The secrets of ageing with resilience

The last three years of a global pandemic have intensified health impacts on the lives of older Australians in many ways, challenging their coping mechanisms and consequently their levels of resilience.

The Eastern Suburbs Older Persons’ Mental Health Service (OPMHS), in partnership with UNSW Sydney’s Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA), is shining a light on this topic.

The free annual forum for seniors will take place from 10 am to 1 pm on Wednesday, 26 October 2022 at The Juniors, Kingsford.

The event will be chaired by Professor Henry Brodaty AO, Honorary Medical Officer at the OPMHS at Prince of Wales Hospital and UNSW Sydney Scientia Professor of Ageing and Mental Health.

According to Brodaty, resilience means bouncing back from adversity.

“In the face of adversity, resilient people use more active coping styles,” Brodaty said. “Older people often demonstrate greater resilience than the younger generation, due in part to their lifespan of acquiring knowledge as well as the development of adaptation skills.”

The forum, Secrets of Ageing with Resilience, features a line-up of speakers which includes Holocaust survivor and Courage2Care advocate Peter Halas, who will share his incredible story of loss and survival against the odds.

Halas, who lost his mother and grandparents at just five years of age, credits many different factors for his own personal resilience. He recognises the importance of sharing stories so history is not forgotten.

Other speakers include internationally acclaimed expert in psychiatry, author of 2022 release Burnout and founder of the Black Dog Institute Professor Gordon Parker AO and Australian Queen of Chinese Cooking Elizabeth Chong AM.

Presentations will also be delivered by Maria Fiatarone Singh — Professor in Geriatrics with a research focus on exercise and ageing, and Wiradjuri & Gamilaroi Woman Associate Professor Lynette Riley. Both Riley and Parker were NSW Senior Australian of the Year nominees.

Brodaty, who is also Co-Director of the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA), says the forum aligns with the theme of this year’s International Day of Older Persons; a day which serves as a hallmark and reminder of the significant role older people play in traversing global challenges and contributing to their solutions with resilience.

“Keys to resilient ageing include keeping things in perspective, mobilising coping skills, drawing on your supports and identifying irrational thoughts,” Brodaty said.

“This forum will hopefully provide a reminder to our senior community on how to maintain good mental health through the implementation of strategies to cope with the variety of life’s stressors.”

Registrations essential: https://OPMH22.eventbrite.com.au

Image credit: iStock.com.au/BraunS