RESILIENCE IN LATER LIFE…
OR HOW TO HAVE A GOOD “OLD AGE”
HELEN M. DENNISPrincipal and specialist in aging, employment & the new retirement, and co-author of
project renewment ™: the first retirement model for career women
REIMAGINING LIFE: EMPOWERING WOMEN FOR
LIFELONG VITALITY
Resilience in later life…or
How to have a good “old age…”
Helen DennisSpecialist in aging, employment and the new retirement
All rights reserved, Helen Dennis, 2014
Life Expectancy
• 1900 – 47 years
• 2000 – 78 years
• 2011 - 78.7 years
A few statistics
Does a good old age = health?
•Stephen Hawking - ALS
•Mother Teresa - Infirmities
•Franklin D. Roosevelt - Polio
Does a good old age = successful aging?
Does a good old age = 100 years?
New England Centenarian Study – Thomas Perls, MD.
US centenarians today
1 per 6,000 people = 80,000
85% women; 15% men
2050 -834,000 to over 4 million *
Eleanor Manning 102 years
Does a good old age = thriving?
Secrets from the worlds’ happiest people:
• Denmark• Singapore• Mexico• San Luis Obispo
Lesson from the “thrivers”…living better
• Set reasonable goals• Seek safe place to live where people are thriving• Choose community where you have interests• Find modest house with neighbors (friends) and sidewalks• Recognize your purpose• Find a job you love• Take 6 weeks vacation• Be physically active• Spend 6 hours/day with your lover, kids and true friends• Mediate, pray or nap daily• Call your mother
Dan Beuttner
Blue Zone Hotspots
Loma LindaLongest life expectancy in the U.S. M - 88 years; F – 89
years
Okinawa, Japan
• No word for retirement
• Moai
• Hara hachi bu
• Ikigai
Greece (Island of Ikaria)
• Daily naps, walk
• Religion
• Phone
Nicoya, Costa Rica
• Many sexual partners
• Belief on God, work ethic, zeal for family
• Diet – corn/lime, oranges, water
• Visitors
Albert Lea
Goal: Help residents transform the way they eat, work, exercise and play
Restaurants
Employers
Grocery stores
Longevity foods
Walking school bus
Walking…walking…walking
Results: 10 months later• Average life expectancy increased 3.1 years (N=786)
• Average weight loss – 2 pounds
• 2/3 locally owned restaurants added “life extending” food to their menus.
• Grocery stores identified “longevity foods.”
• Consumption of vegetables increased
• Rate of depression decreased
• 20% reduction in absenteeism for key employers
• City employees – 49% decrease in health care costs
Building block #1: Community
EmployersSchools
RestaurantsCity government
Parents
GrandparentsFamilies
Focus groups
Walking groupsPTAS
Workshops
Building block #2: physical activity
Building block #3: Mental activity
By age 70 – lose 10 % of neurons
Building block #4: Personality
• Humor• Charisma• Coping with stress• Extrovert
Building block #5: Attitude
Building block #6: Relationships
“Friends help us live longer.”
Women’s Relationships
Oxytocin
*Source: Shelley E. Taylor, UCLA
Building block #7: Nutrition
Nutrition and lifespan
•Calorie restriction
•Hara hachi bu
Building block #8: Purpose• Those (84%) who had a purpose said they were living the good life.*
• Shifted from pursuing money to pursuing meaning and purpose.
• Okinawa - Ikigai – reason to wake up in the morning
• * Source: MetLife Mature Market Institute
Encore.org
Second Acts for the Greater Good
A nonprofit think tank focused on older people
Purpose ~ Passion ~ Paycheck
CATALINO TAPIAScholarship Founder
Bay Area Gardener’s Foundation
Kathleen Taylor.Co-Founder and Executive Director
Prevention International: No Cervical Cancer
8 Building Blocks1. Community
2. Physical activity
3. Mental Activity
4. Personality
5. Attitude
6. Relationships
7. Nutrition
8. Purpose
Your building block(s)
What can you do to increase your chances
Of having the best – “old” age?
JUST DO IT!
Project Renewment
Renewment® =Renewal + retirement
Everything changed…
Betty Friedan’s
The Feminine Mystique
Is this all there is?
WHO AM I WITHOUT MY BUSINESS CARD?
WHAT IS PRODUCTIVITY…anyway?
A SORORITY HOUSE- NOT A NURSING HOME
LESS STEAM IN MY ENGINE
I WON’T EARN ANOTHER $
WHAT IF HE (SHE) RETIRES FIRST?
I LOST MY KEYS …AND MY CAR
FOREVER GUILTY
www.ProjectRenewment.com
Contact information
www.facebook.com/ProjectRenewment
www.HelenmDennis.com
www.facebook.com/SuccessfulAgingCommunity
310 373-6660
