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Over 75% of adults with developmental disabilities live at home with family. There is a growing population of aging caregivers of adults with developmental disabilities, in part due to increased lifespan and extensive waiting lists for residential services (The Arc Autism Now).  

In honor of World Autism Day, today's podcast episode focuses on older adults who are caring for adult children with autism or other Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities (IDDs).

In this interview, Lois Shingler, an attorney and co-founder of Peter and Paul’s Place shares her experience of being 70 years old while caring for Paul, her 45 year old son with Autism. She also provides several tips for other aging parents caring for their adult children with IDDs. Here's a peek inside the episode: 

• [10:45] Lois describes her experience of entering older adulthood while caring for Paul, her 45...

When you care for a loved one with dementia, chances are you have years of experience with this person and are used to communicating with them in a particular way. Dementia changes the way a person thinks, processes information, and understands the information you're sharing, so the way that you communicate with your loved one also needs to change in partnership with the changes in the brain. 

Learning how to communicate with a person with dementia takes practice. It's like learning a new language. Thankfully there are experts in dementia communication, like Dr. Natali Edmonds,  who can help us develop skills in learning effective dementia communication strategies. 

In today's interview, Dr. Natali Edmonds, Geropsychologist and founder of Dementia Careblazers, talks about 3 caregiving communication traps to avoid and shares a very important message to dementia caregivers. 

The tips in this...

Chrissy Thelker was 55 years old when she had her first stroke and was subsequently diagnosed with Vascular Dementia. 

With more and more people living with dementia, it's imperative that we gain perspective and understanding of the lived experience of people living with dementia and the importance of advocacy, peer support, and building a purpose-filled life living with dementia. 

Today's guest shows us how. 

We have a narrative in society that says that caregivers have more depression and stress, spend their caregiving years suffering, only to lead to premature death. Our guest today shares a more balanced and factual narrative about caregivers.

Yes, many caregivers do indeed have increased rates of stress and depression. Research shows, however, that caregivers are remarkably resilient and actually DO NOT have a reduced lifespan as a result of caregiving.

Our guest today, Dr. William Haley, Professor of Aging Studies, reveals how caregiving actually affects caregivers and shares several resilience strategies you can use (starting today) to bolster your resilience and lower your stress. Listen until the end for all the great tips and strategies.

Here's a peak inside my interview with Dr. William Haley:

• [04:02] Dr. Haley shares his story: Where he's from and what inspired him to study aging and caregiving.
• [8:23]  Learn about a stress and coping model...

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Exercise is essential for healthy aging. Having a consistent exercise routine helps to reduce risk of mental health conditions, improves cognitive function, and helps our bodies to function optimally.

Knowing the "right" exercise for older adults is key. In today's episode, I interview Eric Levitan, founder and CEO of Vivo, a digital fitness company focused on strength training for older adults. And Surprise!  Also joining us in today's interview is Eric's 79 year old dad, Michael Levitan, who's a college professor and has been exercising with Vivo for the past several months, and noticing remarkable changes.

I want to share that I have no affiliation with Vivo. I don't get any financial incentive by sharing their program with you. So why am I using my podcast to talk about Vivo? As you know, older adults and caregivers are the hardest hit by COVID. Older adults have been locked down and scared, while caregivers have...

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In 2006, Gina Martin's mother, Diane, was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's Disease and died 5 years later. In a tragic yet poetic twist of fate, her father died 3 months later on his birthday of a "broken heart".

To honor her parents and raise awareness about dementia, Gina created the Bob and Diane Fund, which grants a $5,000 award each November to an artist depicting the dementia journey through the lens of photography.

 Here’s a sneak peek at what you’ll learn from my interview with Gina Martin:

• [05:31] Gina Martin shares about the inspiration for creating the Bob and Diane Fund
  
• [11:11] Each November, the Bob and Diane Fund offers a $5,000 grant to a photographer telling a visual story of dementia. Gina describes the selection process and the esteemed group of judges.
  
• [18:28] Visual stories of dementia are touching and compelling. Gina shares a little background on each of the past grantees (see...

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A few weeks ago, I received an email from a listener:

"Hello, Dr. Regina,

"I work in an assisted living facility. As the election approaches, family members of residents on memory care units have asked to have residents vote. Residents on this unit are here because they're unable to make informed decisions and don't have a grasp on reality. Also, the particular resident shows no interest in wanting to vote. It's the family that essentially wants to cast a vote for the individual, which seems unethical to me. I've tried reaching out to professional groups for some guidance to no avail.

Do you have any thoughts regarding this topic?"

Older adults tend to vote more often and more consistently than other age groups. According to a US News Report, in 2018, 64% of adults age 65 and older voted in the November 2018 election, the best turnout of any age group. With this said, 10% of older adults, however, will experience a...

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Cannabis use, marijuana, and medical marijuana is becoming more and more acceptable and popular among older adults. 

In fact, millions of people are finding it useful for chronic pain, insomnia, anxiety, PTSD, fibromyalgia, colitis, and a wide variety of medical conditions. This is not, however, without controversy or side effects.

I've even heard dementia caregivers giving CBD to their loved ones living with dementia to help manage insomnia and agitation.

Admittedly, I am naive when it comes to cannabis use for any age group, and especially for older adults. Not to mention cannabis use with dementia disorders.

For answers to some of my burning questions and to help deepen our understanding of cannabis use in older adults, I invited Dr. Peter Grinspoon on the podcast to share with us the pros and cons of cannabis use in older adults, the risks and benefits, and even cannabis use with older adults with...

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As a society, we have so many unrealistic expectations for caregivers. As much as you hate to admit it, you may have even caught yourself thinking I can't believe that she moved her father into a nursing home, or I would never have made THAT decision.

We have so many judgments about the way caregivers "should" go about providing care. This, in turn, makes caregivers less likely to ask for help and more likely to shoulder the demands of caregiving all on their own.  This leaves caregivers feeling invisible and as if their needs are less important than everyone else's. Can you relate?

What if the caregiver has chronic and life threatening illnesses of their own? How does this change the caregiving dynamic?

To help answer this question, I invited my dear friend, Dr. Kandi Schmidt on the podcast to share her wisdom about this complex situation of caring for an older loved one when you yourself have...

Dementia is one of the most important, but often overlooked, health care issues related to older African Americans.

In fact, research shows that African Americans are two to three times more likely to develop a dementia disorder (compared to European Americans) and at the same time are less likely to be diagnosed early in the disease process and provided with adequate treatment.

The burning question is "WHY?!!".

Luckily there are experts, like Dr. Vonetta Dotson, Neuro-Psychologist, who can help us understand why this is happening and what we can do about it.

In this week's interview, Dr. Dotson shares biological, genetic, and social factors that increase the risk for dementia. She also shares what you can do to ensure that your loved ones are getting the best, most comprehensive health care. AND, she shares tips for keeping your own brain healthy!

So, take some time to watch it now!

 Here’s a sneak peek at what...