Rock Your Retirement Show

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Get out and Do Something! Episode 007 Apr 04, 2016

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What to do after retirement? Teri Lippert gives advice on what to do after retirement based on her experience. You can listen to the show at http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/get-out-and-do-something-episode-007 Get out and Do Something! Why is Teri's advice to get out and do something? Before Teri Lippert retired always had a volunteer spirit. She worked for the Girl Scouts program and had planned on working for a few more years before retirement. However, after working 14 hour days and dealing with some difficult work situations, she decided to retire early while she was still young enough to travel and do other things that she wanted to do. Luckily, she had planned well financially and was able to do this. But what was she going to do with her time? When she was working, she had NO HOBBIES. Her work was her entire life. After a year, she started feeling depressed and figured that she’d better figure it out, so used her work skills to find out how to Rock her Retirement. She knew that she had to get out and do something. So she did. She is now Rocking her Retirement in the following areas: Social and Family: * Teri did some research and joined the Riverside Women’s Club. The Riverside Women’s Club is celebrating their 128th The group is under the California Federation of Women's Clubs, which is under the General Federation of Women's Clubs. There are Women’s Clubs all over the United States, and you do not have to be retired to join. * The Riverside Women’s club was formed in 1896 and now has about 62 members. Terri will find out if she gets elected as president of the club in April 2016. * Teri was elected to the to serve as membership chair with the club which was honored by earning the coveted SHOE award and is currently serving as the first Vice President or Dean. * The club serves over a hundred charities in the Riverside area. * Teri mentioned that she cannot have the club be her entire social life because she doesn’t feel that this is healthy so has outside activities that she does as well * Teri realizes that she needs to balance the time she spends with her social activities, hobbies, and still have time for her family. She schedules time in her calendar so that she makes time for everything and everyone in her life, including her sister, Barbara Lippert. Adventure and Travel: * Teri and her partner travel extensively, mostly throughout the USA since they have a time share. They normally take one big trip a year and 3 smaller trips. This definitely helps her get out and do something! * Since they have a time share, there are over 300 properties where they can stay, and they enjoy finding new places to visit. * Her favorite trip so far was New Orleans. They loved it because of the jazz music, the above-ground cemeteries, and of course the food. Not only do they travel by land, but they are also planning a cruise for September 2016. Volunteer and Philanthropy: * Teri found the Women’s Club by going to VolunteerMatch.com * Many times you can also find ways to volunteer by going to your city’s website. * Teri’s social life is tied to her volunteer work...

Technology can help your parents stay in their home 006 Mar 31, 2016

Show notes

Did you know that technology is not just for young people? Toby Cohantz developed a technology that can help us take care of our parents. You can listen to the show at http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/technology-can-help-your-parents-stay-in-their-home Technology can help your parents stay in their home. Toby Cohantz's technology can help your parents stay in their home longer. How does he do this? He works with several organizations that work with seniors, particularly, Fall Prevention. These organizations include: * Life Support Medical, a research and development company where he is the director of the Mobile Fall Risk Assessment Lab * San Diego Fall Prevention Task Force * Aging and Independent Services * Electronic Caregiver Company All of these companies can help your parents stay in their home longer than if they were trying to do everything on their own. The reason why many people need to leave their home is because it is no longer safe to live there. Toby runs the first mobile gait lab in the country, run in conjunction with the New Mexico State University. The lab collects data on how seniors walk. They generate a report on the spot that gives a risk assessment for falls. That data is now being used to create products and services for seniors, and will launch in the 3rd quarter of 2016. These will include smart phone and tablet apps that can help your parents stay in their home. For example, the app will monitor your loved one's gait, and if it changes, an alert will be generated. It will also work as a medical alert system that will alert you (or someone else) if there is a fall. Because their current in home systems have alerts that go out in case the battery begins to die, Toby expects that the apps will have similar features. Systems like this are called PERS, or Personal Emergency Response Systems. Toby's company has backup systems that catch additional activity, such as when someone cannot push a button because they've had a stroke or have fallen out of bed. They've also considered the fact that many people will remove their devices so can install buttons in areas of the house such as near the bed, in the shower, and in the kitchen. These are the places where most falls happen. Virtual Care Givers (remember the Jetson's TV show?) are coming out at the end of the year. Stay tuned in to his website to hear more about that as the technology develops. This is a much-needed service, and if you'd like to contact Toby, you can reach him at http://www.ElectronicCaregiver.com or tcohantz@lifesupportmedical.com http://traffic.libsyn.com/rockyourretirement/006_V_Toby_Cohantz_160217_IFinal.mp3 This article on Retirement Lifestyle first appeared on http://RockYourRetirement.com. ©2016-2017

Playing Softball to Keep Young 005 Mar 28, 2016

Show notes

Keeping physically active is a great foundation in aging well. Let's take a look at how Ed Elliott discovered that playing softball can not only keep you young, but can also help you meet and make a lot of friends. You can listen to the show at http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/playing-softball-to-keep-young-episode-005 Today I spoke with Ed Elliott, who wanted to be a singing cowboy when he grew up, changed his mind to become a “cementing cowboy”, and then became a teacher. He is now retired and is playing softball to keep young. Ed retired from teaching severely handicapped children and then became a principal, hearing officer, and director of Special Education Programs. He worked in the industry after 40 years. He and I have something in common as I worked for Harborview Developmental Center in Valdez Alaska right after high school, which was an institution for severely mentally disabled adults. Harborview has since closed, and there are no more institutions such as that in the United States. He planned for retiring when he was sixty-two until he went to a faculty meeting and found out that he should look carefully at the retirement chart and not to forget that he could retire at age sixty-one and a half, so he didn't wait. Ed retired without a plan, except he needed to wrap up some loose ends, which he is still in the process of doing (aren't we all!). Ed is Rocking his Retirement by playing softball to keep young. He found the softball league in the newspaper. He and a friend scoped it out first to make sure that there were no former star baseball players in the league! It seemed fine, so they went to a batting cage to assess their skills. They could both still hit a ball (after fifty years) so decided to purchase the equipment needed to play the game. The average age of the players (which includes women) in his league is seventy-one. The majority of the team-mates who are playing softball to stay young are from sixty-five to seventy-five years old, but they do have some fifty-five and fifty-six-year-old players who are the stars of the game. Most of the young ones are still working in their business. They even have a player who is ninety! Ed said that the main benefit of joining the league, in addition to the health benefits, is the advantage of spending time with friends every week. He also gets to find out about new activities when members invite each other to activities that they might not have known about. They are all playing softball on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and so they know where they are going to be on those two days. Otherwise, they might not know what day it is! Another way Ed Rocks his Retirement is by volunteering to spend time doing things for others, such as walking his wife's dogs, spending time with grandchildren, and generally helping people who are still working. Ed can now do what he wants to do. That's not all that Ed does. He's considering becoming an Ombudsman for people who live in Senior Communities. He also is trained in a type of dyslexia called Irlen syndrome, which is a reading problem (words swimming, words curling up, etc.,) that can be easily remedied by using colored transparencies. He is considering helping others who have this syndrome, which is so easy to correct. Listen to Ed's story on today's episode of Rock Your Retirement. This article on Retirement Lifestyle first appeared on

Help Your Parents Find a Safe Place to Live #004 Mar 24, 2016

Show notes

What are the things we need to consider in finding a safe place for our parents to live? Mitch Au will be talking about this in today's podcast. You can listen to the show at http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/help-your-parents-find-a-safe-place-to-live-episode-004 Mitch Au is very close to his family. His own grandmother had Alzheimer's disease, and he watched her suffer for 20 years. His family is most important to him, so when his aunt and uncle needed a break, additional family intervention was needed. Because of this, he moved to help with the caregiving and to give his aunt and uncle some respite care when they needed a break. During this time he learned a great deal about caring for the elderly. His aunt had a 24 hour care giver and was able to stay in her own home. This was when he first learned about how to help your parents find a safe place to live (or grandparents as the case was here). Mitch and I discussed the differences between having a 24 hour caregiver and having more social interaction through senior living or adult day care facilities. Your parent's own home may be safe, but it might not provide the social interaction that a loved one needs. Due to the experience with his grandmother, he realized that he really liked the senior care industry. Mitch went into business for himself and opened a couple of board and care homes. Highly regulated, these homes must be certified with an RCFE (residential care facility for the elderly) and licensed. During the day he had two caregivers and a cook in each facility. There was also “awake” staff 24 hours a day in each business. Both of the homes were in Arizona, and they found out that moving from San Diego to Arizona was too much of a culture shock, so they moved back to San Diego. It's tough to move from perfect weather to anywhere other than San Diego! He moved back to San Diego for the perfect weather, and normally works with the adult children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or friends of elderly adults who are no longer safe to live at home. He helps you help your parents find a safe place to live. The organization that he works for is called “A Place for Mom,” which is a national placement agency that can help your parents find a safe place to live. Many people call when they are in crisis, but you don't have to wait until they are a crisis to start speaking with them about their living situation. One benefit of working with Mitch is that he can help your parents find a home even if they do not live in the same state you live in. Listen to today's episode to find out more about your options for Senior Living Communities and also Home Care. http://traffic.libsyn.com/rockyourretirement/004_V_Mitchell_Au_160210_IFinal.mp3 This article on Retirement Lifestyle first appeared on http://RockYourRetirement.com. ©2016-2017Help Your Parents Find a Safe Place to Live

