Aging, End of Life and Mental Health in Mexico: Jason Platt, MEX: Ep11
Aging anywhere can be challenging. Living in a new, perhaps unfamiliar country and culture can exacerbate those challenges, but can also make them easier.
In this episode, bilingual therapist Dr. Jason Platt talks about the challenges and benefits of living - and aging - as a US immigrant to Mexico.
At any age, we can continue to learn, grow and do the healing necessary to meet our death with less conflict, and with greater peace and ease.
In This Episode:
Dr. Jason Platt’s immigration story and how he ended up working as a marriage and family therapist in Mexico City
How living in Mexico can bring more ease - and more stress - to aging and end of life in Mexico
How our identities change as we age and the potential to step into a new one when we move to a place that’s new
How change can stress our relationships
Loneliness at end of life and the helpful (and unhelpful) ways we might cope
Optimal versus pathological aging, and what supports optimal aging
How addressing family dynamics (at any age) can help prepare us for a more gentle death
Why it helps to get clear about your hopes for end of life, and to talk to your family about it
The communication styles that are most helpful (and not) when talking about critical end-of-life issues
What can help us find the courage to have the ‘hard’ conversations about end of life
When and how it can help to meet with a therapist, and what may be lost if we turn to Ai instead
End of life as a relational event, versus something that happens to only the individual
The benefit of doing a life review, and looking ahead with an open, growth mindset
How we can find greater peace by questioning the narrative of our lives
Making meaning as we age, and how living in Mexico invites new perspectives
Why you might benefit from having a therapist on your palliative care team
How Mexico defines a ‘therapist’ and what to look for when searching for therapeutic help in Mexico
Resources mentioned:
Family Therapy and Issues of Aging, Dr. Jason Platt
The Danger of a Single Story, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, TED Talk
Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl
