Advocates for Women Aging
Gail and Catherine interview women who are experts on subjects pertinent to women aging. Watch the complete playlist on our YouTube Channel!
232 Valerie Ulene and Byrdie Lifson Pompan: Empowering Women to Care for Themselves with Dignity
Dr. Val and Byrdie are co-founders of Boom Home Medical, a “lifestyle brand that makes home medical products.” Dr. Val, a public health and preventive medicine physician, and Byrdie, a literary agent turned health care leader, recognized that home medical...
Phoebe Rubin and Erica Tanamachi: Work While You Have the Light
This cross-generational pair—Phoebe 76 and Erica 43—believes that younger women don’t hear enough from older women about what it looks like to keep “living out loud…and contributing actively” during the later decades. Why should women accept the cloak of...
223 Barbara McAfee: Taking the Girdles Off Women’s Voices
As a voice coach, singer, and songwriter Barbara McAfee’s mission is to ‘midwife’ women’s voices. “Tell me your story about your voice” is Barbara’s invitation to help aging women break the sounds of silence, express new sounds for healing, and experience...
222 Edwige Gilbert: Passion Helps you be the Best Version of Yourself
Edwige Gilbert is French. As founder of New Life Directions, she guides women to reinvent their lives and create fresh starts driven by a purposeful vision. She is passionate about women taking care of their bodies and allowing themselves to feel sexy...
Debbie Watts: Ms. Senior World–A platform for women over 70
Crowned Ms. Senior World 70’s for 2023, Debbie Watts’ mission is to empower women, especially as they age. Debbie’s talents as an author, educator, playwright, songwriter and performer, and producer of film and stage plays prepared her to enter the world...
217 Karen Egoff: Healing Energy Gives You the Gift of Self-Care
Karen Egoff realized at a young age that she has extra gifts. She didn’t know what to do with the energy she felt from others until she became a young woman. Through practice, Karen has learned to manifest healing energy and help relieve aches, pains and...
215 Dr. Robin H. Miller – Keys to Well-being– Heart, Brain, and Gut
Dr. Robin H. Miller is a general internist and integrative medicine expert who founded and directs Triune Integrative Medicine in Medford, Oregon. Dr. Miller came close to quitting medicine altogether until, several decades ago, she completed a fellowship...
214 Diane Gilman: Risk-taking and Boldness are the way to Transformation
Bold and vivacious herself, Diane’s 2nd book: Too Young to Be Old: How to Stay Vibrant, Visible, and Forever in Blue Jeans: 25 Secrets from TV's Jean Queen shows women how to face life with unfailing optimism and be risk-averse. As she reached her 60’s,...
205 Sonia Ancoli-Israel: Sleep Disorders and What You Can Do About Them
Sonia Ancoli-Israel, Ph.D. is a Professor Emeritus and Professor of Research in the Department of Psychiatry and the Center of Circadian Biology at the University of California San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine. Her expertise is in the field of sleep...
204 Sara Zeff Geber: Solo Agers Planning for Their Future
Sara Zeff Geber, PhD, considers the years beyond 65 as the ‘bonus years.’ As a nationally recognized leader in planning for aging and retirement, in 2013 Sara began pursuing solo aging with a passion. The baby boomers--some 15 million--who do not have...
202 Sally Strosahl: Keeping Long-term Relationships Alive
As a marriage and family therapist in private practice for more than 4 decades, Sally Strosahl (LCPC) has heard countless stories from couples about distress in their relationship as they move into retirement and get older. She felt called to write Loving...
200 Alice Matzkin: Celebrating the Authentic Aging Self
Alice Matzkin is an internationally known artist whose works fearlessly depict women aging. Alice has 2 paintings in the National Portrait Gallery of the Smithsonian and has appeared on Oprah. Her portrait of Chelsea hung in the White House during the...
199 Sally Duplantier: Lifestyle Choices to Live Your Best Life Longer
In her third career, Sally Duplantier, gerontologist and healthspan educator, founded her mission-driven company, Zing, to help older adults live as long as possible without chronic disease and disability. Through Zing, Sally offers Wellness Wednesdays,...
