Let’s talk about music! What has music got to do with aging? I don’t know about you but I love music! I’ve been a fan of music, especially live music my entire life. Do you enjoy music? What genre do you love? Who’s your favorite band? Do you have a particular song that reminds you of an event or time in your life? Your first dance? Your first kiss?

It all started for me in middle school when I joined the band. Yes I was a band geek and I still am at heart. Somehow I decided I wanted to play drums. I’m sure this drove my parents crazy but they supported me anyway. I took lessons and even bought and drum kit. All throughout High School in the mid to late 70’s (remember I’m a Baby Boomer) I was fortunate enough to be friends with the best musicians in our High School band. In fact two of my best friends from that era, Sal who plays saxophone and all woodwind instruments and Alex who plays trombone, are living their dreams as professional musicians to this day. They also teach music! They are enormously talented but work really hard at it too! I have incredible respect for them and anyone who makes music their profession.

Now what was actually cool is that our High School marching band was one of the best in the state of California at the time. We regularly competed in parades where we were judged against other bands from all over and we did really well often winning the competitions. We performed at the halftime shows on the field during our football games. We even marched in the Rose Parade in 1979!

Not only was I able to play in the Marching Band but I was able to learn many different types of percussion and was able to participate in the Orchestra, the jazz band and the pep band which allowed me to learn to play many different styles of music. Looking back on it it was pretty amazing growing up playing music live in front of so many different audiences.

Can you relate? Did you play an instrument growing up? What was your experience with music either playing or being in the audience?

My friends Alex and Sal and I also traveled to Los Angeles and Hollywood to see live jazz played by some of the greatest performers of our time. My favorites were the jazz drummers Buddy Rich and Louie Bellson. They were amazing showmen! Back then we also got to see amazing jazz bands playing at Disneyland too!

Around that time in high school I also fell in love (thanks to Alex) with progressive rock music - Emerson Lake & Palmer, Yes, Pink Floyd, Genesis, Supertramp, Jethro Tull, Kansas. The list goes on. I loved the sophistication of the music. It was almost orchestral! I was always playing their albums and trying to play along with their music on my drum kit.

What type of music did you love growing up? Rock? Heavy Metal? Pop? Country? Jazz? Did you have a favorite band?

With so much musical influence in my life I knew I wanted to see all of these great bands and musicians play music as much as possible and as often as I could.

Living Southern California there were so many venues to see live music between Orange County, Los Angeles and Hollywood. But how could I afford to see all the live music I wanted, the bands that I loved? Concert tickets were costly and I didn’t really have a job back then.

I also wondered if I would be considered cool, part of the in crowd, if I didn’t go to these concerts with my friends. How would I feel if my friends went to the concerts and I didn’t get to go too?

I still remember asking my parents if I could go see KISS in concert when I was around 14 or 15 years old and they said no. I still have a resentment toward them to this day for that even though I’ve seen KISS a few times since. I think that denial fueled my fire to never miss a concert that I wanted to see again!

Somehow, I don’t really remember how, I met a scalper who had connections to the boxoffice at The Forum where The Lakers and Kings played their games. The Forum was also the arena where all of the biggest bands on tour would play. Once or twice a month we would meet up at 6am as a group at a local breakfast spot called Norms in Inglewood. This was on the days the tickets would go on sale and there would be a line around the building of people who had gotten there early to buy tickets.

Do you remember lining up for tickets early in the morning for a concert? Or trying to call Ticketmaster and getting a busy signal and hanging up and dialing over and over again?

Anyway, Ticket Scalper Tony would give us a raffle ticket with a number on it, almost always in the first 10 to 20 numbers which was our place in line. He would also give us a wad of cash to buy a certain number of tickets. We would then show up at a certain time before the ticket office opened and go right to the front of the line. It was really pretty amazing.

I would work with him as often as possible to get tickets to shows. We had the choice to get paid cash or we could get tickets to a concert. I saw countless shows in High School and College through my connection to Tony and on my own. My seats were almost always in the first 10 rows!

I saw Queen, Rush, Yes, Bad Company, Kansas, Boston, Journey, Styx, Supertramp, The Who, Springsteen and Foreigner just to name a few. In college I also saw tons of shows in smaller venues around the area with my fraternity brothers and friends. We saw The Clash and The English Beat at The Hollywood Palladium, (still the greatest show I’ve ever seen live!). Bad Manners,Madness , I saw local bands like X and The Red Hot Chilli Peppers multiple times. I even saw Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr and Liza Minnelli when I was in college. The list goes on and on!

