One of the common mantras as people age is, “I’m too old for that.” As we get older and feel our bodies and minds changing, many of us become reluctant to try new things. Change is always scary for most people, let alone as we get older.
However, people also stagnate if they don’t do new things, and we don’t mean a new jigsaw puzzle. Our minds are wired to keep learning. Our brain “never stops changing in response to learning,” according to an article on Verywellmind.com. It also notes, “Today, it's understood that the brain possesses the remarkable capacity to reorganize pathways, create new connections, and, in some cases, even create new neurons—a concept called neuroplasticity, or brain plasticity.”
Brain plasticity helps us learn new things and can help people recover from strokes and brain injuries. Ways we can improve brain plasticity include learning exercise, making music, and making art.
Journalist and Former First Lady of California Maria Shriver and her son Patrick Schwarzenegger created a brain health brand, MOSH, to educate consumers about brain health. Its first product, a protein bar, already sold out, according to an article in Morning Brew, and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to gender-based brain health research.
Shriver recounts in the article telling Patrick that she was “too old” to start a new company, but he said he’d help. She elaborates, “Working with people who are young keeps you curious, keeps you vital, and keeps you energized. I think Patrick’s generation learns from my generation and vice versa.”
ALLE Learning™ provides an affordable, easy way to keep people engaged with activities that generate curiosity, stimulate minds, and encourage participation. We offer weekly topics with intellectual programming and our downloadable lesson plans, speaker notes, discussion questions and more keep the ideas flowing and help people learn, reflect and recall on a life well-lived.
Contact us today to become a member and share the love of learning. Are you ready to share a lifelong learning class titled “It’s Good to Be Curious” with your residents? Contact us today and we’ll send you a free class – our New Year’s gift to you!
Learn more about the curriculum options offered to senior community centers by visiting Phoenix-based ALLE Learning™ at www.alle-learning.com, emailing us info@alle-learning.com, or calling us at (602-418-5196). Learn about our related programs that focus on community-based memory care, EngAGE EnCOURAGE,™ or our home-based program for persons living with dementia and their care partners, Engaging at Home™.