Answers For Elders Radio Network

Dr. Shawn Weiss joins Suzanne to talk about holistic care, why those over 55 should incorporate some of these practices, and share some of the most popular ones that can be done at home. Weiss provides balanced functional wellness education and coaching based on the the six pillars of health: exercise, stress, sleep, nutrition, gut health, and emotional health. Dr. Weiss starts by defining holistic care, saying, "By definition, it's really the ability to take care of your physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, and social health. And really just understanding the connectivity between all of it. We have a very compartmentalized medical system. You have specialists for absolutely everything. Now I'm a firm believer, I've been in that world for the last 26 years. But there's a lot more that you can do. And I call it a sick care system, honestly, because I think that there's a lot of profitability for people being sick, and if you don't take care of your health, now you're going to be forced to take care of your illness later. "Being able to have an open mind to understand that there are other ways to understand how your body works, and understand the connection between your physical and your mental health, your socialization, and your spiritual wellness. There's all kinds of wonderful studies that show, if you dig a little bit deeper, you can get into root cause health and just kind of get to the bottom of why things are happening... We can remedy some of these illnesses and symptoms in a different way." Dr. Weiss has a Spring Into Action promotion, her Thrive over 55! 60 days to Optimal Health Coaching Program. Work personally with Shawn to address all 6 pillars of health, which includes personalized plans of action. Dr. Weiss shared a video called the "Endocannabinoid System, the Hemp Plant, CBD and Optimal Health." Watch this valuable information session featuring Dr. Erin Luecke, PT, DPT and Dr. Shawn Weiss, PT, DPT. Learn how the ECS impacts our health, the importance of sourcing, breaking stigmas, and how to encourage conscious conversations. Watch it here: https://youtu.be/lUShMGDhSUc?si=Va8EauCWVHt7b6nl Learn more: Shawn WeissSenior Health and WellnessHealth and Fitness Coasting for Optimal Healthmore podcasts with Shawn WeissThrive over 55 Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Diagnoses of depression and anxiety have risen 25% since the pandemic. Dr. Shawn Weiss joins Suzanne to talk about ways depression and anxiety can be reduced holistically. One of the best things to do for depression and anxiety is to exercise. If you are over 50 and are feeling a bit lost and want to make changes, check out Shawn Weiss's Fit Over 50 30 day Coaching Program that will address the 6 Pillars of Health, that includes improving emotional health. How do you start? Shawn says, "The first thing, you have to get an assessment. There are many wonderful standardized assessments. Just going to your primary care physician would be my first suggestion, because they will point you in the right direction, and then they start trying to rule out other things. If you have somebody who has cognitive impairment, it's very difficult to diagnose because there are overlapping concerns. There's a term called pseudo dementia, when somebody who believes they're demented, but they're actually severely depressed. You do the screenings and you're really trying to weigh and pinpoint exactly what's happening. Medicare has our standardized depression questionnaires that we do with everybody. And if you meet that criteria, then you really should do something about it. Medication is probably the first line of defense in depression, simply because it just takes the edge off, and once you improve those symptoms, especially if you have cognitive impairment, you'll tend to see an improvement on the other side of that. "I'm always going to say, well, I don't want to do medication, that would be the last resort. You want to address the underlying causes of the depression. Is it a big life event, is a stressor triggering it? You're going to dig a little bit deeper, and you can do that even in counseling, and a lot of people in the older generation don't want to go to counseling, but there's so many things that you can identify. Like, there's been a death in the family, and maybe there's going to be your health diagnosis, all these things that can trigger sadness. Therapy is really good because it allows your brain to process." Dr. Weiss shared a video called the "Endocannabinoid System, the Hemp Plant, CBD and Optimal Health." Watch this valuable information session featuring Dr. Erin Luecke, PT, DPT and Dr. Shawn Weiss, PT, DPT. Learn how the ECS impacts our health, the importance of sourcing, breaking stigmas, and how to encourage conscious conversations. Watch it here: https://youtu.be/lUShMGDhSUc?si=Va8EauCWVHt7b6nl Learn more: Shawn WeissSenior Health and WellnessHealth and Fitness Coasting for Optimal Healthmore podcasts with Shawn Weiss Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joan Rettmann from Transforming Age joins Suzanne to talk about the definition of a life plan community and what it offers residents. Joan says, "A lot of different terms are used in the industry, and this is a classic example of where things get confusing. A life plan community is really an