Deal with Pain through Hugs and Laughter #003 Mar 21, 2016

Show notes

Dealing with pain is one of the toughest thing to do. But did you know that you can make it easier to deal with pain through hugs and laughter? You can listen to the show at http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/deal-with-pain-through-hugs-and-laughter-episode-003 Joyce Leverich was working as a Legal Secretary for the corporate department of a large law firm. Her friends were met at work. Gradually she found that her back problems caused her to retire in her early 60s. The pain was so great that she found it difficult to do anything. Because of the pain she became depressed and wasn't sure what she was going to do to get out of her slump. Not only that, but all of her friends were working, and she was home alone. She went through a pain management clinic who taught her how to cope with the pain and how “getting out” is the most important thing to deal with depression. She still deals with chronic pain, but she learned how to deal with pain through hugs and laughter. Socializing is a great way, according to Joyce, to deal with depression. After she moved to San Diego with her husband, she searched the Internet for social groups. She found some couples groups, but also found a group that was specifically for women. An opportunity arose that allowed her to take over that Meetup group that was floundering. After taking over the group, she decided that she would have activities, and if even ONE other woman decided to join her in an event, she would get together and spend time with that woman. The group started off slow, and the first woman she met for coffee never came back. Joyce was afraid that the group would end because of that, but she didn't despair. She kept posting events, and the group flourished. She took that group and turned it into a massively successful, and very active woman's group that meets weekly. Not everyone attends weekly, but all the members are active in the group. And they all deal with pain through hugs and laughter. Some of the pain is physical, and some of it is emotional. Really, the group is about having friends and having fun! The group volunteers, has line danced, gone bowling, and do all kinds of things. There are 20 or 30 women who help post activities. A lot of women in the group deal with pain through using hugs and laughter. Learn how she grew the group in today's episode of Rock Your Retirement. http://traffic.libsyn.com/rockyourretirement/003_R_Joyce_Leverich_060212_IFinal.mp3 This article on Retirement Lifestyle first appeared on http://RockYourRetirement.com. ©2016-2017Deal with Pain through Hugs and Laughter

Dad finally got a Stair lift: Safe at Home #002 Mar 10, 2016

Show notes

Do you care about your parents' safety? Of course we all do. Let's take a look at how one family managed to get their dad a stair lift. The family was very nervous and wanted to make sure he wasn't going to fall down the stairs. They wanted him to be safe at home. Dad was stubborn and didn't want to admit that he was getting older, and they were nervous knowing that he could fall down the stairs at any moment. How did they do it? What did they say to him to get him to ride the stair-lift to find out that it was safe for him and his beloved dog? How were they able to make him safe at home? You'll have to listen to the podcast to find out. Kindra at 101 mobility makes it easy for her clients to keep their parents' homes safe. 101 Mobility is a national franchise that assists elders in the area of: * Aging Safe at home * Stair lifts * Ramps * Auto Lifts * Platform Lifts * Everything but Face Lifts! Her company does a free home assessment to let you know where the dangers lie in your parent's home. In my own case, I knew that the throw rugs in my father's home was dangerous, and it would have been nice to have a professional tell that to my father. You can help free your parents from their home. It happens to elders as they become less and less mobile. Kindra tells us how we can help. She knows how because she is a certified aging in place specialist. They can widen doorways, add grab bars, and complete other work that will make your parent's home safe to live in. After all, we all want to live in our own homes, right? We all want to be safe at home. Hear about how you might be able to get your own reluctant family member into 101 Mobility or another organization that can help. It can be done. You will have peace of mind and will be able to Rock Your Retirement when you know that your parents are safe at home. http://traffic.libsyn.com/rockyourretirement/Kindra_French_160213_Final_with_intro.mp3 This article on Retirement Lifestyle first appeared on http://RockYourRetirement.com. ©2016-2017