When I hear songs from my iTunes library or I play them on Amazon Prime Music I often flash back to where I was when I saw the band and who I was with. Have you ever noticed that movie soundtracks have familiar songs from our youth? Even Marvel movies like Guardians of The Galaxy or even Deadpool have great soundtracks that take you back in time!

I have so many life experiences and memories tied to the live concerts I’ve seen and the  music I have. It’s like that scene from the movie “High Fidelity” between the record store owner Rob played by John Cusak and Dick played by Jack Black:

• Dick: I guess it looks as if you’re organizing your records. What is this though? Chronological?
• Rob: No…
• Dick: Not alphabetical…
• Rob: Nope…
• Dick: What?
• Rob: Autobiographical.
• Dick: No way!  

If you listened to my “Excuse Me?” episode about my hearing loss I’m sure it can be traced directly back to my love for live music. Throughout the years I’ve seen countless concerts, big and small, with friends and family. Shannon and I have seen many great shows over the years together like Sting, Arrowsmith and LL Cool J but the highlight had to be Prince which was one of the all time greatest individual performances I have ever seen!  I am so grateful I was able to see Prince before he passed away. I remember taking my daughters Molly and Riley to see Britney Spears and taking Riley to see The Foo Fighters! It was an awesome event to experience together! My girls both love live music and I’m sure Piper will too!

So you may be asking yourself what’s the point in all of this and what does it have to do with aging? Mainly it’s because I believe music, especially live music, has given me so many gifts and I believe it can help you too! I also believe that as we age Music can help our brains and our attitudes.

I’ve linked an article in the show notes about Three Scientifically Proven Ways Music Improves The Lives of Older Adults:

https://www.cmsschicago.org/news-blog/three-scientifically-proven-ways-music-improves-the-lives-of-older-adults/

Playing and listening to music can have tremendously positive effects on people, especially seniors, both physically and emotionally. According to studies detailed by Music Education Research International, “Active music participation holds numerous benefits for senior citizens,” from mental and physical health, to overall happiness.

Below are some of the many benefits music can have on older adults.

1. Memory Enhancement

Throughout life, music often finds itself tied to unique memories. A time in your past may be defined by one particular song or style of music. This is no different for seniors; music can have a huge impact on mental health.

A study published in the Oxford University Journal, Cerebral Cortex, found that memory can be improved by listening to music. Music can force a kind of automatic recall, bringing what may have been considered a previously lost memory back to the surface, while also exercising a person’s day-to-day short term memory.

2. Improvements in Overall Health

While music is proven to help with memory, active participation in music has shown to have many other health benefits for seniors, including:

Pain and stress relief, which can lead to a reduced need for medicine and an overall healthier life.

Stroke recovery, where listening to music helps increase verbal memory while also reducing the risk of recovery slowing depression.

Blood pressure and heart health improvement as a result of listening to classical music.

Boosting immune system health, affording seniors the ability to better ward off diseases.

3. Greater Happiness

According to Music Education Research International, “Through music participation, senior citizens are able to (a) increase self-understanding, (b) achieve success as learners, (c) participate in experiences that are rewarding and interesting, and (d) express themselves creatively. These elements have been shown to enhance the quality of life of older adults.”

Here are many ways that I believe Music improves my life today and will in the future.

• When I know I’m going to a concert I look forward in anticipation to the night of the show!
• That excitement helps me feel alive!
• Not everyone listening may love the crowds or the energy of a live show and that’s okay.
• I have thousands of songs in my iTunes library and I subscribe to Amazon Music as well.
• I can pick any song or type of music depending on my mood or what I’m doing.
• I use music in a variety of ways. I’ve always involved in my life
• I know that It’s helped me with my memory and with my mood
• If I need more energy for a workout I know what kind of music or playlist to play
• If I’m driving I pick different genres or eras for music depending on my mood
• If I need to focus I love to listen to ambient or deep house music
• If I’m meditating I listen to beats or natural sounds which has a similar effect to music

Maybe some of these will work for you? Am I leaving anything out? What would you add to the list? I’d be really interested in your thoughts. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected] and let me know.

Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments!

You can also find it in the Google Play Store, on TuneIn Radio, on Stitcher, PocketCasts, CastBox and Pippa. And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media.  You can also reach me directly at [email protected] if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody!

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hey Everybody! I’m fighting a bit of a cold but I think we’re going to get through this. My commitment to you is to publish at least one episode per week and so far I’m on track. This will be the 6th episode in 6 weeks. So let’s do this!

Have you ever had a mentor? Have you ever needed at mentor? Particularly as an adult. Someone you looked up to who you could turn to to help you make decisions or teach you something you were trying to learn? For some people it might be their dad or mom or a teacher or a sports coach.

What is a mentor? Webster's Dictionary defines Mentor as an experienced and trusted adviser. Synonyms - adviser, guide, confidant, confidante, counselor, consultant, therapist.

Thinking back to my college days that was the first time I ever had someone I would call a mentor. His name was Jim and he was my big brother in our Fraternity, Sigma Chi. I joined Sigma Chi back in the early 1980 at Cal State University Long Beach. At the time I really didn’t know anyone at school except my roommate. It was time to meet new people and build some lasting friendships. They had something called Rush Week where you could go from fraternity house to fraternity house to meet the men and get a feeling for each one on campus. Most of the Rush Week Events were parties and there were lots of coeds there as well. At least that’s how I remembered it.

As you go through the week you’re supposed to narrow down your choices on the fraternity you want to join based on whatever criteria you decide but you also hope that the one you want picks you as well. Sigma Chi was always my first choice. Ultimately I received a bid from Sigma Chi and I couldn’t have been happier.

Each pledge class has a trainer who takes you through the process of working as a team, learning about the fraternity and becoming a contributing Active member. Back then there was some physical stress involved but I wouldn’t call the hazing life threatening. Our pledge trainer really looked out for us and our safety. He understood the purpose.

In the beginning each pledge is assigned a Big Brother who coaches him individually through the process based on his, the big brother’s, experience. He’s there to answer questions and make sure you’re making progress to become a contributing member of the fraternity. Jim was my Big Brother and he became a mentor to me and a close friend throughout college and for some time after. I really trusted him which is a huge deal in a mentor / mentee relationship. You may know the saying, “when the student is ready, the teacher appears.” He was the perfect Mentor for me at that time in my life.

For about the last ten years, each time I have been in a position where I needed help and guidance the right person has appeared. I just had to be willing and open to it. But that wasn’t always the case. There was a long period of time from after college until about 10 years ago where I guess I really felt like I didn’t need a mentor. At least I wasn’t actively seeking one out. Which is strange because I knew the value of those relationships.

Have you ever felt that way? Like you had it all figured out? I was going through life, raising our daughters Molly & Riley with my first wife, working and doing the family thing. We were having fun, not a lot of worries during that time. At least that’s what I thought while I was going through it. We were more of a team during many of those early years. But at some point something had begun to change in me. I became less of a team player.

This was the tipping point in my life. I was having the most financial success in my life. I was traveling all the time for business. Life was really good, or so I thought. In retrospect I had really become incredibly selfish and my ego got the best of me. I sometimes joke that “I’m not much but I’m all I think about” but it's true! I started to believe that my success was because of me and I was responsible.

Around 2008 - 2009 when the housing market crashed. The ripple effect throughout the economy was dramatic. Many experts called it a recession. No matter what you called it, It was definitely a crisis. My business dropped about 40% over night and I panicked. I didn’t handle it well at all. I didn’t have anyone to turn to and I began to make a series of horrible decisions. Everything I tried failed. I was financially ruined and I did real damage to my family and those closest to me.

.

With my track record of lack of success I needed to try something different. What I was doing clearly wasn’t working. I needed to find people who could be my experienced and trusted advisors. This was a humbling experience, I had to be willing to ask for help. I had learned that at this point in my life someone like me really shouldn’t make any major decisions unless I bounce it off of one of my mentors and especially my new wife Shannon who helped me so much. She practically saved my life. I had to be willing to take action based on their direction.

