Pathways for Aging

This article: http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=35872&cn=117 discusses the practices of Rick Hanson in his new book Buddha’s Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love, and Wisdom. In it, Hanson links the body’s responses to focusing on the present and consciously dwelling on positive experiences and aspects of our lives to a make us happier. Specifically, he recommends:

1. “Turn positive facts into positive experiences - Pleasant events happen all the time, but we may not notice them because we’re living in the past or future. Maybe someone smiled at you, let you into a car lane, or you noticed the flower blooming or a rainbow. Take some time to actively look for pleasant experiences. These can be found in the laugh of a baby, the taste of a piece of juicy fruit, or maybe the feeling of a warm shower.”
2. “Savor the experience - Here is the opportunity to bring mindfulness to this experience. Bring awareness to your senses. Notice how this experience feels for you physically and emotionally. Be aware of what thoughts arise, perhaps how much you like this experience. Focus on the rewards of this experience. Hanson tells us that this releases dopamine in our brains which strengthens your ability to remember these experiences. To deepen this experience you might even recall another memory where you felt like this before and actively think of it or perhaps thank yourself for taking the time to be present with this pleasant experience.”
3. “Use imagery to deepen the experience - Imagine the pleasant feelings being absorbed like your skin absorbs the rays of the sun, just drinking them in, allowing your mind and body to relax. The idea behind this is that with a consistent practice we can actually change the neural pathways in our brain to make this easier. If for any reason you do this and the pleasant experience turns unpleasant, that may be natural as the brain tends to tip to the unpleasant at times. So just note that you had some time with pleasant experience at all.”

In essence, purposefully focusing on the good aspects of life in the present will reduce our stress because we are not worrying about the future, regretting the past, or dismissing all of the good. This takes practice because our society has often dismissed mindfulness as a Pollyannish attitude that ignores reality. Instead, mindfulness does not overlook the very real challenges we face, but it helps us to acknowledge and enjoy the beauty and joy that is there in both minor and major life-experiences.

On Thursday, March 4, Tom Brokaw’s latest generational investigation gets its television debut on CNBC called “Boomers: History’s Wealthiest and Most Influential Generation.” The Baby Boomers, those born following World War II between 1946 & 1964, count just under 80 million Americans in their cohort with 8,000 of them turning 65 each day. The Boomers represent over 26% of the US population and have had huge influence on American policy, business and life.  They came of age during the Vietnam Conflict, Civil Right’s Movement, the Woman’s Movement, and were the generation that made Woodstock legendary. Now, they are the moving force behind most of our country’s politics, policies and financial institutions. Yet they are starting to retire, receive Medicare benefits and will become our oldest generation over the next 20 years.

Is the Baby Boomer generation doing enough to prepare for their older adulthood? Is our society addressing the future care-giving needs of this large generation? How will their aging be different from Tom Brokaw’s “Greatest Generation?” How are their attitudes toward aging, retirement, long-term care, mental health, medical care and other issues different from the older adults of today?

For more information about CNBC’s report on the Boomers, visit: http://www.cnbc.com/id/34840866/

A British study, published in the Lancet, found that psychotherapy that addressed behavioral and emotional health is a cost-effective way to reduce low back pack pain as reported in an article by the St. Louis Post Dispatch: http://interact.stltoday.com/blogzone/fit-bits/uncategorized/2010/02/talk-therapy-decreases-low-back-pain/

Mental health and emotional issues often effect the whole body. Physical pain can be caused by or exacerbated by depression, anxiety, stress, or other mental health issues. Discussing issues and problem solving in psychotherapy often increases motivation for activity that may improve health. Psychotherapy can also reduce physical pain through learning pain management, deep breathing and meditation exercises, or other anxiety reduction techniques.

Psychiatrist, Dr. Charles Raison, regularly answers questions about mental health on cnn.com. A recent article discusses the connection of stress and depression:

“We toss the word ‘depression’ around a lot, as if we all know what it feels like to be depressed. But in fact, depression has a number of emotional faces. Sometimes it feels like the kind of sadness that makes you cry. More often it feels like a type of dull dread of the world. Often it mostly manifests as a feeling that one is really unworthy to be taking up space on the planet. And very frequently it presents itself as a feeling of overwhelming stress, a feeling that one’s problems are beyond dealing with. The fact that this last feeling is so common in depression explains why being ’stressed out’ is such a good marker for major depression.” You can read the complete article at: http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/expert.q.a/01/26/stressed.out.raison/index.html

The therapists at Pathways for Aging commonly work with older adults and caregivers who experience high levels of stress that lead to depression. Those feelings of being overwhelmed are not uncommon, especially by those trying to make life-changing decisions for themselves or their older loved ones. As Dr. Raison advises in this article, it is best to seek help to determine if depression is adding to your burdens, and both Pathways for Aging and a physician or psychiatrist would like to help. So reach out, and do not try to do everything on your own. You will likely get more stressed and possibly more depressed if you do.

