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Ageist Trolls on Social Media and in the New Yorker Too October 4, 2017 by Margaret Morganroth Gullette - The Internet is notorious for commenters who feel grossly entitled to dismiss vulnerable others. This past summer, Harvard University hit hard against racist and sexist speech on Facebook, rescinding admissions to some potential first-year students.
Dementia in Films: Getting It Right September 14, 2017 by Maggie Sullivan - I loved the novel Still Alice because it was an accurate portrayal of Alzheimer’s disease. And the movie Still Alice got it right too.
My Car Still Needs Me August 30, 2017 by Flora Davis - For years, I loved the idea of a self-driving car. I could hardly wait until they were available because so many friends my age (over 80) had been forced to give up driving. I didn’t want to be next. Most…
Lying to Mom? August 14, 2017 by Pepper Evans - A few years ago, a New York Times New Old Age blog had me thinking about my mother's later-life driving. The blog is about lying to an older person, ostensibly for his or her own good. In one tale, a grown daughter sabotages her mother's driver's license renewal to avoid confrontation over concerns about waning driving skills.
Let’s Get Intergenerational! August 4, 2017 by Ashton Applewhite - A century ago, Americans didn’t need programs to connect the generations: homes and communities housed people of all ages. But as people started living longer and moving into cities, we started thinking differently about those at both ends of the…- Helping Hands, Joined Online July 21, 2017 by Pepper Evans - When you’re coping with the needs of someone who is hospitalized or convalescing, you may wish you could clone yourself to handle everything on your plate. Take heart—a website can become your personal assistant.
What a Living Will Can—and Can’t—Do for You July 18, 2017 by Flora Davis - My friend Anne taught me some important things about dying. Anne had congestive heart failure. In January 2012 her cardiologist told her regretfully that she probably wouldn’t live past the end of the month, so she went home to set…
Green Old Age July 7, 2017 by Flora Davis - A friend of mine recently questioned something she read on this website that presented what she called “a depressing view of aging.”
10 Vital Truths about Aging and Health June 26, 2017 by Ashton Applewhite - The World Health Organization (WHO) is in the public health business, and no organization has done more to raise awareness of ageism—the biggest obstacle to meeting the challenges of population aging.
Weighty Issue June 16, 2017 by Pepper Evans - Are we teaching our children today what they need to know to assure good health beyond childhood and throughout their lives? Confuse Hamlet with Macbeth and you may not graduate from high school. Forget that pi is 3.141592 and it’s…
What Good Are Support Groups? June 12, 2017 by Maggie Sullivan - This was Chester’s first time at our caregiver support group. A man in his 70s, he told us about his wife who has Alzheimer’s disease and has become anxious whenever he is out of sight.
What Does ‘Old’ Look Like to Millennials—and to AARP? May 19, 2017 by Ashton Applewhite - AARP’s #DisruptAging site has some commendable goals: to “hold a mirror up to the ageist beliefs around us,” and “change the stories we tell ourselves about aging.” In other words, as they put it, to “disrupt aging”—which also just happens to…
The Happiness Check May 15, 2017 by Pepper Evans - I received a milestone-birthday gift from a dear, longtime friend. It was a generous monetary gift that came with a caveat: I must spend it on myself. No college tuition help, no car repair, no electric bill—I had to spend…
The Violence of Ageism May 12, 2017 by Margaret Morganroth Gullette - As the entire world now knows, Dr. David Dao is the passenger who was dragged off a United Airlines flight on April 9th (2017) by Chicago police, who broke his nose, gave him a concussion and smashed two of his teeth.
Young Blood May 10, 2017 by Flora Davis - If you were offered a way to feel healthier and even look younger, would you take it? What if it required you to have repeated transfusions with the blood of teenagers or 20-somethings? This is not vampire fiction. A private…
Mind Your Qs, Help Your Diet April 26, 2017 by Pepper Evans - Is your midlife palate bored to ambivalence about mealtime? Often I lament the ho-hum of my menu repertoire, but I still go back to the tried and true in every food group. But recently, in an unlikely coincidence, I tried…
19, Going on 90 April 24, 2017 by Ashton Applewhite - Here’s a note that came to me recently from a reader of my Q&A blog, Yo, Is This Ageist? She wrote that:
Now Hear This April 12, 2017 by Pepper Evans - I love to feel connected and informed—both, keys to successful aging. I no longer get a newspaper and don’t watch much television. I live between New York City and Philadelphia, where there’s no shortage of media outlets, but I get…
No More Old Cats? April 6, 2017 by Flora Davis - The other day, I was hunting online for new canned foods to try out on my unbelievably picky cat, and I couldn’t help noticing all the options for “senior cats.” There didn’t seem to be anything at all for “old…
Whose Vision Problem Is It? March 27, 2017 by Pepper Evans - I recently saw a feature in a magazine about an item so intriguing that I was compelled to investigate the retailer’s website. I left my comfy reading chair to go to the computer with the intention of making a purchase.…
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…