Older Women & Friends

Jane Leder
Older Women & Friends

Award-winning author Jane Leder and guests take a deep dive into the joys and challenges of being an older woman. "Older Women & Friends" is a podcast that sets the record straight, dispels the myths, explores the many contributions older women make and the wisdom they have earned and are anxious to share. Add a sense of humor, and there are many reasons why older women are the happiest demographic in the country today.

  1. Older Women Living With ADHD  w/ Leonie-Ruth Acland

    2月26日

    Older Women Living With ADHD w/ Leonie-Ruth Acland

    What kinds of changes do you make after a serious health crisis? For Leonie-Ruth Acland the changes after suffering a stroke and taking a year to recover resulted in a recommitment to the mentoring and coaching of women and to her connection with nature on so many levels. Then at age 67, Leonie-Ruth was diagnosed with ADHD. Until then, she'd always wondered why she didn't fit the mold, why staying focused was so hard, and why when she was younger she suffered from anxiety, particularly as a student. Her parents had high expectations and while she eventually met them, she paid a high price. A friend of her father's who'd been hired as a math tutor concluded that there was "a bit missing." In many ways, the ADHD diagnosis completed the puzzle and was a relief. Like so many other women, the masking, or front, that Leonie-Ruth put forward to pretend to be someone she was not, took a high toll. It was mentally and physically exhausting. Since her diagnosis, Leonie-Ruth realizes that there is NOT something that needs to be fixed and that she is blessed with creativity and intuition as a result of ADHD. Leonie-Ruth and her husband live on two acres of land in rural New South Wales, Australia. When they first moved in, there were no trees and no grass. Over the years, they've nursed the land back to life. They planted fifty fruit trees, raised ducks, grew vegetables and fruit, and created a space where people could flourish. This intense connection with nature has helped her better understand herself and connect to her inner work and the kindness and love she has for others. https://pomegranatecircle.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/leonie-ruth-acland%F0%9F%8C%B1-746591a/ https://www.instagram.com/dontbecagedbyyourage/reel/C8b-yoZu6NJ/ https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/adhd-women-exploring-the-neuroverse/id1739890898

    32 分鐘
  2. Taking Calculated Risks w/ Helen Hirsh Spence

    2月13日

    Taking Calculated Risks w/ Helen Hirsh Spence

    Are you a risk taker? Do you thrive on trying new things, new things that may take you out of your comfort zone? Helen Hirsh Spence knows all about taking calculated risks. She climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, among other peaks, reclaimed her life after a bout of depression, and worked in places like Bolivia, and Honduras. She believes in getting out of her comfort zone to "expand, reach, and learn." Oh, did I mention that she was a Jane Goodall Institute board member? Helen knows Jane well and sees her as a role model for older women. "She's ninety, and travels more than 300 days a year to get her message out." Helen has been a feminist since the early sixties, but as she has aged, she became aware of how she'd internalized many of the stereotypes about older women. "I'd been born into a lifetime of questioning my value as a woman, particularly as an older woman. If I'm feeling this way as an educator, I can't imagine how stereotypes and biases impact other women's lives. I felt like I couldn't or shouldn't do as much." This self-directed ageism led to depression. "I'm too old to _______________" "That doesn't suit me _________________" "I shouldn't wear _______________ because this outfit is only for younger women." Today, she is comfortable taking calculated risks. "Life is short; there is more work to be done." Helen is a self-described "age provocateur" who wants to provoke people to reframe the whole conversation about aging. She created Top Sixty Over Sixty, a niche consultancy that promotes longevity literacy by providing the tools and training to thrive in today’s aging and multigenerational world. https://www.topsixtyoversixty.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/events/7259000354451722240/comments/ https://www.topsixtyoversixty.com/blog/ https://www.topsixtyoversixty.com/newsletter-signup/

    27 分鐘
  3. The Good GoodBye: Talking About Death Won't Kill You w/ Gail Rubin, Thanatologist & Author

    1月30日

    The Good GoodBye: Talking About Death Won't Kill You w/ Gail Rubin, Thanatologist & Author

