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I’m Not Dead Yet October 16, 2018 by Flora Davis - When you reach my age (83) and don’t hear from friends for a long time, you don’t assume they’re just too busy to get in touch. You wonder if they’ve died.
At the Heart of Dementia: A Challenge to Truth October 11, 2018 by Maggie Sullivan - Alec, whose wife had Alzheimer’s disease, had heard that people in the later stages of dementia often ask for their mothers. Nevertheless, the day Hilary asked him, “Where’s my Mom?” Alec was taken aback. Because they had always been completely…
Why It’s Just Fine to Fail at “Successful Aging,” Part 3 September 21, 2018 by Ashton Applewhite - More about what’s wrong with the concept of “successful aging”—a topic explored in Parts 1 and 2 and in Successful Aging as a Contemporary Obsession: Global Perspectives (2017), a collection of essays edited by Sarah Lamb. What else is problematic…- Why It’s Just Fine to Fail at “Successful Aging,” Part 2 September 20, 2018 by Ashton Applewhite - Part 1 of this series of blogs argues that, as a model for growing older, “successful aging” leaves ageism unchallenged or contributes to it. What else is problematic about “successful aging”? There are some insightful answers in a collection of…
- Why It’s Just Fine to Fail at “Successful Aging,” Part 1 September 18, 2018 by Ashton Applewhite - Eleven years ago I started a writing project about people over 80 who work. Upbeat! Inspirational! Safe! I didn’t realize it at the time, but it epitomized an approach that has dominated gerontology since the 1980s: “successful aging”—also known as…
Old-Lady Day September 5, 2018 by Pepper Evans - Ageism, according to the World Health Organization, is “the stereotyping and discrimination against individuals or groups on the basis of their age; ageism can take many forms, including prejudicial attitudes, discriminatory practices or institutional policies and practices that perpetuate stereotypical…
Lost and Found August 24, 2018 by Flora Davis - I was thinking recently about some of the things I’ve lost as I’ve grown older. But since I’m basically an optimist, after a while I also began to consider the good things I’ve found. I decided to make a list…
The New Yorker’s Ageist Take on Ageism August 22, 2018 by Ashton Applewhite - I’m a lifelong New Yorker addict, so when I heard they were running a piece on ageism, I got excited. That was a mistake. Tad Friend’s article in the November 20th issue, “Why Ageism Never Gets Old,” is glib and…
Where’s the Fire (Extinguisher)? August 1, 2018 by Pepper Evans - Some 40 million fire extinguishers sold between 1973 and 2017 were recently recalled, prompting me to check not only mine but those in homes where I am helping people live independently. In almost every case, the fire extinguisher was affected…
Is It Just Human Nature to Dread Aging? July 26, 2018 by Flora Davis - Is ageism inevitable? Is it just plain human to dread old age—and to disparage older people? That’s the conclusion writer Tad Friend comes to in a New Yorker article called “Why Ageism Never Gets Old.” Friend’s article deftly describes how…
When Things Aren’t What They Seem July 20, 2018 by Maggie Sullivan - One day at the Alzheimer’s day program he attended, Herman suddenly got up and left the room. As he charged down the hall and out the front door, Wendy, the program’s director, ran after him calling, “Herman, stop!” She caught…
If the Shoe Fits June 22, 2018 by Pepper Evans - Many years ago I worked for a sarcastic boss with a wicked sense of humor. He loved to tease, and even when I was the target, I found him funny. Once, noticing that I had small feet, he said it…
Going Steady Later in Life June 15, 2018 by Flora Davis - I see them in my retirement community all the time: couples who are almost always together. There’s an easy intimacy between them—sometimes they hold hands or he drapes an arm over her shoulders.
The Workplace Needs #MeTooAgainstAgeism June 7, 2018 by Margaret Morganroth Gullette - The #MeToo movement is mainly about work situations, and so it should be. Being treated like a skirt—or a headless skirt, depending upon the level of vileness—by a male boss or peer can ruin a workplace...even a life.
The Beauty Industry Is Shifting from Anti-Aging to Anti-Anti-Aging. So What? June 6, 2018 by Ashton Applewhite - The New York Times Magazine opens every Sunday with an essay about what a given word or phrase reveals about the moment. On September 17, 2017, the word was “anti-aging.” The line at the top of the print version read,…
Books to Give or Keep in 2017 December 6, 2017 by Pepper Evans - Friends all know I’m an avid reader, and it’s that time of year when they ask me to recommend books for holiday gift lists. I primarily seek out new fiction, but I enjoy deviating for an interesting memoir. Each of…
Emotional Contagion Is a Mixed Bag December 1, 2017 by Flora Davis - In 2008, my husband fell backward down a flight of stairs and suffered a brain injury. When I brought him home from rehab three months later, he was childlike and often confused. He sank into a deep depression—and I caught…
Not Your Mother’s Genes? November 15, 2017 by Pepper Evans - I once had a discussion with a friend, who is a geneticist, about his research. Perhaps a bit tongue-in-cheek, I suggested that he rethink his current cell experiments and instead study someone healthy—like me.
Dementia in Films: Getting It Wrong November 8, 2017 by Maggie Sullivan - Fiona, a woman in her 70s living with Alzheimer’s disease, announces to her husband, Grant, “We are at that stage.” She means the point at which she belongs in a nursing home. Her husband, like almost all family caregivers, finds…
If Aging Is So Awful, How Come No One Wants to Be Younger? October 18, 2017 by Ashton Applewhite - You hear people say “I wish I were young again” all the time. Yet I’ve never met anyone who would actually choose to move their game piece back on the board.
A Hidden Epidemic Threatens Older Adults: Malnutrition - For most of her life, Jenny Anne Horst-Martz’s mother worked hard to stay slender. But now, at age 90, her mother struggles to keep enough weight on. The problem started a few years ago when her mother was injured in…
The Parade of Aides - Working as a caregiver for a friend or family member is a rewarding but stressful job. When my mom qualified for an aide (thanks to the pooled income trust and Medicaid), it gave me a break during the day to…