Reinventing Life after Grief: Madilyn Troike #001 Mar 10, 2016

Show notes

Madilyn talks about Reinventing Life after Grief. You can listen to the show at http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/reinventing-your-life-after-the-death-of-your-spouse I met Madilyn at the San Marcos Senior Center. She stopped by my table and we started to talk. This 78-year-old woman was such an inspiration I had to interview her! She is the epitome of reinventing life after grief. Her husband died after they were married for almost 60 years. Stricken with grief, she didn't know what to do. He was her dance partner, her business partner, and her friend. They had lived a wonderful life and had done almost everything on the 101 things on your bucket list. Once he died, Madilyn didn't know what to do. She had grown up with him; she had cared for him, and now he was gone. As a woman of faith, she knew he was in a better place, but how was she to go on without him? How was going to be able to begin reinventing life after grief? They had been friends and lovers for such a very long time. Her story literally made me cry. I had to interview her so that my listeners could get over their own grief when they had lost a spouse. After about a year of grieving, Madelyn decided that it was time to start living again. She sold her husband’s tools and created a dance studio (for her own use) in the garage. She started volunteering again at the San Marcos Senior Center, and she started taking care of her body and now runs 3 miles every day. Madilyn is also an organic gardener and loves her pet turtle, Nessie, who has had 50 babies in the time that she has had her. She's in a constant battle with the raccoons in the neighborhood, but thankfully, Nessie is too big for the raccoons to eat. At age 78 Madilyn has also started using the computer and is now on Facebook so that she can keep in contact with her friends and family. Listen to Madilyn tell her story of the two different worlds that she has lived in. Her story will inspire you. http://traffic.libsyn.com/rockyourretirement/Madilyn_Troike_160216_Final_with_intro.mp3 This article on Retirement Lifestyle first appeared on http://RockYourRetirement.com. ©2016-2017Maddy Troike shows us how she is reinventing life after grief

Why Rock Your Retirement? An FAQ- #000 Mar 04, 2016

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Why Rock your Retirement? A FAQ Retirement is not just about money. Why Rock Your Retirement? Hi, I'm Kathe Kline and I've been working with retirees and pre-retirees since 1990. Over the years I've noticed that happiness in retirement had very little to do with how much money you had, (unless you are living in poverty) and had a lot more to do with what you decide to do with your time after you retire. I had clients who had huge houses who were not having a good retirement, and clients who were living in tiny mobile homes who were having the time of their lives. What was the difference? Why were some having a great retirement and others were miserable? In 2015 I gave up my securities license and decided to live a slower paced life. I wanted to help people, but in a different way than I was doing it before. Although I still have a small financial planning practice, I generally do not accept new clients. How can I help you? Many times it is difficult for people to go from working 2000 hours to zero. It's great for the first few months, but then some of us hit a wall. Depression sets in. Sometimes it even leads to divorce because two people who were apart for 8-10 hours a day suddenly find themselves together for 24 hours a day. For some that works… but for others it doesn't. What do we talk about at Rock Your Retirement? We talk about retirement in a different way. Each week I interview two types of guests. The first are the Retirees that are “Rocking their Retirement” in some way. The Rock Your Retirement Show focuses on: * Social and Family * Adventure and Travel * Volunteer and Philanthropy * Spirit/Soul/Health Issues * Sex (But we usually don't ask our Retirees about this!) * Baby Boomer/Sandwich Generation Issues (Taking care of your children AND your parents at the same time) How often are the Rock Your Retirement shows released? Rock Your Retirement Retiree Interviews: My intention is to release these interviews on Mondays. These will be interviews with people who can show you how to Rock Your Retirement, because they are rocking their own retirement in one of the ways we discuss. Are they traveling? Did they get closer with their spouse or children because they had more time to do that? Whatever the retiree is doing, we want you to hear about it so that it will spark something in YOU so that you can decide how you want to live in retirement…regardless of the amount of money you've saved. Rock Your Retirement Vendor Interviews: These interviews are with people or businesses that can help with the issues of helping your family members. Most people who find out that they need to help a parent or spouse do not understand all of the options available to them. For example, my own father has Parkinson's Disease and I did not find out about Adult Day Care (I hate that name) until 2015. Adult Day Care is not only is a less expensive alternative to Home Care, but I think it provides better care for your loved one because of the socialization aspect. One would think that 1:1 care would be better, but often it is not. When people are together in groups they often have better outcomes than when they are sitting at home with one caregiver. How long are the Rock Your Retirement Shows? We strive to keep these shows at about a half hour, give or take. How can I listen to the Rock Your Retirement Show? You have several options. Once the show is released, you'll be able to listen on iTunes, Stitcher, Podcast Addict, and all the Podcast apps that go on a smart phone. If you don't have a smart phone you can listen on your Android or Apple device. If you don't have either of those, you can subscribe to the feed,

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