umbrella term that covers independent communities that have additional care levels available, such as assisted living, memory support, and normally skilled nursing as well. "That term 'life plan' is actually replacing, if you will, the term CCRC, or continuing care retirement communities. So they can really be used interchangeably now. Within that umbrella of life plan or CCRCs, there are various models that differ from one another — different contracts such as a type A life care, a type B modified, or a type C fee for service." * Transforming Age website * Hear more podcasts about discovering senior living Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Somebody comes into independent living in a retirement community. What does it offer? Generally it takes care of housekeeping, provides meals, and lots of social activities. Joan Rettmann from Transforming Age joins Suzanne to summarize the various offerings. Joan says, "One of the things that a lot of people appreciate most is a release from some of the domestic responsibilities, like housekeeping for instance. Not having to do that is quite appealing to a lot of folks. There's always a meal plan. So it's not surprising that food is oftentimes towards the top of the list. Various meal plans are offered; sometimes it might be one meal a day included, or potentially up to three. The third key area would be in terms of the activities that are offered, or lifestyle events that are offered in a community. So that might be lectures, seminars, fitness classes, those kinds of things. "If it's one that's just independent living, and there aren't additional care levels available, it's usually on the lighter side with meal services. So it might be one meal a day that's included. Housekeeping may not be as frequent as, say, in communities that offer additional levels of care. There might be a great activities calendar, but it might not be quite as robust as the other models. Regardless of what option you're looking for, it's good to compare to make sure those differences become very clear." * Transforming Age website * Hear more podcasts about discovering senior living Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The term 'retirement community' covers a lot of different types of options, some with care, some without care. Joan Rettmann from Transforming Age joins Suzanne to talk about what they all mean. Joan says, "There are a lot of terms that are used out there in the industry. The first step may potentially be one that falls in the category of 55 plus, starting with a younger age group. A lot of times those communities can be designed in an apartment-like complex. They can be more of a campus-like setting or a town home. Some folks choose that option if they're ready to have a little bit of a lower maintenance lifestyle, but still have it feel most similar to the situation that they had been living in. They typically come with some sort of a community space too. Maybe it's a specific building designed for that, or there are common areas, central areas for people to come together and enjoy that social experience without necessarily all of the maintenance responsibilities of their former home." If you're looking to retire or downsize, ask yourself some key questions. Joan says, "Regardless of age, sometimes a lot of folks assume that, they have to wait till a certain age to consider it. Or that's a goal that they have in mind. Rather than looking at a number, look at other things. Ask yourself some other important questions. First of all, 'Do I have any health diagnosis that might I might need care within the next year or two?' Then that might tell you, maybe I'll focus on communities that have care services built in as part of it, instead of ones that are independent only. "Next would be: 'What are my goals? What do I want? What would be my expectations when looking at a community?' For some people, the socialization piece is top on their list. Maybe where they're living right now, that piece is missing. So they want that piece, which is really common in retirement communities. Other people are more private by nature, so what's more important to them would be the types of care available. If something changes in the future, maybe they're more focused on certain amenities. A big reader will want to make sure they have a great library. Or a pool, or other things that I want to do more independently. So the amenities can be part of it. But definitely think about what's important to you in the long term as well. If something changes down the road, how comfortable am I with the the plan for the services that may or may not?" * Transforming Age website * Hear more podcasts about discovering senior living Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joan Rettmann from Transforming Age joins Suzanne to talk about various independent living retirement options. People are starting to explore senior living options at an earlier age. We're seeing a shift to people in their 60s and early 70s, people looking to improve their quality of life. What seems like a forever home could get in the way of other priorities. Retirement communities can provide a low-maintenance lifestyle with more social opportunities. Joan says, "The use of technology has changed, become more and more important. You'll see that play out in a lot of different ways in retirement communities. One