    What's so damn funny about death? Nothing, most folks would say. But not Gail Rubin, Thanatologist/Death Educator. Let's face it: death is guaranteed 100 percent. It may be the "party that no event planner wants to plan." But don't include Gail among the party poopers. How did Gail become a death educator? That's a long story but suffice it to say that Gail didn't wake up one morning and say, "I want to be the doyenne of death." For her, it started way back when she was a college student majoring in TV and Film. She didn't know it then, but an end-of-the-year movie project would set the table. Gail sees herself as the bridge between the general public and end-of-life businesses like funeral homes, cemeteries, and life insurance companies. She is a national speaker who uses film and humor to help break the resistance a majority of people have to talk about death. Barely a third of Americans have had an end-of-life conversation and are completely unprepared when a loved one dies and, conversely, when loved ones are left responsible for your death. Gail talks about the many important decisions that need to be made by all of us: Medical careLife InsuranceFuneral, if anyBody Distribution: Cremation? Burial (if so, what kind)? WillsPower of AttorneyEstate planningGail encourages us to "Shop before we drop." Get all our goodies in a row before it's too late, and family and friends are left with overwhelming questions about what to do and how to honor your wishes that were never discussed. Have you heard about a green burial and what that involves? Water-based body distribution? Natural organic reduction? Death doula? C'mon on. Get with it! Explore your choices. Make decisions. And then breathe a sigh of relief. "Just like talking about sex doesn't make you pregnant," Gail says, "talking about death doesn't make you dead." https://agoodgoodbye.com/about-gail/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfjxvL4DSS8 https://www.linkedin.com/in/gailrubinctagoodgoodbye/ https://agoodgoodbye.com/shopping/

    30 分鐘
  4. Disconnected: Love On The Spectrum with Eleanor Vincent

    1月16日

    Disconnected: Love On The Spectrum with Eleanor Vincent

    From the outside, Eleanor Vincent's childhood appeared idyllic. But behind the veneer of a loving, supportive environment was a darker secret: her mother was depressed, Eleanor was abused, and both her parents were same-sex gays and bitterly unhappy. "Our job--my siblings' and mine -- was to protect our parents and not let their secret out." During a year when her father lived in New York to pursue acting, her mother had a female lover. The tension was palpable. One can only imagine how all of the stress, confusion, and anger molded Eleanor and impacted her choices in life, including her choice of men. She met her first husband when she worked as a cocktail waitress to augment her salary from a Montessori teaching job. The marriage lasted just four years. They had one child, a girl. At age thirty-two, Eleanor married again. By her mid-30s, she was a single mom with two children to raise. Eleanor was single for the next thirty-five years until she met and married for a third time at age seventy-one. If only her story ended there in a happy, supportive marriage. But Eleanor had unwittingly fallen in love with a man who had Asperger's, a developmental disability (some disagree with that categorization), or a person with different brain wiring from neurotypical brains. Didn't she see worrisome signs when they were dating? Yes. But she chose to minimize or overlook them because there was so much good in the relationship. (Some warning signs included no eye contact, inability to talk about emotions, and social awkwardness.) "I had no idea what that would look like in a day-to-day relationship with a partner," Eleanor said. "It was upsetting, confusing," she said. "He love-bombed me and fooled me into thinking that being in a relationship with me was something he wanted more than anything." Eleanor tells the rest of the story in her new book, Disconnected: Portrait of a Neurodiverse Marriage. She talks to me in this fascinating episode about what can happen when two people come together but don't realize that their brains are wired differently and that the ensuing struggle may doom the marriage, no matter how either partner tries. There are, however, steps couples can take to try to heal and remain partnered. Eleanor outlines those on her website and in her new book. There is hope, but it's a tough road ahead. For Eleanor, the road ended in divorce. https://www.eleanorvincent.com/author/epvince/ https://www.vineleavespress.com/ https://shorturl.at/mLNVa & Wherever books are sold

    39 分鐘
  5. Grandparent Encouragement Officer (GEO): Creating Beautiful Connections with Grandchildren w/ Kerry Byrne, PhD

    2024/12/05

    Grandparent Encouragement Officer (GEO): Creating Beautiful Connections with Grandchildren w/ Kerry Byrne, PhD

    Are you a grandparent who will spend time with your grandchildren, particularly around the holidays? If not, how will you share and engage with your grandchildren from a distance at any time of year? There are 47 million grandparents in the United States, with an average age of 67. This may be a surprise: 71 percent of grandparents are still working. So, what can these grandparents do to nurture the relationship? How can they engage? How can a grandparent be the GEO, Grand Parent Officer? Kerry Byrne is a researcher, collaborator, and entrepreneur in aging, care, and connection. She is the Founder of The Long Distance Grandparent, a mission-driven business, that helps grandparents build strong bonds with their grandchildren – no matter the distance between them. There is so much to unpack in this episode of "Older Women & Friends." Perhaps most important are the stories grandparents share, stories that show a grandparent facing challenges, floundering, and then succeeding. These stories are important for generations to come. Even if it seems as if a grandchild is not listening, she is. Kerry outlines many things that a grandparent can do to foster and nurture a relationship that is beneficial for everyone. Among these suggestions is the over-arching importance of a grandchild feeling seen, heard, and listened to. There are many ways to accomplish this goal: * Engage in what a grandchild does and your activities as well * If you're still working, share your job. Mail some selfies of you in the workplace. Text or write about some of the challenges. * If you can't be there for holidays like Thanksgiving, come up with a game like the Gratitude Game. (Listen to the episode to find out how the game is played.) * Mention qualities of a grandchild that you admire: a good listener, a good friend, a good fill-in-the-blank. * Relish your high-quality relationships and how your example creates a generation of less ageist generations. Like any relationship, the one between grandparent and grandchild is a lot of work. You juggle not only that connection but the one with your children and your own. But the payoffs are worth the time, energy, and creativity. You can assume your role as Grandparent Encouragement Officer (GEO) and create beautiful connections. https://thelongdistancegrandparent.com/ https://www.instagram.com/thelongdistancegrandparent/p/CcQ-ryLLMj9/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/kerry-byrne-phd-20953528/?originalSubdomain=ca

    28 分鐘
  6. Sleep Talk For Women: Sleeping Pills, Dementia, Mortality with Lucinda Sykes

    2024/11/21

    Sleep Talk For Women: Sleeping Pills, Dementia, Mortality with Lucinda Sykes

    "My favorite species is the human species." ----- Lucinda Sykes, retired MD Did you know that new science links prescribed sleeping pills to an increase in your chances of dementia and Alzheimers? Sleeping pills don't put you to sleep; they sedate the brain and prevent it from giving itself a power wash that gets rid of material ultimately connected to disease. This episode's guest is Lucida Sykes, retired MD and current sleep coach. You may have listened to an earlier episode with Lucinda. This is a Command Performance. "Millions of older women are being taken from their families," Lucinda says. Her grandmother is a case in point. Every night, Lucinda went to the drugstore to pick up her grandmother's sleeping pills. She died in her 60s from complications now understood to be partially due to sleeping pills. When we can't fall asleep, our mind tends to catastrophize. We think of the worst possibilities and ruminate about them over and over again. So, what are some useful ideas when we can't fall asleep? *Get out of bed *Do something that relaxes you, and engages you (puzzles, needlework, reading, etc.) *Dim the lights - avoid blue lights; instead, surround yourself with amber and pinkish tones *& More The key is to avoid stimulation when you sleep and create an uncluttered space outside of the bedroom that calms and relaxes you. Maybe the room is full of fragrances like lavender or maybe there is a sound system that plays calm music. There is so much more research packed into what is an informative, fast-paced episode of "Older Women & Friends." https://lucindasykesmd.com/ https://www.joyfulafter50.com/about https://lucindasykesmd.com/my-story/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucinda-sykes-md-71a25651/?originalSubdomain=ca

    35 分鐘
  7. "Aging Sideways:" A New Way of Looking at Getting Older" with Jeanette Leardi