At this point I hard really hit rock bottom. I was desperate and knew I needed help. Thankfully my first mentor was of the Spiritual kind. His name was Billy and he helped me understand that I really wasn’t in control of anything. That I needed to shift my perception from Mark centered to Other centered. He challenged me to work hard, to accept where I was and to be grateful. He always said “you know buddy, you’re not in charge of the outcome” and somehow that resonated with me. He helped me learn to put my family and other people in my life ahead of me. Even though we don’t live near each other any more we still stay in contact and I can always turn to him for help and guidance.

I have had other Spiritual mentors over the last 10 years like Jim & Ben who I’ve been able to turn to for guidance. I have people who I consider business mentors who were very helpful throughout this last venture I was involved with. I have also found authors and subject matter experts who I respect and consider Mentors even though I don’t have direct access to them. They write books and have podcasts that I have learned so much from. I have also been involved in Mastermind Groups where we meet regularly and the group really becomes a mentor to help work through various challenges. Mastermind groups could be an entire podcast episode. Stay tuned...

Over the last 10 years things haven’t always gone perfectly. I have made decisions even with good counsel and mentors and good intentions that didn’t end so well. At one point after one of these decisions my daughter Molly said to me “You always come to us and say, this is what I’ve decided is best for everyone in the family”. “What makes you think you know better than I do what’s best for me? What’s best for our family?” Ouch! But it was true! I didn’t know and I didn’t ask them what they thought. My wife used to say, at what point were you going to include me in the decision process? And this could be just picking a restaurant!

Recently a business I had been working on with some partners for more than 5 years came to an end. I talked to some of my mentors about it. I had to examine my part in it. Was it something that I wanted to happen more than the partners did? Or was I relying on someone else to create success for me rather than charting my own course?

I can’t go back in time and change any decision I’ve made, actions I’ve taken or the results of those decisions and actions. I can only learn from the experience and move forward. I can and also turn to my mentors to help me learn from the experience. I have also learned that I’m never to old or experienced to benefit from working with a mentor. Someone will always know more than I do and can help me in the direction of my life. It may sound like most of these examples had difficult outcomes, but that’s where the growth comes from. There have been plenty of positive results from working with the mentors in my life.

What about you? Do you have a mentor or mentors you can turn to? What kind of value have you received from your mentors? Have they changed over time? Where did you find them?

If this episode has you thinking that you could benefit from having a mentor. Here are some areas where mentors can be found:

• Spiritual or Church advisors
• Business Mentors
• Health & Wellness Coaches
• Life coaches
• Psychologists
• Authors
• Motivational Speakers
• Podcasters

Am I leaving anything out? Who would you add to the list? I’d be really interested in your experience. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected] and let me know.

Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments!

You can also find it in the Google Play Store, on TuneIn Radio, on Stitcher, PocketCasts, CastBox and Pippa. And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media.  You can also reach me directly at [email protected] if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics.

Until next time, Thanks, everybody!

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

So I was thinking about a time when we were living in Chicago back in 2012 in a high rise apartment on the 40th floor. A beautiful location right on the Chicago River and Lake Michigan. We had spectacular views of the Navy Pier, Michigan Avenue and the lake. We didn’t have cars so we walked everywhere. We were able to explore the city from the ground level, step by step. It was just my wife and I and our two Chihuahua’s Winston & Brooklyn. This was before Piper came along. We were packed into in about 700 square feet. We didn’t even have a door to our bedroom. But we loved it!

It was around the time of the 2012 election and I was deeply into “Election News”. I was consuming a lot of information on TV, radio and the internet. I’ll admit something, I’ve always been kind of a political junkie. I’m a lifelong Republican and the information was so available because of the internet and social media I was completely over consuming. Honestly, I knew Democrats, especially in Chicago, who were just as obsessed as I was.

I think it was really the first Internet/Social Media election of consequence. Honestly, the whole election was stressing me out. Our place was really small but thankfully chihuahua’s don’t take up much space. Anyway, I don’t even remember why but Brooklyn pissed me off really badly. She might have peed on the carpet for like the 40th time. I was IRATE! I chased her around the apartment with one of those swifter things that you use to mop the floor with. She ran under our bed so fast I couldn’t reach her. I was seeing red and I think if I had caught her I’m not sure what I would have done to her. My wife finally asked me to leave the apartment and take a breather

Once I had a chance to calm down and think about what I had done I realized that my reaction to the situation was way out of perspective. I’m not prone to anger or outbursts. I did owe Brooklyn and apology and promptly gave it to her. In retrospect, I was sure it was stress related.