197 Jacqueline Boyd: The-Care-Plan Tackles the Unique Care Challenges of the LGBTQ+ Community
{spp-player] As a queer, biracial woman, Jacqueline Boyd, BA, BS, CGCM, has advocated for her community by offering services that address specific care needs. She is especially interested in how to provide people with continuing care in their homes. Her company,...
189 Amy Temperley: Advocate for Active Aging
Amy Temperley’s passion centers on Active Aging--helping older adults stay social, active, and engaged. As a life coach and consultant, and entrepreneurial business owner, Amy focuses on helping 60+ adults find their passion and continue to live, laugh...
187 Dr. Louann Brizendine: The Female Brain Gets Stronger and Better in Midlife and Beyond
For years, women have been told by society to dread the second half of life, with no support available beyond expensive ointments and procedures promising to reverse the signs of aging. But thanks to Dr. Louann Brizendine’s latest book: The Upgrade: How...
186 Mary-Frances O’Connor, PhD: The Surprising Science of How We Learn from Loss and Love
Why is grief so complicated and why does grieving take such a long time, possibly never ending? In The Grieving Brain (2022), renowned grief expert, neuroscientist, and psychologist, Mary-Frances O’Connor, PhD, offers new perspectives on understanding...
182 Pauline Boss, PhD. – The Myth of Closure: Ambiguous Loss in a Time of Pandemic and Change
Closure from ambiguous loss is a harmful misnomer. What’s needed is resilienceto live in meaningful ways with no closure. - Pauline Boss PhD. In the 1970s, Pauline Boss, PhD, began developing her theory of ambiguous loss which shebrought to the lay public...
179 Lois Wagh Aronstein: A Lifetime Spent Connecting Older People to Opportunities that Retain Independence and Showcase their Value
Lois Wagh Aronstein has advocated for older people the majority of her career. First, when she initiated Project Reward through the Framingham Chamber of Commerce and then as the New England representative for AARP and in various capacities for 26 years....
173 Katharine Esty: One Psychologist’s Study Reveals the 80s is a Time of Unexpected Happiness
Dr. Katharine Esty’s husband was seriously ill when she turned 80. It put her in a funk. Even hiking with her family, an ordinary event, sent her deeper into the doldrums. Katharine couldn’t make it to the top of a favorite hill during one hike and it...
166 Dr. Patricia Walicke: Blue Lake Neuroscientist Speaks on Dementia & Alzheimer’s Disease
Dr. Patricia Walicke is a 40 year veteran in neuroscience. She earned her MD from Harvard-MIT Health Science and Technology program and her PhD from the Harvard Dept. of Neuroscience. Her primary area was Alzheimer's disease research under Dr. Robert...
161 Susan Stall, Ph.D. CREATIVE HOUSING OPTIONS for the MISSING MIDDLE
In 1985, sociologist and activist Dr. Susan Stall designed and taught a college course entitled Gender and the Built Environment: Redesigning the American Dream. Since then, her scholarship and activism have expanded to innovations in housing that center...
151 Vanessa Kettler: Building Better Balance As You Age: Prevent or Overcome Falls
Vanessa Kettler has danced all her life. She became an exercise coach 20 years ago and now focuses on older people so they, too, can experience a higher quality of life as they age. Feelings of fear, depression, anxiety and stress can be controlled...
146 Jane Traies: Untold Stories of Older Lesbian Women
Dr. Jane Traies, from Brighton, England, has lived through defining moments of LGBTQ+ history. In her late-60s, Jane earned a Ph.D. in Gender Studies from the University of Sussex. For the past ten years, Jane has devoted her writing career to...
138 Pat Anderson: Breast Cancer and the Busters Project
Octogenarian Pat Anderson, 89, retired from her lifelong career as a textile studio craftsman - spinning, knitting, sewing and weaving. Leaving her daughter in charge of the studio, she embarked on an unusual retirement project: creating and providing...
127 Peg Cruikshank: Women’s Comfort with Aging
For over 50 years, Peg Cruikshank has challenged mainstream thinking about women-- in particular, about lesbians and women growing old. Now retired from Women’s Studies at the University of Maine, Peg serves as an Associate at The Maine Center on Aging....
121 Amy Sherman: Planning for and Expanding End of Life Care Options
As the Midwest regional campaign and outreach manager for Compassion & Choices, a national non-profit organization, Amy Sherman advocates for planning for and expanding end-of-life care options and empowering people to take charge of their own...
015 Margaret Burk: Women’s Stories Are Our Heirlooms
Master storyteller, Margaret Burk, believes in the power of story, not only to entertain, but to touch the heart, spark the imagination and embolden the spirit. Margaret performs at storytelling venues, senior residences, women's gatherings, and...
111 Joanne Schwartzberg: To Help Others – First You Must Listen and Understand
Since helping found the first non-profit interdisciplinary home health agency in the Midwest in 1972, Dr. Schwartzberg has been a leader in building consensus around new programs in geriatrics, home care, community health, health literacy, and medical...
104 Dr. Cheryl Woodson: Aging Excellently is an Intention
As a mother, physician, businesswoman and daughter, who navigated her mother’s 10 year journey with Alzheimer’s disease, Dr. Cheryl encourages all adults to take responsibility to age intentionally. Her motto is "Live Out Loud and Age Excellently." In her...
099 Sheila Collins: Our Story Comes from the Body
With her background in dance and social work, Sheila K. Collins, Ph.D., brings embodied practices to many forms of self-care, particularly for healing. Sheila’s key tenet is that the body is our center of wisdom and at the root of self-care. Our body...
089 Joy Loverde: Visionary Spokesperson for Eldercare
The world is just catching up with Joy Loverde, a champion of eldercare and family caregiving for over 30 years. In the second of two widely acclaimed books, Who Will Take Care of Me When I’m Old? (2017), Joy speaks frankly and considerately about...
084 Linda Randall: Sharing Your Stories: Sad or Happy
Feisty and outspoken! That is how we describe Linda Randall - semi-retired psychotherapist, board member of Village Chicago, active and resilient. Linda does not mince words when it comes to loss and grieving. Loss comes in many forms: physical,...
079 Sara Hart: Prime Spark: It’s Our Time
“The red fuzzy PJ’s stood for everything I lost.” - Sara Hart A PhD and professor of communication, successful head of training in the HR division of Pfizer, author, speaker, and coach, Sara Hart is a model of how women are making a difference even as...
Julie Cook Downing: Caregivers Comfort – Support, Motivation and Inspiration
“Caregivers give the greatest gift of all, with their love, guidance and direction.” – Julie Cook Downing As the President and founder of Caregivers Comfort Creations, LLC, Julie's mission is to empower and support millions of family Caregivers and...
067 Martha Holstein, Ph.D.: Own Your Own Age
Dr. Holstein, a vocal advocate for women aging, speaks both to individuals and the larger politic. She urges women to own their age—if you are old, acknowledge it. Live by your norms, not those for people far younger: Intergenerational conversations are...
063 Lydia Denworth: Friendship The Best Remedy for Aging
Lydia Denworth shares stunning revelations about the importance of friendship for humans and other species, drawing on her recent book, -Friendship: The Evolution, Biology, and Extraordinary Power of Life’s Fundamental Bond. Science tells us that...
057 Lydia Manning: Gerontologist, Educator and Entrepreneur on Aging
Lydia Manning’s formative years include fond memories of relationships with elder members of her family. Her experiences put her on a path to create a unique set of skills to work both in academia and entrepreneurship to help people think about aging. “I...
052 Sky Bergman: Lives Well Lived: Secrets, Wit and Wisdom of Age
Sky Bergman set out to pay tribute to her very active 99 year-old grandmother. She soon realized that “everyone has a story to tell if we just take time to listen.” Sky’s listening project evolved into a documentary feature-length film starring 40 people...
111 Joanne Schwartzberg, MD: To Help Others, You Must Listen and Understand
