Untrained Wisdom

Dr. Serena Liu is a physical therapist who specializes in helping the geriatric population. In addition to working at the Smith Ranch Skilled Nursing Facility in San Rafael, California, she is creator of the @resilientaging Instagram account - an exploration of how to best help older adults navigate the challenges that come with aging outside traditional physical therapy.

In this interview, Serena talks about how she made the decision to focus on older adults and about the types of patients she typically sees. She also shares a success story with one patient in her 90s, and points out the impact of a person's life when adding movement. In addition to the Instagram account, Serena shares valuable - and a few free - resources for older adults on her website.

View PDF Transcript

Serena's Recommendations:
- How Not To Diet by Michael Greger
- Michael Greger's Video Library
- What the Health documentary

Shuva's Recommendation:
- Hal Higdon training plans for runners

If you enjoy this show, click here and follow the instructions to leave a review.

Interested in starting your own podcast? Sign up here for your own Buzzsprout account.

Diana Coleman is the author of Women Going For it! Taking Risks After 50.  Describing herself as a risk-taking motivator, the Maine-based writer chronicled the stories of 26 women in their 50s through 80s that celebrate their resilience and stamina in taking personal risks.

In this interview, Diana talks about how idea of exploring risk-taking after 50 began long before the book, with collecting of survey results from all over the country – prior to Survey Monkey existing. She also discusses a few of the stories in the book, which include a heart attack survivor turned singer in her 50s, and a Roller Derby skater in her 70s. Finally, the author speaks about on how women can share their stories as well as continue their own conversations about the book, which is available on Amazon.

Download PDF Transcript

Diana's Recommendations:
- Around the World on Two Wheels: Annie Londonderry's Extraordinary Ride by Peter Zheutlin
- Books by Elizabeth Strout
- Hanoi, Vietnam

Shuva's Recommendation:
- Maine

If you enjoy this show, click here and follow the instructions to leave a review.

Interested in starting your own podcast? Sign up here for your own Buzzsprout account.

Peggy Averitt is a grateful liver transplant recipient in Orange County, California who has raised awareness for organ and tissue donation as a OneLegacy/Donate Life Ambassador. With her second chance at life, much of this nurse's volunteer time goes toward sharing her story to audiences so they understand the impact of being a donor.

In this interview, Peggy – who celebrated her 7th Liverversary in the summer of 2020 – talks about her diagnosis with end-stage liver disease and the critical decision her doctor in California made that significantly increased her chances of getting a new organ. Peggy also shares some health obstacles she faced as a result of the transplant, which she says has been worth it because she is alive. A grandmother of two, Peggy's enthusiasm for life and her mission caught the attention of Confidence, an online magazine which featured her on its cover in its May/June 2020 issue.

Download PDF Transcript

Peggy's Recommendation:
- Get involved with Donate Life in your state

Shuva's Recommendation:
- Birmingham Civil Rights Institute

If you enjoy this show, click here and follow the instructions to leave a review.

Interested in starting your own podcast? Sign up here for your own Buzzsprout account.

Leyla Alyanak is a journalist and former foreign correspondent from France who, at 43, made a major decision to reinvent herself and travel the world for solo for six months. That trip ended up lasting four years – before cell phones, apps, and Google. During that time, she had numerous adventures, including getting lost in a Mozambican minefield and paddling her way out of a flood in the Philippines.

Now in her 60s,  Leyla travels the world solo as often as she can, documenting it all on Women on the Road, which is a website for solo travel over 50. However, after COVID-19 hit Leyla shifted her focus on her own country. Ever the optimist, she launched a new travel website called Offbeat France in which she shares lesser-known stories the guidebooks don't tell you.

In this interview, Leyla talks about what her first solo trip as a teenager was like, how she supported herself through her journey as an adult, and why solo travel for women is important.  She also shares some valuable tips when traveling solo.

Download PDF Transcript

Leyla's Recommendations:
- Commissario Guido Brunetti mystery series by Donna Leon
- No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith
- Travel to somewhere culturally familiar

Shuva's Recommendation:
- U.S. travel by Amtrak

If you enjoy this show, click here and follow the instructions to leave a review.

Interested in starting your own podcast? Sign up here for your own Buzzsprout account.

Salehuddin and Nahar Ahmed were accustomed to living in different parts of the world for work and education. But they always returned to their home in Bangladesh. It wasn't until their two daughters moved to the Dallas, Texas-area that moving permanently to the U.S. became a consideration. In 2019, the couple was granted permanent residency.  

In this interview, the duo shares what the process entailed and compares life in the U.S. and Bangladesh. They also talk about how they are connecting with youngsters from Bangladeshi families locally and worldwide to teach them their native language, Bengali.

Download PDF Transcript

Salehuddin's Recommendations:
- Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom
- Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins

Nahar's Recommendation:
- Albuquerque, New Mexico

Shuva's Recommendation:
- New England

If you enjoy this show, click here and follow the instructions to leave a review.

Interested in starting your own podcast? Sign up here for your own Buzzsprout account.

After Carleigh Berryman learned her grandmother wasn't as upbeat about life as she used to be, the young woman came up with an innovative idea that would help not only her aging loved one but catalyze a change in the mental health of many senior citizens. Through the 2019 founding of her Washington, D.C.-based company, Viva Vita, Carleigh and her team bring virtual reality (VR) to senior living communities. The curated experiences provided to residents allow engaging interactions while promoting brain health. 

