What does it say about Sarasota that more than twice as many folks showed up for a discussion about end-of-life planning as for a lecture about the possibilities of living for centuries?
The week after the biologist Aubrey de Grey gave a talk on research into a cure for the aging process at the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee, I returned to the same auditorium to find it overflowing. The Lifelong Learning Academy's Einstein's Circle series had invited Philadelphia psychologist Mark B. Peterson to lead an exploration into the complex decision process we all must face (or avoid) sooner or later -- at least until scientists like de Grey come up with an alternative.
Peterson's website, Having Your Voice, stems from his experience teaching a course that takes participants over the obstacles -- medical, legal, emotional -- that can hinder what each of us might consider a good death. To his credit, Peterson doesn't seek to reinvent the wheel. His Sarasota session invoked such sources as Ellen Goodman's The Conversation Project, and Atul Gawande's best-selling book, "Being Mortal."
"A lot of people talk about death, but the really, really important thing is how your life ends," Peterson said.
He described a common situation where an individual receives a terminal diagnosis and then spends the last months enduring painful medical treatments because no one in the family asked how that person wanted to die.
"This is a major dynamic in decisions not getting made: 'I don’t want to talk to you about the fact that you’re going to die, because I don’t want to make you feel bad,'" he said. "When we’re scared, we’re either going to run away or we’re going to fight. Your 33-year-old son is more likely to reach for the stars than an 85-year-old will."
Thinking about the brain
Sarasota geriatrician Kevin O'Neil, medical director of the national chain Brookdale Senior Living, never gets tired of sharing the science on how minds stay sharper longer. At the Charlotte County Positive Living Symposium, he made people laugh at the news that ballroom dancing beats sex as an activity that appears to stave off the onset of dementia.
O'Neil talked about the three known factors that contribute to brain health -- diet, social interactions and exercise, with a heavy emphasis on the last one. It's never too late to start, he told the audience.
"But we have a dictum in geriatrics: Start low, go slow," he added. "Walking doesn’t require any special equipment. Just make sure you have good shoes, enough water and some sunblock."
Seeing more clearly
For more than 20 years, Sarasota's Center for Sight has been offering invaluable free cataract surgery for uninsured adults through a program called Mission Cataract. This year, the center's specialists will perform some 100 procedures on July 13 and 20.
To qualify, a patient must be a U.S. citizen or legal resident; not covered by insurance, Medicaid or Medicare; and living below the federal poverty line. To submit an application, visit the website or call 941-480-2143. The deadline is April 15.
Follow Barbara Peters Smith on Twitter @BarbaraPSmith.
