The Official Blog of Episcopal Retirement Services

As you might imagine, as one of the Cincinnati area’s premier senior living and memory care providers, we make it a point to stay closely abreast of new developments in Alzheimer's dementia research.

Lately, there have been some startling new discoveries that may one day revolutionize the way we approach dementia and Alzheimer's treatment. From new definitions of Alzheimer's to advances in gene identification and the development genetic therapies, there's much to learn about.

Today, we'd like to share with you some of the information we've learned about three promising developments in cognitive research that may help people who develop dementia in the future.

This spring, Parish Health Ministry and TriHealth presented the annual Refresh Your Soul conference on healthy aging, positive aging, dementia and caregiving. The overwhelmingly positive energy of the crowd at the Cintas Center was fed by the engaging speakers to deliver a personally and professionally tremendous experience.

Tickets to the event, which was co-sponsored by the Alzheimer's Association of Greater Cincinnati in partnership with Xavier University, sold out in record time ahead of this year's conference.

For seniors, there are four pillars of healthy aging: physical health, emotional health, spiritual health and financial health.

There's an increasing amount of focus on that last one, because many Baby Boomers and Gen X-ers are woefully underprepared for the cost of retirement. But there hasn't been perhaps enough focus on retirement planning to shore up the remaining three pillars of positive aging.

And that's the crux of retirement consultant Kay Van Norman's work. A well-known speaker, wellness consultant and senior care expert, she is the founder and president of Brilliant Aging, a consulting firm designed to help people age with purpose and vitality.

We all want to feel loved by the significant people in our lives, and aging doesn't diminish that need. If anything, it might make that desire more urgent.

And, truth be told, time can be an enemy to strong relationships, in that the longer a relationship goes on, the more likely complacency, or even jealousies, can develop — es

pecially if two people don't understand that what makes one feel loved isn't necessarily what makes the other feel loved.

Technology and seniors. Two words that a lot of people might not immediately pair. But that's changing.

There are a host of in-home assistive technologies, apps, mobile devices and even virtual reality (VR) experiences that are making healthy aging easier than ever before.

On March 12, you'll likely have the opportunity to see many of these technologies on display, at Parish Health Ministry's annual Refresh Your Soul conference on positive aging.

One of Episcopal Retirement Services' most important long-term goals is to help Cincinnati and the surrounding Tristate area become one of the most age-friendly regions in the nation. That's not something we can do all by ourselves.

We need help from the business community. We need help from local governments. And we need help from people like you.

As it turns out,it’s never too late to change. And aging people do continue learning throughout their lifetimes.

Why? It's all due to neuroplasticity, according to brain and cognition researchers. But just what is neuroplasticity? Let's examine that today.

It's almost spring in Cincinnati, and that means it's time once again for Parish Health Ministry's annual Refresh Your Soul conference, which will be held on Monday, March 12, at Xavier University’s Cintas Center.

If you're the family or professional caregiver for a senior, or if you're a senior yourself, you shouldn't miss Refresh Your Soul this year. Here are four reasons why: