Aging Readiness

By Adria E. Navarro, USC-VHH

In the coming decades the number of Americans age 65 and older will grow from 15% to 24% of the population; by 2030 one in five persons in our nation will be 65 or older. The Foothill communities, according to the 2016 Census, show our older adult population has already surpassed these numbers.
Aging well builds from a lifetime of decisions, hopefully preparing us for the myriad of issues – often related to health – but also encompassing other concerns such as where we live, how we get around, navigating new technologies and more.
This column will focus each month on incremental ways to ready ourselves and to manage the bumps and curves so common in our lives. I will share thoughts about prevention and, just as important, resources that help us to adapt with the changes we experience. Managing in new ways – adjusting our sails – keeps us on the pathway to a quality of life we are accustomed to within this community we call home.
Each year, November spotlights Alzheimer’s disease and Brain Health Awareness. Generally speaking, evidence points to the belief that what is good for your heart is good for your brain as you age. We know more now about how to lower our risks through exercise, diet and social engagement. This Saturday, USC Verdugo Hills Hospital and USC California’s Alzheimer’s Disease Center will be hosting a free Brain Health Forum via a webinar platform to focus on what we know and what we can do to protect and enhance our brain health. To register, please visit bit.ly/USCVHHBrainHealth.
As we age along together, I plan to provide some monthly food for thought about age-related issues and local resources. Given that we travel at our own pace with our own values and preferences, the USC Verdugo Hills Hospital’s Community Resource Center for Aging is available free of charge to all members of the community and can meet you where you’re at. Through a phone consultation, individual and family concerns can be discussed. Correspondence by email is welcome too and, of course, the online resource pages at uscvhh.org/aging-resources are available as well. Fortunately, we are a community with many good sources of aging support and services to access to help one another prepare for aging.

Adria E. Navarro,
PhD, LCSW
Program Manager
Community Resource Center for Aging
USC Verdugo Hills Hospital