    2024/11/07

    "Aging Sideways:" A New Way of Looking at Getting Older" with Jeanette Leardi

    Did you know that sometime between 2030 and 2035 it will be the first time in American history that more people will be 65+ than people 18 years and younger? Crazy! Today's guest, gerontologist Jeanette Leardi, is one of this podcast's favorite guests. We first talked in June 2003, and since then she has a new book out, Aging Sideways: Changing Our Perspectives on Getting Older. Jeanette's story is fascinating. She became a gerontologist in her late 50s after taking care of her older parents for ten years. She was blown away at how poorly older people were treated and decided to try to change people's minds about aging. The way we age is not preordained and in many ways, we can be our stewards and enjoy the complex but magical journey as we age. There is a fear that permeates the cultural view of dementia or any of its categories. The facts: Only 10% of people 65 + have dementia For those 90+, the rate jumps to 33.3%, but that means that two-thirds of much older Americans will not have to confront dementia. And that's good news! Another topic Jeanette and I discussed is the lack of rituals for older people. Sure, there are birthdays, anniversaries, and other important events, but nothing specifically for older women and men. Rituals help clarify meaning, and they give us a chance to celebrate. Jeanette suggests a multi-generational ritual when we celebrate aging instead of dreading it. Imagine the benefits: younger generations will love celebrating right along and might not have such a negative, jaded view of getting older. And there is the opportunity for older people to welcome newcomers into the fold. I don't know, something akin to ceremonies we've observed: sororities, fraternities, graduations, professional highlights, retirement, and on and on. Did you know that our brains continue to create new brain cells and that the super highways help us see the what-ifs, the middle ground between good/bad, yes/no . . . ? Our brains may work more slowly because of the wealth of experiences over a lifetime. I like to liken our memory to a card catalog. Remember those? It took us time to find the book( s) we were after but with patience we were rewarded. Finally, Jeanette and I discuss creativity in older age and how our creativity differs from that of younger people. She details four characteristics of creative folks and reminds listeners that all of us are creative daily as we choose the words we want to use, and the stories we tell to our friends and family. This is a time to pursue whatever gives us pleasure and stokes our creativity. This a time when we are not so dependent upon what others think about us and how we choose to spend our time. It is freedom to be embraced.

    37 分鐘
  8. The Thinking Patient:  Empowering Patient-Physician Communication for Better Health with Dana Sherwin

    2024/10/24

    The Thinking Patient: Empowering Patient-Physician Communication for Better Health with Dana Sherwin

    How did your recent doctor's appointment go? Did you get the care you needed? Were all your questions answered? Did you feel as if you were a valued patient whose health mattered? If you're like many patients--often older women--the answer to some of these questions is "No!". Everything was rushed. You were in and out too quickly—the time you spent jotting down questions before your appointment seemed like a waste. What was the point if you left the doctor's office confused, frustrated, and angry? After an episode of "Older Women & Friends" about breast cancer, one about problems associated with the pelvic floor, and other health-related episodes scheduled for the future, I felt it important to have a guest who could help define the steps all of us can take to communicate with doctors and get the care and respect we deserve. We know ourselves and our history better than anyone. It's key that we understand how to share that information and to advocate for ourselves. Dana Sherwin was a top hospital administrator for thirty-five years. But when she was diagnosed with a rare blood disease, she made the difficult decision to leave her profession. Her cancer treatment included chemo and, eventually, a bone marrow transplant. She was in the hospital for five weeks and spent many more in her recovery. Along the way, she paid close attention to the care she received. She began to figure out what made a doctor-patient relationship work well and what did not. She admits that she made mistakes along the way and decided to develop the steps for patients of all stripes and health issues and, for that matter, regularly scheduled appointments, that help get the best medical care. "The Thinking Patients" is the result. There are five important steps that Dana suggests and that she details in this episode: PreparationLanguageQuestionsParticipationCourageDana is a five-year cancer survivor and credits her doctors and her self-advocation. She is grateful for the opportunity to help others become "thinking patients." https://www.linkedin.com/in/desherwin/

    32 分鐘
4.8
(滿分 5 顆星)
18 則評分

簡介

Award-winning author Jane Leder and guests take a deep dive into the joys and challenges of being an older woman. "Older Women & Friends" is a podcast that sets the record straight, dispels the myths, explores the many contributions older women make and the wisdom they have earned and are anxious to share. Add a sense of humor, and there are many reasons why older women are the happiest demographic in the country today.

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