that stands out to me that's most fun is in one of our communities, Madison Park. They use innovation in the form of robots as dining servers, to provide more opportunity for the dining team to kind of be front and center and more personal with the residents. These adorable little robots named Salt and Pepper are running back and forth from the kitchen to deliver food. Residents love it. Residents were involved in naming the robots. They're fun topics of conversation. When grandkids come in, they want to make sure they get to see the robots. So that's a lot of fun, but also just in the design of building. Juanita Bay will be lead certified to become one of the greenest communities in the nation. So a lot of great changes and and a lot of great changes evolving with technology." Transforming Age is a nonprofit organization committed to improving the lives of older adults by integrating housing, community services, technology, philanthropy, and partnerships. The Transforming Age network of affiliates offers high quality housing communities in great locations including Continuing Care Retirement Communities, Active Adult, Affordable Housing, Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Support and Skilled Nursing. * Transforming Age website * Hear more podcasts about discovering senior living Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sean Joseph, CEO of Jordan River Moving & Storage, joins Suzanne to talk about how to make your move as smooth and stress-free as possible. The better you prepare ahead of time, the smoother the move will be. Sean says, "If you want the move to be fast and smooth, we would like to see boxes and furniture. So the boxes will be all packed and taped on the top, nicely closed, flat, no items sticking up. Because then our guys will come in, take all the boxes immediately to the truck, and be fast, because they're working fast. Then we will handle the furniture for you. We will disassemble the bed. We will take off the legs of the dining room table, and we're gonna wrap all your furniture with heavy duty moving blankets. And we'll take it to the truck. So what's important here? Clear out spaces. If you leave the room with a bed in the middle like we had last week, all around it was a lot of mess, from clothes. The movers called me and I said, guys, take the bed. It is what it is, but that's not how it's supposed to be. If it's a local move, that will take forever, and it costs you a lot more money. Boxes and furniture. That's what we would like to see if we not find boxes. We will gladly supply boxes. "We deliver empty boxes to you with no charge. We can come a few times, because we want you to be prepared, do your own packing. We'll give you the tape, we're not charging for the tape. We'll show you how to tape the box properly. We will give you smart tape so you can mark which room to deliver to at the destination. The better you prepare, the easier smoother and money saving it will be." Sean adds, "If you have questions, go on our website, use the chat. We will answer it even if you're not using us, really. If you want to use a moving company in different state, and you're not quite sure, I will do the research for you... For us educating the consumer is the most important thing. That's why on our website, people should take the time and read the blog. We have informative and helpful blogs. So ask neighbors, ask friends, get advice. We're always ready and willing to help whether you use us or not. We want to protect you." Learn more: Jordan River Moving & Storagehttps://jordanrivermoving.com/ Hear more: Senior moving podcastsMoving to senior living podcasts Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast: Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A lot of seniors get taken advantage of by moving companies. In this segment, Sean Joseph, CEO of Jordan River Moving & Storage, joins Suzanne to talk about how to avoid moving scams. Sean says, "A lot of people think that everything on the Internet must be cheap, safe, and good. All those are wrong assumptions. Websites [can be] completely made up, the five star reviews that been posted on the website are completely fake. By the way, I just filed two complaints with the FBI about all those five-star fake reviews that are posted by all of those people. It's a major issue, and seniors are booking with those people, who collect a 35% deposit on a long-distance move, and after that, they sell the job to someone else. It's always go back to the basics. You must ask for in home estimate to protect yourself. "When they offering you an online binding estimate, forget about it. If it's not in writing, it's not an estimate. So what's happening? Because nobody came and visited, they claim later, oh, based on your information, it was only 10 boxes, but now you have 40 boxes. Stay away from a situation like this." Regarding cubic feet vs weight, Sean says, "Everybody can [put items] in a truck and spread it to different cubic feet. I can put it in 200 cubic feet, or 300, or 500, that's what [a non-legit] company is doing. Do not move with any company who charges by cubic feet. There is a reason why the state department, the military, and state agencies use weight. If you have any question, you're not sure about anything, you can ask for a reweighing, which should be free. Visit the scale house, watch the first and second