Six years. 250 episodes. And I've never told you my own story, until now.I've spent this podcast asking everyone else the questions. In this episode, I turn the mic on myself: the cancer diagnosis doctors almost missed, the year everything fell apart, and the four things that got me through it. The same four things I now teach as the SOLO framework in my upcoming book, The Art of Solo Aging.If you've ever wondered what "aging well" actually looks like when it's your own life falling apart, this is that story.In this episode:0:10 The story I've never told4:00 What 250 experts taught me about aging well7:23 My own story: divorce, injury, and a year that fell apart9:09 The diagnosis doctors almost missed12:28 The SOLO framework, and my book15:19 Planning, ageism, and finding your whyAbout Glowing Older:Glowing Older is the podcast on aging well, hosted by Nancy Griffin, a 30-year wellness, hospitality, and longevity expert and Cornell Institute for Healthy Futures Industry Scholar. After 250+ episodes and 25 seasons interviewing the experts and disruptors reshaping how we age, Nancy is on a mission to help you match your healthspan to your lifespan and reject the myth of inevitable decline.Her framework, SOLO (Social Connection, Optimistic Attitude, Lifelong Learning, Open to Grace) is the foundation of her upcoming book, The Art of Solo Aging, and the throughline of everything on this channel.Solo aging shouldn't be solo. Subscribe for new episodes, and find Nancy here:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3W6EmHbBdVUZ2zkyki2xR0Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/glowing-older/id1526891134LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancygriffin/GlowingOlder.com#GlowingOlder #AgingWell #Longevity #SoloAging

Join us as Jacquelyn Stephens, PhD, the Senior ResearchAssociate at Mather, shares insights on how cultivating positive emotions through “savoring” can boost resilience,social health, and longevity. Discover practical strategies to enhance your well-being and thrive at every stage of life.

About

Dr. Jacquelyn Stephens is a developmental-health psychologist who conducts research on factors that promote happier and healthier aging. Her research focuses on predictors of well-being across the lifespan, with an emphasis on the protective role of positive emotion in times of stress and adversity. Her research at Mather Institute has focused on how savoring the moment, a form of positive emotion regulation, can contribute to better well-being in older adults. She also evaluates internal Mather programsand initiatives.

Prior to Mather, Dr. Stephens was a Postdoctoral ResearchFellow at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. She earned her PhD in Human Development and Social Policy from Northwestern University in 2022.

Key Takeaways

• Positive emotions help us bounce back from stress, overcome adversity, bond with others, and spark creativity.
• Positive emotions are contagious. Sharing a positiveexperience with another person amplifies the joy and creates a deeper bond,
• Savoring is noticing something positive happening and amplifying it. Instead of letting something positive pass by, we notice and acknowledge it. Bask in the moment.
• Savoring has three different time orientations – reminiscing: present moment, and forward thinking/anticipatory . Older adults are good at being attuned to positive things in their environment and tend to be better at savoring in the moment than other generations.
• When we create a repertoire of positive experiences, we are more likely to reach out to other people and form reciprocal relationships to lift each other up.
• People feel better when they focus on small moments of joy every day. The goal is not to surround yourself with constant positivity, but to develop the tools and resilience needed to create a life of happiness, well-being, and meaning despite life's inevitable difficulties.

Visit Mather Institute for reports on aging and well-being.

For exclusive access to the Mather research study onsavoring ,visit: Within- and Between-Person Effects of Savoring Ability and Well-Being in Older Adults: A Longitudinal Study

This week’s episode features aging expert Helen Hirsh Spence, co-author of Reset: Making the Most of the Rest of Your Life. Helen shares insights on aging well, developing “longevity literacy,” and strategies to combat internalized ageism—empowering you to thrive in later life.

About Helen

Helen Hirsh Spence is a powerful voice at the intersectionof longevity, leadership, and age inclusion. Her TEDx talk—"Embrace Age with a Longevity Mindset"—captivated audiences worldwide and sparked international dialogue around how we perceive and value older adults.

Recognized as a prominent figure in the field of longevity,Helen has been invited to share her insights at conferences, on podcasts, national radio and TV. She seizes every opportunity to promote an empowering perspective on aging, inspiring change for all generations. Her presentations are known to be thought-provoking, engaging, and deeply relevant to today’s shifting social and economic landscape.

Key Takeaways

• Advances in technology, medical advances, and education have given us a “longevity bonus” — our lifespans have increased 20 to 30 years.
• We can influence the trajectory of our lifespan, but itdepends on our beliefs. A longevity mindset means accepting our longer lives as the new normal.
• Targeting older adults requires workplace adaptations like flexible work, phased retirement, and intergenerational collaboration.
• The loneliness epidemic is spread across two primarydemographic groups, older adults and people under 25. Programs to build intergenerational connections and reciprocal mentorship have mutual benefits for young and old.
• Children from the age of three have negative preconceived notions of what it means to be old. Women especially have been conditioned by anti-aging marketing campaigns, not recognizingthat their potential, dreams and aspirations have been limited by ageism.

Follow Helen on LinkedIn

View Helen’s TedX Talk

Order Helen’s book Reset (US and Canada)