectedly hired as an Activity Director at an assisted living community.  He was assigned to run a Sit & Be Fit class and his elderly students seemed bored out of their minds. To liven things up, Roger got them reciting an elaborate tongue-twister (One hen, Two ducks, etc.) that his...

Comments? Send me a text message. I started doing yoga on a regular basis at age 65. Brandee Goatcher was my first teacher and she helped me to embrace the practice and become a regular practitioner. For Brandee, the essence of yoga is "falling in love with our bodies and all they can do."  What a lovely idea. And being able to fall in love with our bodies as we age is incredibly importa...

Comments? Send me a text message. I recently recorded a conversation with Keric Morinaga who is a master teacher of yoga. In this podcast, I’ve pulled together the parts of the conversation that focused specifically on yoga and the process of aging. I started taking Keric’s challenging online classes at the beginning of the pandemic shut-down and, at age 72. As a result of the practice, I’ve becom...

Comments? Send me a text message. Have you ever wondered what yoga was all about? Have you asked whether there is more to yoga than just putting your body into weird shapes? If you have been curious about yoga or want to deepen your understanding of what the practice is all about, you will want to listen to this conversation with master yoga teacher Keric Morinaga.    I study with Keric and, as I...

Comments? Send me a text message. Savant brains are severely compromised. Yet some savants have, as neuroscientist V.S. Ramachandran says, "islands of astonishing talent." A few such savants have astonishing musical talents. Others show an awesome ability to replicate what they on paper. Others have amazing mathematical skills.  I recently wrote about Savants in the most current edition...