Mental health for older people can be a two-edged sword. According to geropsychologist Lee Penn, PhD, our guest on the new episode of the Crow’s Feet Podcast, older patients often score high on resilency after a lifetime of coping with stressful situations. Other older patients don’t handle the signs of aging as well, and experience anxiety and depression.
Jean Anne Feldeisen, a podcast host, writer, poet, and psychotherapist, explores the topic of mental health with her guest in this informative episode. You can read Jean’s essay about Dr. Penn, and her personal struggles early in life with depression, at For Older Adults, Managing Your Moods is Just as Important as Managing Your Physical Health. Listen to the interview here.
Our Stories
We begin this week’s story digest with two essays by 66-year-old writers. Charles Bastille takes responsibility for his own life and continues to push himself to exercise and eat right even though he knows he is slowing down. Read What Obligations Do We Have Toward a Longer Life? When does our zest for life slow down? And what can we do about it if it does?
Justiss Goode | F😄M writes that she is trying “to get used to looking in the mirror and seeing someone that you haven’t really gotten familiar with yet.” Read After Age 50 the Days Begin To Vanish Like Missing Socks in a Dryer. Do you ever stop to wonder where the heck all the years went?
Penny Harris is in her 74th year. She still does a lot, but knows when she needs to recharge. Read Energy. An elusive commodity as we age
Many people fear dementia and the loss of control that accompanies it. But Kate Fallon writes that you can relieve the stress of dementia on patients and caregivers, by having a good laugh. Read Finding Humor Amidst Dementia. Laughing together at absurdity.
Many experts are pushing for more contact between generations, but some older folks cling to harmful stereotypes of younger people that keep the generations apart. We have two stories about how older folks can re-frame their attitudes, starting with their grandchildren. Read Do Your Kids And Grandkids Respect You? It’s time to stop saying, ‘When I was your age’ by Frank Ciavarella, and Kids these days! Pretty much like kids any day by Pamelapolis.
Memories — Stories from our current Writing Prompt
The Ties That Bind at Utica Grocery. What six kids and their devoted parents could accomplish together by Jill Ebstein.
Where I Was When JFK Was Assassinated: Confined to my dorm room for misbehavior by C. M. Barrett
My Bank Memory. A time when an institution could be trusted by Barry Silverstein.
Trying to Remember a Life Gone By. And realizing how much memory will never be recovered by Catherine Oceano.
Kids Say the Funniest Things. And so do Irish Grandmothers by Soozie Campbell.
Our Story. Memories shape our lives by Ann Litts.
I hope you enjoy these stories and all the tales of aging published on Crow’s Feet: Life As We Age. You can read them right here.
Until next week,
Nancy Peckenham, Editor
Crow’s Feet: Life As We Age is a nonprofit, 501(c)3 charitable organization that produces this publication and a bi-weekly podcast.
If you find the essays and interviews on Crow’s Feet: Life As We Age that change your views on aging or help you navigate the aging process, please consider making a donation to our work here. We’re all volunteers and your support helps us reach even more people with our meaningful discussions about aging.
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