In this interview, Carleigh shares what kinds of content are more favorable for senior citizens, describes a typical facilitated group session, and provides some benefits of VR. Furthermore, she talks about how Viva Vita is making the technology more available to communities outside its metro area. 

See PDF transcript.

Carleigh's Recommendations:
VR:
- Google Cardboard
- Oculus Go 

Books:
- Old Age in a New Age by Beth Baker
- Successful Aging by Daniel J. Levitin

Favorite D.C. museum:
- National Portrait Gallery

Shuva's Recommendation:
- Top Tourist sites in Washington, D.C.

If you enjoy this show, click here and follow the instructions to leave a review.

Interested in starting your own podcast? Sign up here for your own Buzzsprout account.

To say Mary F. Lenox has a way with words is an understatement. A retired university dean, the San Diego, California-based poet draws inspiration from her natural surroundings and regular walks. Several years ago, her observations about the physical world, intertwined with her own evolution as a person, led to a "spiritual practice" of writing a daily poem – a ritual she continues today. Some of those poems can be found in two books she's authored: Threads of Grace: Selected Poems (2015) and Riches of Life: Poems (2019).

In this interview, Mary discusses how different environments have shaped her writing, how she goes about creating a poem, what she hopes readers get out of her poetry, as well as why this form of prose is important. Furthermore, she share a couple of her recent works composed this year, including one after the killing of George Floyd in May 2020.

For anyone who wants to learn more about the art form, Mary suggests listening to The Slowdown podcast hosted by Tracy K. Smith, which introduces listeners to five minutes of poetry each episode.

Mary's Recommendations:
- We Are the Ones We Have Been Waiting For by Alice Walker
- Beauty: The Invisible Embrace by John O'Donohue
- The House of Belonging by David Whyte
- A Summer's Day by Mary Oliver
- On Being podcast by Krista Tippett

Shuva's Recommendation:
- Top 25 Things to do in San Diego, California

If you enjoy this show, click here and follow the instructions to leave a review.

Interested in starting your own podcast? Sign up here for your own Buzzsprout account.

Ann Christenson observed the impacts of climate change early in her adult life. Her interest in raising awareness about the environment compelled her to participate in protests throughout the last decade in Washington, D.C. – one which resulted in a 2011 arrest while opposing the Keystone XL Pipeline. A year later, in 2012, the Iowa mother and grandmother co-founded a group called 100 Grannies for a Livable Future with her friend Barbara Schlachter to give older women like them a platform from which to voice their concerns about anti-environmental actions. Since then, the 100 Grannies – featured in a 2019 MSNBC news story – has made its presence known through Iowa and Nebraska at government meetings and environmental hearings, as well as county-based service organizations, schools, and community events.

In this interview, Ann talks about being arrested, the work 100 Grannies has done she's proud of, and her thoughts on the impact of TIME 2019 Person of the Year Greta Thunberg on younger generations.

100 Grannies has a private Facebook page and can be reached via email at [email protected].

Related:
- Ep. 5: Climate Action Activist Miriam Kashia

Ann's Recommendations:
- "The Splendid and the Vile" by Erik Larson
- "The Library Book" by Susan Orlean

If you enjoy this show, click here and follow the instructions to leave a review.

Interested in starting your own podcast? Sign up here for your own Buzzsprout account.

For more than 30 years, Deepa Balsavar of Mumbai, India, has been developing curricular materials and collaborating with experts to create educational resources. A few of her works led to an opportunity to write and illustrate children's books beginning in 2005.

Since then, Deepa has flourished in her talents as a writer and artist. Her first children's book "The Seed", published by Tulika, was selected in 2007 an Outstanding International Book for Children in the White Ravens Catalogue put out annually by the International Youth Library in Germany. While Deepa views herself as being "the same person that I always was" when younger, she began her 60s with her most recent book "Nani's Walk to the Park" – published by Pratham Books – having earned the Best of Indian Children’s Writing (BICW) Contemporary Awards in 2019.

In this interview, Deepa talks about her journey to becoming a children's author and illustrator, some of her favorite book projects, as well as how she prioritizes her skillsets as a creator. 

Additional Resources:

• This Medium article about "Nani's Walk to the Park" includes images of some draft and final illustrations of the book.
• Deepa's Instagram account 

Deepa's Recommendations:
- Books by David Quammen, Ruth Rendell, and Sue Grafton
- "My Grandmother Sends Her Regards and Apologises"by Fredrick Bachman

Shuva's Recommendation:
- "Phoebe the Photographer: Gets a Camera" written by Beryl Young and illustrated by Darya Shchegoleva

If you enjoy this show, click here and follow the instructions to leave a review.

Interested in starting your own podcast? Sign up here for your own Buzzsprout account.

Shortly after the coronavirus pandemic led New York residents to be in quarantine in March 2020, Deborah Widger realized the most vulnerable population would be socially overlooked. So she reached out to assisted living facilities in New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, and sent out batches of "thinking-of-you" cards to senior residents. The project caught the attention of local media and sparked re-shares of her Instagram posts about her card project. In this interview, Deborah talks about why she wanted to focus on senior citizens, her thought process on choosing cards, the message she decided to write on each, and shares how others can do a similar project in their communities.

If you are interested in sending cards to Deborah or providing a donation, send her a DM (direct message) on her Instagram page.

Deborah's recommendation:
- Bodrum, Turkey

If you enjoy this show, click here and follow the instructions to leave a review.

Interested in starting your own podcast? Sign up here for your own Buzzsprout account.