The Center for Mental Health & Aging blog is your “go-to” resource for mental health and aging. Each article contains helpful information to deepen your understanding of aging, mental health in older adulthood, dementia, caregiving, family dynamics, and so much more.
January 27, 2026
Social Withdrawal or Healthy Social Selectivity? Your 83-year-old client’s daughter calls you concerned that her mother just quit her book club after three years and is concerned that her mom…
October 28, 2025
If you work with older adults, you’ve probably heard this question more times than you can count: “What can I do to keep my brain healthy?” The Global Council on…
October 16, 2025
What happens to a person’s sense of self when memory begins to fray? I often describe dementia as a fragmentation of self. And yet, even within that fragmentation, traces of…
September 30, 2025
Suicide Risk Spikes After a Dementia Diagnosis: Here’s Why Receiving a dementia diagnosis changes everything. For many people, it brings relief—finally, there’s an explanation for the confusion, memory lapses,…
September 7, 2025
When we think about trauma, we often imagine its effects on younger people—children, teens, or adults in midlife. But what about people 65 and older? The truth is trauma…
August 30, 2025
When an older loved one completes alcohol detox and enters a medical rehab program, families often feel a swirl of emotions: relief, hope, fear, and sometimes overwhelm. You may find…
May 20, 2025
What does it really take to build a national movement for mental health and aging? If you've ever had a big dream or felt a deep calling to change the…
May 9, 2025
Up to 1 in 5 older adults lives with a mental health condition like depression, anxiety, or substance use disorder. And yet—most go undiagnosed and untreated. Why? Because too often…
April 16, 2025
Loneliness and social isolation can be as damaging to our health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. While it may surprise some, research shows that older adults have lower rates…
February 11, 2025
20-22% of older adults live with a mental health condition such as depression, anxiety, substance use disorder, or a dementia-related disorder. Yet, the vast majority go undetected and untreated. Why?…
January 31, 2025
What kind of world are we living in where a person who needs assisted living—someone with dementia, functional disabilities, or frailty—can be detained by ICE? A recent email from…
January 15, 2025
As I write this the wildfires in Los Angeles have displaced more than 100,000 people, and destroyed homes and communities. I've heard heartbreaking stories of older adults and people with…