weighing." Learn more: Jordan River Moving & Storagehttps://jordanrivermoving.com/ Hear more: Senior moving podcastsMoving to senior living podcasts Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast: Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sean Joseph, CEO of Jordan River Moving & Storage, joins Suzanne to talk about how to find trustworthy providers to help seniors with moving. This segment focuses on in-home estimates. Make sure items that are priceless to you are packed appropriately, and moving companies are there to provide these services. Sean says, "So when we go to the house, first of all we would like to see what we're dealing with. We will go room by room, and ask what needs to be moved, what services are required from us to perform on the day of the move. And we will engage in conversation, and pretty much try to give advice of how to prepare for a smooth move. There will be a lot of questions that we usually answer with seniors. A lot of them didn't move often. You need to listen to what the customer says is important and what what they want to do. "You need the person to understand, we can do it for you. They are here to help you. Sometimes it's just five minutes for us, but for you it's a few hours, and maybe involved more physical labor that you don't need. They still think they can do a lot more than what they can really do. And let me give you an example of how we can make it easier for you. Instead of putting all those clothes in your car, I can use wardrobe boxes. We can pack the china for you. It's not going to add too much to the move. We are here to help, we are here to provide service." Learn more: Jordan River Moving & Storagehttps://jordanrivermoving.com/ Hear more: Senior moving podcastsMoving to senior living podcasts Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast: Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you're thinking about the next chapter of your life, and downsizing or senior living is on the horizon, this month Suzanne covers all aspects of the process, starting from the beginning. In this episode, Sean Joseph, CEO of Jordan River Moving & Storage, joins Suzanne to talk about how to plan, what to take with you, and how to find trustworthy providers to help seniors with moving. It's a monumental step for someone who's lived in the same home for more than 50 years, and often an emotional turmoil to depart from that home. Sean says, "Just last Friday, I went to a couple, I think they were 80 years old. They lived in the same house since 1970, and we're going through the items, and she needed to downsize. It was just difficult for her to go through the process. I was listening and I gave my opinion. And I listened to her, and she said, ' this is my china, this is important.' She had so much stuff, Suzanne, so much stuff. And I told her, you're downsizing to a new townhome, you have to make decisions. I mean, it's not easy. Get the family involved. She was planning to give it to a family member, and that's a lot of things, but it's important for the family." Suzanne adds, "It's also the emotional connection to the bricks and mortar of the home, because there's memories. One of the things I always tell families to do is write letters to the new owners, and leave them in different areas of the room. This was my room. This is what I remembered happening here. It's a way of continuing forward that memory, that whoever is going to take that home next to you is going to is going to honor that, they're going to realize that a life lived in that home." Why Sean goes to your home to make an estimate, he explains, "First and foremost, it is a requirement, even if a lot of people doesn't want it. It's basic protection for the consumer. We want to go visually inspect the house. That's the only way of really doing an estimate. The video estimate it's good too, to deal with the technology, but the elderly are not as computer savvy with the phone and camera. And also, it's a trust issue. We have to visually see and explain, and for us, if we do the job, prepare, and tell them what needs to be done. The last thing we want is to come to a house unprepared, and cause stress to elderly people. You know, for them the movie is stressful no matter what. People coming to their home now, after so many years that they lived there and protected their items, precious things they accumulated during the years. And suddenly, strangers are coming in. We want to make them feel comfortable and build trust." Learn more: Jordan River Moving & Storagehttps://jordanrivermoving.com/ Hear more: Senior moving podcastsMoving to senior living podcasts Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast: Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this bonus episode of Answers for Elders, Suzanne introduces the new podcast of estate planning specialist David T. Phillips: Estate Planning Made Easy. Visit the podcast's YouTube channel to watch the show, or subscribe and listen to the podcast by following these links on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. By law every American can gift $18k annually, to anyone they want, completely gift, estate and income tax free. Many are reluctant to use their gifting allowance. But proper gifting will not only give the giver fulfillment during their life, it can produce generations of powerful, productive people. Learn