A post by aging experts Linda Stoler and Gretchen Espinetti:
Barbara, thank you for inviting us to visit your blog! We’re excited to get the word out about our book, Transforming Your Aging Brain, to introduce the joyful Multi-Modal Method (MMM) that makes such a difference in our overall wellness as we age.
We know that the MMM works because we have experienced the transformation in our professional and personal lives.
Many years ago, after fifteen frustrating years working with children in speech pathology using traditional methods, Linda, while on a sabbatical, spent time getting in touch with her authentic creativity. Linda saw that music, movement, manual motion (sign language) and mindful meditation made a startling difference in the children she taught as she returned to her work in speech pathology.
The MMM has worked very well with Linda’s 94 year old mother with dementia, others in assisted living with dementia and Alzheimer’s as well as Gretchen’s father who is in the early stages of dementia.
We’ve done extensive research to support our “theories” so that we could present the book in a way that would be credible for the professional community as well as for the average person caring for an aging parent or loved one. The book is also intended for seniors over 50 who are looking for ways to enhance their own well being as they age.
We have researched studies that have proved that our brains actually continue to rewire and reactivate as we age. Our book offers techniques to exchange negative messages of the past for an elevated, positive outlook. Studies prove that a holistic, positive approach to life can actually prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s and dementia in many people. There is evidence from autopsies showing that though Alzheimer’s was in the brain during life, the elders with a positive outlook showed no signs of it.
We’ve offered evidence that supports our premise that fun, creativity, movement, music, meditation, manual motion, good nutrition, plenty of water, and so much more, can make a world of difference in the quality of life for all of us as elders and caregivers.
In the U.S. and around the world, we are facing a global concern because of such a large aging population. We believe that Transforming Your Aging Brain, highlights the information and inspiration to teach people how to support and enhance their own emotional, physical, cognitive, and spiritual well-being in joyful ways!
Giveaway: The authors are giving one copy of Transforming Your Aging Brain to a lucky Friend for the Ride winner. Simply leave a comment by August first saying that you’d like to win.
LINDA S. STOLER, CCC-SLP has more than 40 years of experience developing programs for children, using left brain, logical and cognitive perspectives. She learned that by bringing special needs and typically developing children out from behind their desks and sparking their creative spirits, the outcome was amazing. And so was born the Multi-Modal Method of teaching that Linda has recorded on CD and taught to hundreds, over the years.
When Linda’s talented mother developed dementia in her 90s, Linda exposed her to the sessions with the children, only to discover that her mother’s quality of life instantly included joy, laughter and music once again. Armed with that experience and the knowledge of brain and neuroscience research, Linda developed a seminar for the over 50 crowd, too. This initiative became known as Onto The Next and took on the form of interactive, inspirational seminars.
DR. GRETCHEN ESPINETTI has enjoyed an extensive career in bilingual and early childhood education with an emphasis on multicultural education for children not developed within the culture of their parents. Her studies into neuroscience and the brain led her to use non-traditional methods of teaching including music, drama, dance and sign language. Science has proven that being fluent in more than one language protects us against age-related cognitive decline. Therefore, using the power of neuroplasticity as a preventative for elders facing dementia and Alzheimer’s was realized by this team.
Together, Gretchen and Linda impact the elders in their own lives and seek to make the life of all the aging population around the world one of quality and joy.
Friend For The Ride 