aging

Older adults have a disproportionally high rate of completed suicide as compared to the general population, but relatively little is known about the extent to which coping styles and beliefs serve as protective factors against suicide in this population.

We had a group of community-dwelling older adults complete questionnaires on coping, reasons for living, and suicidal ideation. Some of the findings include:

- Suicidal ideation had a significant negative relationship with both problem- and emotion-focused coping and a significant positive relationship with dysfunctional coping.

- Suicidal ideation had a significant negative relationship with survival and coping beliefs, responsibility to family, child-related concerns, and total reasons for living score and a significant positive relationship with fear of suicide.

The findings suggest that a full assessment of coping styles and reasons for living should be part of a thorough evaluation of at-risk older adults. Future research should test the extent to which interventions that bolster coping skills and reasons for living reduce suicidal ideation and suicidal behaviors.

My first official publication came out this week in a local newspaper for seniors, Life After 50. The article addressed several misconceptions about psychotherapy, what to expect during therapy, and some reasons for why older adults seek therapy. The benefits of therapy can include increased quality of life and sense of emotional well-being for individuals at any age.

The New York Times had an interesting article today about the detrimental impact that "elderspeak" has on older adults.

One form of elderspeak includes belittling an older adult by calling him or her "sweetie" or "dear." When I hear someone use these terms with an older adult, it conveys the message that the person using the terms views the senior as cute and/or docile and, basically, on the same intellectual level as a child.

Another form of elderspeak includes ignoring the older adult altogether and asking his or her companion questions they are perfectly able to answer (e.g., what they'd like to eat for lunch). I experienced this as a master's student in my fieldwork placement. An older woman fell on her way into the senior center and I was asked to accompany her to the urgent care clinic. When we arrived, the nurse began asking me questions about the woman's condition, even though the older woman was completely lucid (and I had known her for about 20 minutes!). 

Click here to read about similar experiences of others and how they've dealt with them.

I love coming across individuals who have figured out how to age successfully, whether I know them personally or learn about them in some other way.

Adolph "Sonny Boy" Kiefer is most likely the swimming legend you never heard of. A gold-medal winner in the 1936 Olympics, his swimming career was cut short by World War II. He went on to become a naval officer, invent the nylon swimsuit, and faciliate the construction of public pools across Chicago. Today, at age 90, he swims 45 minutes every morning before going into his office!

The topic of this year's National Clinical Geropsychology Conference, hosted by the Gerontology Center at UCCS, was "End-of-Life Care and Bereavement." The conference co-chairs were Sara Honn Qualls, PhD and Julia Kasl-Godley, PhD. The keynote speaker, Shirley Otis-Green, MSW, spoke about "Building Your Legacy: Making Time Count," and urged the audience to consider what we can do now to influence our professional and personal legacy.

In the U.S., older adults have a disproportionally high rate of completed suicide as compared to the general population, with white men over the age of 85 being at greatest risk (National Center for Health Statistics, 2007). The state of Colorado has similar trends (The Colorado Trust, 2002). Compared with other age groups, older adults are more likely to use firearms as their choice of suicide method, which more often results in death (Steffens & Blazer, 1998).

As mental health practitioners and researchers, we typically focus on the psychosocial cause(s) of suicide, usually associated with the presence of risk factors, to guide our suicide prevention interventions. In reviewing the literature for my thesis, I discovered the general consensus that suicidal individuals are poor problem-solvers; that is, they tend to see one solution, and one solution only, to their problems.

However, a recent article in the New York Times ("The Urge to End It All"), highlighted the importance of focusing on the method of suicide in prevention efforts. By simply creating physical barriers to suicide, the risk of completed suicide can be mitigated. Ironically, this may be due in part to the poor problem-solving abilities of those who attempt suicide. If an obstacle is put in the way (e.g., keeping guns in a locked case or putting some time in-between the thought and the act), the individual is less likely to go through with it.

If you (or somebody you know) are suicidal, the best thing to do is call 911 or a suicide prevention hotline (like 1-800-273-TALK) or go to the nearest emergency room.

Last week I successfully proposed my thesis project titled, "Coping Strategies, Suicidal Risk, and Protective Factors Against Suicide in Older Adults." The goals of this study are to investigate coping abilities in older adults and how those relate to suicidal ideation and cognitive deterrents to suicide. We've already begun data collection and hope to have the study completed by the end of the year. Thank you to my committee (Daniel L. Segal, Ph.D., Frederick L. Coolidge, Ph.D., and Brian Yochim, Ph.D.) for all of their thoughtful comments and questions.

NPR had an interesting story this morning on adults with dementia volunteering at a school in Cleveland. As of yet there are no research data on this specific program; however, it appears that older volunteers without dementia benefit from their volunteer experience in schools through increased social interaction and cognitive activity (see articles on Experience Corps).

CNN.com put out an article today on older adults and the dangers of polypharmacy (see "Is Grandma Drugged Up?"). It includes several links to websites where you can find lists of medications that often cause problems for older adults, check drug interactions, and find professionals who review medications. While these resources can help older adults and their caregivers become more informed, obviously, no changes in medication should be made without consulting a physician.

Today marks the beginning of Older Americans' Mental Health Week. The purpose of this week is to spread the message that mental illness (e.g., depression, anxiety) is not a normal part of aging.