I really wanted to get a handle on what happened. Why was I so stressed out? We lived in an amazing location, in the best city in the country, work was going well, we were really happy. I had to take stock of what was going on in my life and I knew I needed to make changes.

I realized that I had gotten sucked into all of the drama of the election. I wanted the outcome that I wanted and I was sure it would happen. The information I was consuming confirmed my bias. But I still had doubts and this worried me.

I was borderline obsessed with a future outcome I had no control over. I was spending way too much time, consuming information and the emotional swings were dramatic. It was taking its toll on my psyche and my overall health. I wasn’t sleeping well, I wasn’t eating right, I was wound way too tight. Can you relate? Have you ever felt this way?

The incident with Brooklyn was the tipping point for me. Who gets that mad at an 8-pound dog? And to this day she’s still the nicest dog we’ve ever owned.

I knew I needed to look at the source of my stress. For me, it was “The News” and all the other sources available. This was at the beginning of when Social Media had become a factor in elections. Also, blogs were churning out tons of information. Talk radio was a constant drumbeat. When I sat back and looked at it, all of it was causing me stress!

It was time for a digital dismount. I needed to cut out 90% of what I was consuming. I stopped watching The News because it was all so negative anyway. Some might call it “Fake News” today, I know I do. I believe it was and is designed to upset me, us, no matter what “side” we’re on. It really doesn’t matter if you watch CNN, MSNBC or Fox News they are all trying to do the same thing. They want an emotional reaction from you. That hasn’t changed since 2012 when I made the decision, it’s actually gotten worse.

So I deleted my bookmarks of the blog sites I was following. I stopped listening to Talk Radio and started listening to Books On Tape. More personal development, more positive mindset. I filtered my social media removing all political info and opinion. It didn’t matter if it was coming from a news source or a facebook friend I blocked all of it.

My plan was to see how I felt without all this info in my life. I also focused on my diet, exercise, water consumption and sleep. It didn’t take me long, only a couple days to start feeling better. That election did happen and I did plug back in from time to time to find out the latest. But way less than I was before. When I did plug back in I felt my stress rising.

I was thankful that the election finally was decided so that I could move on. I had to accept the results and carry on with my life. It wasn’t going to affect me anyway. Sure I was disappointed but I’m sure it was less than if I been consuming “The News” at the level I was before or worse.

Here is some survey data for you to think about:

In 2012 A Pew Research survey found that television news viewership had remained relatively stable. 55% say they watched the news or a news program on television yesterday, little changed from recent years.

In 2017 a Pew Research survey found that just 37 percent of Americans got news “often” from local TV last year, down from 46 percent in 2016. Network TV's regular news audience dropped by four points, and now 26 percent of Americans get news often from network TV

Even in 2017 the trend was heading downward. Whether it was because people were then and are now getting their news from other sources, because they didn’t want to feel stressed out or if they realized that it was actually “Fake News” remains to be seen.

As far as I’m concerned since 2012 I have hardly watched “The News” at all and I think it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. That’s a long time! Is anyone out there listening doing the same? And you know I figured out that I can get “my news” when I want to from sources I trust. My main source for information is actually Twitter.

I follow certain people on Twitter who I believe provide value in my areas of interest whether it’s politics, health and aging, business or sports. The list of people expands and contracts all the time. On a daily basis In a short amount of time I can scan the topics “lists” I have created that provide me with the information I’m looking for. And if I find something interesting I can research for more articles and information I want.

I am more in control of the information I am consuming. As opposed to being “spoon-fed” information, especially political information, that fits a certain narrative. And is designed to upset me. Since 2012 my stress level is considerably lower and I feel much better.

Maybe you’re feeling stressed out? Maybe you consume a lot of “The News”? Maybe you are ready to make some changes? Perhaps you would like to try some of the steps I’ve taken to and filter the information that I receive and reduce my stress level. If you do I’m confident you’ll feel better. Reduced stress is one of the keys to healthy aging. Give it a try. What have you got to lose?

Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments!

You can also find it in the Google Play Store, on TuneIn Radio, on Stitcher, PocketCasts, CastBox and Pippa. And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media. You can also reach me directly at [email protected] if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody!

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A couple years ago we were living back in LA and I was getting ready for my annual checkup. I try to be consistent in getting the annual checkup and all the blood work and certainly given my age the colonoscopy which is probably a topic for another episode but I digress.