how to leverage your annual gifts to the max. Learn more: Estate Planning Made Easyshop.empez.comThe 10 Most Common Estate Planning MistakesGenerational Wealth StrategiesWealth Creation Strategy TableSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lindsay Friedman and Shannon Lyons join Suzanne to talk about peace of mind and other reasons for getting their innovative health monitoring system Care Bloom to help senior loved ones age in place in their homes. Listeners, sign up for free to win one year of Care Bloom! Care Bloom is holding drawings in June and September 2024. There's no obligation or commitment to purchase. Learn more at https://carebloom.com. Lindsay explains the need for Care Bloom. "It's really important because people want to stay in their homes. People are aging much more rapidly than they have been. Caregiving is on the rise. Caregiving is a very hard challenge that we all are going to have to face as our parents are aging. And also our [number of] home health workers are decreasing. If you want it, that cost is increasing. So there's less of them, and it's only going to get more and more expensive to have somebody come and help. It's going to be unaffordable if you could even find somebody. And on top of that, our nursing homes are struggling. The care is not good, the cost is increasing. I see a lot of future closings, and where are you gonna put mom? So we need something that can really help. And Care Bloom is a great care partner to help with care for their family." Care Bloom is a $199 per month subscription, and you get the hardware for free. Shannon says, "This is something that we spent quite a bit of time on, because it is a hardware, right? We provide a smart watch. We provide hardware for the rooms, but we really wanted to make it an easy purchasing decision for a family." Multiple family members can use the app. "If brother and sister want it, and then you want a neighbor to have a little bit less [access], that's an option as well. So the app allows you to add as many people as you want, because obviously we can't all be with mom at one time. So we want to make sure that we're giving you the opportunity to provide all the care you can." Hear more podcasts about aging in place. Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Through the use of a watch, room sensors, and an app, Care Bloom provides 24/7 health monitoring services for caregivers. Lindsay Friedman and Shannon Lyons join Suzanne to talk more about the Care Bloom watch and app, an innovative new tool to assist senior loved ones with aging in place. Listeners, sign up for free to win one year of Care Bloom! Care Bloom is holding drawings in June and September 2024. There's no obligation or commitment to purchase. Learn more at https://carebloom.com. Shannon describes the information a caregiver can see on the app. "We really want to pull the most important information forward for a caregiver. You're gonna be able to see information like vitals, so that would include temperature, blood pressure, heart rate, and oxygen saturation. You're also going to be able to see accurate location data, where they're spending most time, if they're in the living room, kitchen, bathroom, and really how how the mobility looks throughout the home. And then the last one is, you're going to be able to see important health behavioral data. "We know that there's a lot of smart watches on the market that tell you you're going to get this health and wellness data. How we're different is that we take that health data, and we put it in the context of behavioral. And those things look like sleep, mobility, or steps throughout the home, and then self-care, like toileting and bathroom, so that you can really be proactive in your care. You're not finding out that mom hasn't left her bedroom for six hours and you're getting off of work and saying, 'mom, what's going on.' You're going be able to see that there's stagnation, and maybe something's wrong, so that you can communicate earlier, find out what's going on, and be more proactive with what your next steps are. We also thought it was really important to be able to set alerts in the home. So if there's a restricted room — a room that is a fall risk, like the basement, garage, or stairwells, we want to be able to tell you, hey, mom's out in the basement right now, and you can call her and say, 'hey, I'm coming over after work to do laundry. I see that you're in the basement. Let's make sure you get up those stairs,' so that you're not finding out about it after that. Or if your loved one has issues with leaving the home at times that they're not supposed to, or maybe wandering, we want to make sure that elopement is part of the alert package, so that it really is sort of all of those behaviors. And then if your loved one needs assistance, they can actually request it through their watch. And that notification goes directly to your app. It's a push notification, and you can see mom needs help, she's currently in the bathroom, and you're able to make a plan for what's next." Lindsay gave an example of Care Bloom solving a problem. "We had one individual who was talking about how lightheaded he was, and feeling fatigued, and he was an elderly gentleman, and you start to wonder what's going on. His vital signs were looking good, but after watching him for a series of days, we were noticing that there were no toilet activities. So, went in and kind of monitored him for a little bit, and he wasn't drinking. No one was there reminding him it's time to have a glass of water, it's time to drink during the day. And dehydration really plays heavily on our seniors with confusion and all of that. It was an easy thing to remedy, that we were able to see within a matter of days. No doctor trip, nothing. And it was a quick fix that, just from looking at the data, was able to be resolved." Hear more podcasts about aging in place. Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lindsay Friedman and Shannon Lyons from Care Bloom join Suzanne to talk about an innovative new home-monitoring tool to assist senior loved ones with aging in place, living independently in their later years. Through the use of a watch and app, Care Bloom provides health monitoring services for caregivers. You'll be able to purchase Care Bloom beginning in June. Listeners, sign up for free to win one year of Care Bloom! Care Bloom is holding drawings in June and September 2024. There's no obligation or commitment to purchase. Learn more at https://carebloom.com. Lindsay explained how Care Bloom came about. "All through college, I was a state-tested nursing assistant. So, with the experience, when my grandma needed to a family caregiver, I got designated to take that role. While she was in Cleveland, where we are from, I was taking care of her in the home. But she did want to go back to Florida where, once she got to Florida there, we got her aid. So she had a rough time. And my grandma would complain to me, and say they're not doing what they're supposed to do. They're not there when I wake up at night. The caregivers were saying she's confused, it's night time, and was already in her nineties, so that was the case. Well, one night she was calling out for them in her room, and asking them to come and help her, and they couldn't hear because they were asleep in her guest bedroom. So she decided to get up on her own to go use the restroom, and she fell, and she broke her femur. And that ended her time at home. It ended up being what caused the end of her life. And, you know, my story is a common one. It is more common than not. So I decided that there has to be something that we can do, to make sure that grandma and mom can be home. I've got to do something, and Care Bloom was born." Shannon describes Care Bloom. "It is a monitoring system. Your loved one wears a watch. It actually looks very similar to a Fitbit. So this is not a medical device. It's very cool looking. And there's actually a lot of really lovely data that most people actually get in tune with, such as what their daily activities look like. That's the watch. Each room has an anchor which is connected to an outlet. So you just plug it into an outlet in each of the rooms that you want monitored. You have a gateway, and that gateway sends all of the information to your app. So as a caregiver, you'll use the Care Bloom app. And it really gives you a snapshot of what your loved one's daily activities are, and their health status. "So, really quick, you're able to see on one page page, everything's green, Mom's good to go, and you can go about your day. It's more insight than we've ever had, in some ways, on their behaviors. You could also send reminders to your loved one, that goes to their watch. So, 'mom, hey, it's time to take those meds.' And so we're really looking at care plan compliance. We're looking at supporting health behaviors, and making sure that there's some accountability. So if your loved one does have a home health worker, you can actually designate tasks for that worker and confirm that they occur. So if medication should be taken at 10 a.m., they should be checking into the kitchen and taking that med. If mom's not in the mood for a shower, they're able to say, hey, you know what, she was not in the mood to take a shower today, it did not occur, so that the next day when the health worker comes, they know what that week look like. So it's a lot of interesting data." Lindsay says, "Our largest goal, which really is probably impacting all of your listeners right now, is we're trying to improve the process of caregiving." Hear more podcasts about aging in place. Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you or your relatives want to build a new structure, or get modifications done on your house, there are resources to make sure that the builders are doing it right. Dr. Jill Bjerke joins Suzanne to talk about aging in place constructions as part of this month's Specialist Spotlight on Aging in Place. A home assessment at silverspaces.com provides guidelines and recommendations to design an aging in place home, like lever handles on doors and faucets, a raised dishwasher so you don't have to bend down so far, a stove that has controls in the front, a low-maintenance exterior, things you ordinarily wouldn't think about with new construction. Dr. Jill says, "You can't predict your future. I had knee surgery, I had joint replacement. And boy, did that give me a firsthand view of what it's like to have to use a walker, and to have to shuffle, and... I have stairs. I shouldn't have stairs. How am I going to get up and down the stairs? So this assessment really gives you a picture of what you could be facing in the future if you're not thinking about it." Learn more at silverspaces.com. Hear more podcasts about Silver Spaces with Dr. Jill Bjerke. Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Silver Spaces is an online home safety assessment tool with a lot of research behind it. It works by taking you through each of your rooms, have you answer questions, and get educated along the way. For this month's Specialist Spotlight on Aging in Place, Dr. Jill Bjerke joins Suzanne to talk about the benefits of Silver Spaces. Only 25% of people who suffer from a broken hip are able to return home after they recover. The biggest injury that older adults incur comes from trips and falls, and they are preventable. A $39.95 assessment at Silver Spaces (silverspaces.com) could mean the difference between a good quality of life and living in a senior living community. Dr. Jill says, "I've been in the senior services realm for 18 years. I own a downsizing company; I had so many people tell me they wish they didn't have to move that. I spent about nine years researching and creating this electronic product, which is an electronic home safety assessment. I talked to gerontologists, researchers, city planners, interior designers, just about anybody you can think of, to try and come up with a content for their safety assessment. I was trying to cover as many bases as I could. So a lot of research and a lot of work went into creating this. It's SilverSpaces.com and it explains what it is and how to use it. The whole purpose is to go from whatever room — there's 18 rooms and places you can assess in the house, you can pick which ones you want to do. You just answer the questions, and you get educated as you go along, because you don't realize that some of those could have been risk places or safety issues. For example, 'I have a smoke alarm. I can hear it.' If you have someone with hearing aids, can they hear it when they don't have their hearing aids in? "When you sign up, it will ask you questions about your community, because a lot of people don't think about how their community may have changed. It may no longer be safe, and then [it] asks general home questions. Do you have a second bedroom for a caregiver? Do you have a second bathroom? Do you have a lot of stairs? Do you have zero thresholds, meaning flat thresholds, are your doorways wide enough for a wheelchair or walker? And then it goes into every single room you can possibly think of. You can pick the room you want to do, and the questions are right there. You just answer them. Do you have sharp countertop edges in your kitchen? Why is that important if you fall? That's an immediate possibility for a traumatic brain injury. So all of these different kinds of questions that people usually do not think about. And when you're done, you submit it. And what comes back is either a PDF or a printable version, so that you can have it in your hand. You can send it to a doctor, or a modification professional, or a relative. You can take it to a modification professional and get bids on whatever you think you need to change. So it's a very very usable product." Dr. Jill adds, "We do the exterior. Not in detail, but we ask things like, do you have a tree that drops berries on your concrete? That's a slip and fall hazard. Do you have grass that grows over the edges of your sidewalk? That's a slip and fall hazard. Do you have landscaping that takes a lot of maintenance? That's an issue. Do you have an overhang where at the door that you come in and out of, because you need protection from the elements. That's slippery. Do you have a non-slip surface when you step outside? "We ask as many questions as we can. But the problem is, if we ask all the questions — I have 300 of them — it would take you a couple of hours to do. So we had to be very selective, and ask the most important questions, which is why I had so many people work on this with me." Learn more at silverspaces.com. Hear more podcasts about Silver Spaces with Dr. Jill Bjerke. Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks. See omnystudio.com/listener for...

During our lighting round segment on the Answers for Elders radio show, expert Dr. Jill Bjerke joins Suzanne to answer three top questions about aging in place as part of this month's Specialist Spotlight. 1. When should anyone start thinking about remaining in their home? “Probably as soon as possible. At retirement, before retirement. When you feel unsafe in your home. Really, almost any time is a good time to start thinking about it because there's so many decisions to be made." 2. Who should help someone make a decision on this? “Basically, you'd probably start with your family. But you'd surprised how much your friends, churchgoer, friends, neighbors — people who know you well — can look at your house with different eyes. You see it every day, they don't. You'd be amazed to see things that you aren't even aware of.” 3 How do people pay for modifications to the home? “It sounds like an intimidating question. It's not. If you go to the government site National Institute on aging.gov (https://www.nia.nih.gov/), they have a whole host of ideas of where you can look. Every county in the United States has an area agency on aging, AAA as they're called. They have all kinds of information on aging in place, but they also have information on funding. There are states that are offering grants for home modifications. So you might want to check and see if your state has any of those. You can also use a home equity loan, a reverse mortgage, there are ways to do it. It just depends on what your financial needs are and what is best for you.” Learn more at silverspaces.com. Hear more podcasts with Dr. Jill Bjerke at https://answersforelders.com/silver-spaces/doctor-jill-bjerke/. Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network at https://www.seniorresource.com/. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks: https://alzheimersspeaks.com/. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month's Specialist Spotlight on Aging in Place features Dr. Jill Bjerke, the creator of Silver Spaces, an online assessment tool to help you identity safety risks and dangers in your home that you haven't noticed. If you want to remain in your home in your later years, Dr. Jill talks talks about many of the risks you can avoid. Dr. Jill says, "Every 20 minutes, according to the National Institutes of Health, an adult over 65 dies from a fall. That is so unnecessary. Things like this assessment are out there to identify where trip-and-fall hazards are. And they can be so insidious. You walk over that same darned carpet every day, and you don't realize the edge is frayed. And now, all of a sudden, a zipper catches on it, and you go down. It shouldn't be that way." Learn more at silverspaces.com. Hear more podcasts with Dr. Jill Bjerke at https://answersforelders.com/silver-spaces/doctor-jill-bjerke/. Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network at https://www.seniorresource.com/. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks: https://alzheimersspeaks.com/. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Jill Bjerke, CEO of Silver Spaces, joins Suzanne for this month's Specialist Spotlight on Aging in Place. People don't ask these questions enough. We get emotionally attached to a locale, and while our health and lifestyle changes, our home stays the same. Tasks that seem so simple can become complicated when we age. Dr. Jill says, "Aging in place is different than people think. It's not, "I'm gonna live in my home forever." There are a lot of decisions that have to be made. The biggest ones are things like finance, transportation, health, socialization, all of those things you need to think about either at retirement, before retirement. What am I gonna do about my finances? I'm still gonna have maintenance on my house. I'm still gonna have to pay someone to shovel my snow. How's my health? Is it good enough for me to stay home or will it deteriorate in the future? What if I can't drive? How am I gonna get places? How am I gonna get church, get my hair cut, whatever. What options are there? Are there senior services in your town? And then obviously socialization, that's the biggest barrier to aging in place is becoming isolated. So how can you avoid that? Is your church close enough where you can walk? Do you play bingo? Do you play cards? Can you get there? Can someone pick you up? Meeting with other people is absolutely vital to longevity.” When should you start this planning? “It really should start when you're thinking ahead about retirement, because that's the time to think about. When you get to your seventies or eighties, all of a sudden it becomes, 'Can I stay here?'” Learn more at silverspaces.com. Hear more podcasts with Dr. Jill Bjerke at https://answersforelders.com/silver-spaces/doctor-jill-bjerke/. Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network at https://www.seniorresource.com/. Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks: https://alzheimersspeaks.com/. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you're caring for a loved one who is cognitively impaired, this hour is for you. Dr. Shawn Weiss joins Suzanne this hour to talk about giving yourself some grace and working on self-care to lessen burnout during the overwhelming experience of family caregiving. Dr. Weiss talks about recognizing the symptoms of burnout, working on self-care, and giving yourself some grace. Burnout will lead you to have a short fuse, the last thing you need while caregiving. Take time and step back, find ways to de-stress, and have someone you can vent to. Knowledge is power. The more you are prepared, the better as your loved one's dementia worsens. When it comes down to it, you have to make sure you're taking care of yourself and finding people that can help. If you have to take a break, make sure you come back refreshed, don't feel guilty about it. Have trusted people around you. You don't want to wait till it's too late to find the right people, because then you'll be forced to make quick adjustments and not find the right people. Get a free guide for cognitive impairment strategies at https://www.seniorhealthandwellness.org/freeguide. Learn more: * Shawn Weiss: https://answersforelders.com/shawn-weiss/ * Senior Health and Wellness website: https://www.seniorhealthandwellness.org/ Hear more podcasts about: * Aging in place: https://answersforelders.com/tag/aging-in-place/ * Dementia: https://answersforelders.com/tag/dementia/ Answers for Elders is part of the Senior Resource Network: https://www.seniorresource.com/ Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks: https://alzheimersspeaks.com/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.