 Today, 8,000 Baby Boomers will turn 65, and the number of older adults in the U.S. will continue to rise steadily for the next twenty years. Not only do families need to plan for their own needs and the needs of their aging loved ones, but entire cities and towns need to address our aging society as well. The sprawling suburbs, where most baby boomers grew up and where most baby boomers want to age, are currently at the center of efforts to ensure that people can age in place. In the St. Louis area, a focused effort has already occurred in Creve Ceour where a Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) exists. See this article from the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging for more information about creating Aging-Friendly Communities: http://www.aahsa.org/section.aspx?id=10963

KSDK news recently ran a story about a local man who has won hundreds of medals in the Senior Olympics: “Dahl gives new meaning to the term, ’senior moment.’ To him, it’s a workout everyday at the Jewish Community Center in Creve Coeur.” Read about his experiences and why he is an example of Positive Aging at: http://www.ksdk.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=196409

The Senior Olympics’ registration is coming soon on March 1. Should you or someone you know compete?

Often we hear from adult children concerned about paying for the care of the aging parents.  Some families are concerned about their financial responsibity for their parents.  The weekend edition of  USA Today has a mini-article by Sharon Epperson, with a few tips and resources. You can access the article: Cut Elder-care Costs online.  One of her recommendations is to contact a geriatric care manager.  We focus on evaluating the whole person, physically, emotionally, financially, support system, environment, and lifestyle.

Tags: Elderly Care, Elderly Caregiving, Elderly Estate Planning

Research consistently indicates that older adults utilize mental health services at significantly lower rates than younger adults, yet the overall prevalence of mental health disorders remains roughly the same across all age cohorts (Narrow, et al. 2002).  Therefore, even though older adults represent 13% of the U.S. population, they receive only 6% of community mental health services. Worse yet, many older adults go untreated all together and add to the disproportionately high suicide rate among older adults (American Association of Suicidology, 2006).

 For treatments utilized by geriatric mental health programs, the research to date has demonstrated that several psychotherapy treatments are as effective as, if not more than, psychotropic drugs in older adults. Therapy and counseling is also the treatment that most older adults prefer (Gellis, 2006). The bulk of the evidence thus far, points to using a variety or combination of treatments with older adults, such as reminisce, cognitive behavioral, and/or problem solving therapies (Scogin, et al., 2005). A very practical approach to psychotherapy is typically necessary for this population, and individual therapy has shown to be more successful than group therapy for the current cohort of older adults (Night, 2004).

Since this is a population that spans decades in years lived, includes every personality type imaginable, and who have experienced many of the same major world events in extremely different ways depending on where they grew up, how much schooling they received, what American ethnic sub-culture they belong, which religion they identify with, if they worked outside or inside the home, how they were affected by the dust bowl and great depression, which side they stood during military conflicts, the women’s liberation movement, the civil rights movement, or the gay-rights movement, whether or not they have relationships with their families today, and whether or not they actively chose to process their lives as they approach death, it is imperative for therapists to take these clients’ opinions and life experiences into the decision of how they work with each client. It seems true that with this very diverse and growing population that meeting the client where they are is the most important approach for us to apply.

  As the only MSW student in the 2009 graduating class at the Brown School of Social Work at Washington University who was specifically interested in and focused on working clinically with older adults and promoting positive mental health among this population, I clearly understand why each community needs social workers and other therapists to focus specifically on the needs of our aging population. Over the past seven months that I have worked with Pathways for Aging, I have grown in my commitment and passion for improving the quality of life for all older adults and using therapeutic approaches that best suit the needs of each person. As the population of adults over 65 years old continues to explode from 13% of the U.S. population today to an estimated 20% by 2030 (U.S. DHHS & Administration on Aging, 2001), I look forward to working with the older adults of today and tomorrow. 

Tags: Aging with Grace, Depression in the Elderly, Elderly Issues, Mental Health

Pet therapy - what is the benefit to older adults?  As I sit in my office, my 2 cats are contentedly sleeping away the morning.   It reminds me of the value and importance that some of our older adults place on their relationship with their pet.  Some of our clients share their small senior apartments with a cat, who is often sleeping in their lap or nearby as we have our therapy session.  We joke about the value of their daily dose of “cat therapy”, but I believe that this is not something to be discounted.  My clients readily admit to their pet’s impact on their mood.  Research has shown that pet therapy in nursing homes can help in decreasing depression.  What do you think about pet therapy and its impact on older adults?

In today’s online edition of US News & World Report - columnist, Bill Moehler wrote about the impact of the economy on baby boomers and their aging parents.

The economic downturn the past year has certainly impacted every area of our lives.  Usually we hear of the financial impact, but how this  affects the lives of families can be signifcant.  It is also having an impact on the senior housing industry as some housing developments have been stalled as loans are more difficult to obtain and seniors and their families have difficulty selling the family home or are reluctant to take a loss. 

 How has the downturn in the economy affected the older adults and caregivers in your life?