As I’m walking out the door to the appointment my wife says from the other room “make sure you get your hearing checked”. I’m like, “excuse me?” She says, a little louder this time “make sure you get your hearing checked”. Now, at this point, we’d been together for more than a decade so she knows me and my shortcomings pretty well.

At this point, I’m about 55 years old. She’d always given me a hard time for my “selective hearing” but even I was noticing that I had to have the TV volume up really high in order to hear all the dialog. When we went to concerts I made it a point to wear ear plugs because my ears would ring for many hours after the show, sometimes into the next day. Also I was having a hard time hearing in restaurants with all of the background noise and I was in sales and entertained a fair bit. It’s challenging when you have to say “excuse me?” or “can you please repeat that” or even worse just act like you’re hearing what people are saying when you’re only hearing part of the conversation.

Sound familiar? Can you relate to any of this?

Anyway I reluctantly agreed to ask the Dr to check my hearing. At the appointment, they asked all the usual questions and did all the usual tests but when the time came for the hearing test they had to get this special machine called an Audiometer. You put these little headphones on and they checked my ability to hear sound intensity and tone. The Nurse said the test showed that I definitely had hearing loss and that he would recommend that I visit an Audiologist.

I was referred to an Audiologist in our town by a friend but you can find one by a simple google search. You can also check reviews that way but I went with the personal referral. You would be surprised how many people you know, have an audiologist. I met with Strawberry shortly after and she put me through the whole process from beginning to end. She put me in this little soundproofed room with headphones on and gave me an Advanced Hearing Screening. It only takes a few minutes and gave me a baseline to how I was hearing.

Strawberry showed me an audiogram that displayed my left and right ear. I learned that most people can hear the words people are saying to them, but miss certain syllables that can mix up the words. It’s the frequencies that I don’t hear that’s causing the problem.

I wanted to be present for my wife's and family. It's hard to focus and contribute when you can't hear half of what's being said. I didn't really know anything about hearing loss. I Just thought it was something that happens without age.

I was really being selfish and vain of me. It didn't want to wear hearing aids! What would people think of me? What would they say behind my back? Would they judge me?

I thought it was just one of the challenges with aging. Stubbornly thought I don't have to accept my hearing loss. My quality of life and those around me were affected. I had to be willing to ask for help.

My wife asked me to seriously get my hearing checked. She’s been there with me through a lot. When she asks me to make a change I should listen. She has helped me immensely through our life together to improve as a man a father and a husband. Experience at the audiologist was not as bad as I thought.

I had a 30-day trial to see if the hearing aids would work for me. I was able to visit the audiologist once a week to fine-tune the hearing aids. We actually tried a couple different size cones that go inside the ear to make sure the fit was proper and the quality of sound was good. Also tried a Bluetooth type of device that enabled the hearing aids to hear the phone but that didn't really work so we didn't go with that.

The audiologist in the hearing aids were not covered by insurance. Surprisingly hearing aids or an elective procedure. My audiologist had financing so I was able to afford to pay for my hearing aids over time. After a little while, I got really comfortable wearing hearing aids. But I found in noisy restaurants it was difficult to hear my wife or the company I was with because I hear everything now.

In the end, I found that my quality of life improved dramatically because I'm able to hear vastly better than I could before.  I'm able to be present for my wife when we are speaking to each other even in separate rooms. But mostly when we're together at home or on a date. Also when I go to the movies I don’t wear the hearing aids because the sound is so much louder and I can hear the dialogue just fine. And when I go to a concert I wear ear plugs to reduce hopefully the damage. I still listen to podcasts and music with ear buds and I have to have the sound turned up to enjoy what I’m listening to.

I really don't think twice about wearing the hearing aids in public and with other people will think. My hearing is so much better that I can hear people from across the room. I can't believe that I waited so long to take care of this and I hope because of my story more people will do the same.

Hearing loss statistics at a glance

https://www.healthyhearing.com/report/52814-Hearing-loss-statistics-at-a-glance

• Hearing loss is the third most common physical condition behind arthritis and heart disease, affecting people of all ages
• According to the Hearing Loss Association of America, approximately 48 million Americans (20 percent) report some degree of hearing loss.
• Age is the strongest predictor of hearing loss among adults ages 20-69
• Those age 60-69 have the greatest amount of hearing loss
• 25 percent of American adults have experienced tinnitus lasting for at least five minutes in the past year.
• Adult men (age 20-69) are twice as likely to have hearing loss than women of the same age.
• As women age, they have more difficulty hearing at lower frequencies than do men.
• 3.65 million hearing aid units were dispensed in the United States during 2016.
• The average age of first-time hearing aid wearers is 70 years of age.
• A large number of people wait 15 years from the time they know they have hearing loss until they purchase their first hearing aids (Better Hearing Institute)
• Hearing aid prices range from $1,000 to $4,000 per device depending upon the level of technology they contain.
• Of the 28.8 million Americans (age 20-69) who could benefit from wearing hearing aids, fewer than 16 percent have ever used them.
• Of those age 70 and older who could benefit from wearing hearing aids, fewer than 30 percent have ever used them.

Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments!

You can also find it in the Google Play Store, on TuneIn Radio, on Stitcher, PocketCasts, CastBox and Pippa. And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media.  You can also reach me directly at [email protected] if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody!

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We recently went to The State Fair Of Texas and It is BIG! We got there at 2:30 and left at 7:30. We had a great time! Horses, goats, pigs, sheep. Piper lead the pee wee rodeo parade. We ate plenty of fair food, had In & Out on the way home. Piper was out in the car and my wife was out by 9:00. I’d been eating healthy leading up to that day and the next day felt like doo doo

Piper is 4 years old and I’m 57 years old and I’m with her 4 days a week and she is High energy! I really want to keep up with her, Keep her entertained, Keep her active. I want to actively participate in her activities. To create memories with her.

At the end of the day if I’m not eating right I’m exhausted, she’s spent too much time watching TV or tablet. I’m more tired than she is! When this happens I feel like I’m a bad dad. I’m letting her down, letting technology entertain her. I’m not teaching her how to enjoy outdoors, sports and I’ve failed to create memories.

I stress eat late at night, I gain weight quickly and lack energy. My sleep isn’t quality so I suffer the next day. I finally got tired of feeling exhausted and letting Piper entertain herself. I know what to do with my diet, exercise, water consumption and sleep. I know that food = fuel. A healthy Diet = Energy.

My plan is to consume a healthy protein shake at least one meal per day, usually for breakfast. To have a healthy lean protein meals for lunch and or dinner. To exercise at least 30 minutes per day, preferably resistance training. To drink at least 90 oz of water every day. Remove processed foods from my diet. Avoid potatoes, rice and pasta, substitute veggies. I don’t drink soft drinks or coffee I do drink unsweetened tea

I’ve been Uber driving and it is time-consuming. Making time for exercise is difficult. But I’m Putting my family first! I have been able to improve my energy through careful attention to diet, at least 7 hours sleep per night.

I have much more energy for Piper and for my business. A side benefit is I have better focus and endurance. My suggestion to you is to check your energy every day. Ask yourself are you able to. Get up and move. Remove processed foods from your diet. Eat more lean protein. Drink more water and Reduce soft drinks and alcohol. You’ll be surprised how good you feel and how much energy you have.

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One of the great things about living in the Dallas area are all of the events, festivals and activities during the summer. That’s right, we live in Dallas now. Piper and I went to the Watermelon Festival at the Dallas Farmers Market today. She loved it! She got to pet the farm animals and feed them. She was amazed by the beautiful farm fresh produce. We tried 3 or 4 different kinds of watermelon as we strolled along the vendor stalls. but her favorite was undoubtedly the watermelon cookie she found. She even shared her last bite with me. We really had a great time and can’t wait to take grandma when it gets a little cooler.

I should probably bring you up to date since my first episode. I’m going to share what’s going on with me and my family. Life does happen and Aging Is Optional Radio is meant to document my journey

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What is Aging Is Optional? It’s a manifesto - just listen to the intro of my podcast. It’s a mantra.It’s a mindset. It’s a lifestyle. It’s nutrition, exercise, supplementation, meditation, financial planning, travel, etc.. It’s the guests - subject matter experts, thought leaders, friends maybe even some of my relatives.

My goal, my hope is to document my journey as I apply Aging Is Optional in my daily life, what I have learned, and the progress and/or setbacks I may have along the way.

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