#20. Ageing into Health at 103: choosing to be glad and finding joy in life with Dr Gladys McGarey
How often do you get to hear the pearls of wisdom that someone who’s been on the planet for 103 years can share. Not often!
In the last interview style podcast of Season 2, I had the massive honour of speaking with the wonderful Dr. Gladys McGarey, who is no less than 103!
Having read her inspiring book, ‘The Well-Lived Life’ it was brilliant to be able to delve into the significance of movement and her perspectives for a fulfilling life.
In this lovely conversation full of anecdotes, we talked about the feeling of being stuck and identifying the root of this blockage. Dr. Gladys introduced me to her 5 L's for a well-lived life: life, love, laughter, labour and listening. The conversation covered the power of joy, the pitfalls of comparison, and the choice in responding to fear, underscoring the value of listening, caring for others and ourselves.
Dr Gladys shared her wise words about acceptance to alleviate pain and enhance well-being, her concept of ageing into health, and the importance of finding purpose. Sharing lots of her personal experiences, she emphasised that there is a choice to ‘be glad’ and the importance of spreading joy.
I smiled from ear to ear throughout the recording and felt sorry to have to say good-bye as I could have listened to her stories all day! There were lots of takeaways and I hope you enjoy being a part of this conversation as much as I did.
This conversation covers:
Understanding Movement Blockages: The Power of Listening
Rediscovering Joy in Movement
The Harmful Effects of Comparison
Choosing Love over Fear
Moving Towards Acceptance
Choosing to Be Glad: Spreading Joy
Aging into Health: Living with Purpose
Setting Goals and Looking Forward
Trusting Your Own Voice
About this week’s guests:
Dr Gladys McGarey
Dr. Gladys McGarey is recognized as a pioneer for the convergence of allopathic and holistic medicine and is internationally known as the Mother of Holistic Medicine. Following a career in family practice for nearly eighty years, she now has a life consulting practice. After graduating from medical school, Dr. McGarey became the only woman intern at Deaconess Hospital in Philadelphia. In 1978, she co-founded the American Holistic Medical Association with the goal of uniting licensed physicians who practiced medicine and helped to transform conventional healthcare into a more holistic model. She was the first medical doctor to utilize acupuncture in the U. S. and trained other physicians to use it. She founded the Gladys Taylor McGarey Foundation in 1989 to bridge the gap between holistic and traditional medicine and helped to expand the knowledge and application of holistic principles through scientific research and education. Dr. McGarey also co-founded the Academy of Parapsychology and Medicine, founded The International Academy of Clinical Hypnosis, and was a founding diplomat of the Arizona Board of Homeopathic and Integrated Medicine Examiners.
She has received numerous honors and awards, including the Humanities Award for Outstanding Service to Mankind; the David Stackhouse Award for pioneering excellence in Homeopathy; the YMCA “Tribute to Women” Award in the healing category; one of the Top Ten Arizona Women of 1993; the 2001 Lifetime Distinguished Service Award from Muskingum College in Ohio; the Native-American Elder Award from Phoenix Area of Indian Health Services; and in 2003 was honored by the American Holistic Medical Association as a Pioneer of Holistic Medicine. Dr. Gladys has spoken at TEDx, and has published a number of books, her most recent being The Well-Lived Life: A 102-Year-Old Doctor’s Six Secrets to Health and Happiness at Every Age. Since the May 2023 release of this new book, she has been featured in major journals and the press, including the Wall Street Journal, Psychology Today, CNBC, and more. Her vitality and charisma has charmed Deepak Chopra, Dan Buettner, and over 200 other podcast audiences, and that energy and charm pervades her book. In April 2024 with the release of the paperback version of The Well-Lived Life, she became a best-selling author at age 103.
We all want to know the secret to leading a long, happy life, so who better to ask than someone who is 103 years old? And all the more qualified as a doctor and the mother of holistic medicine.
Connect here:
Website: https://gladysmcgarey.com
Instagram: https://instagram.com/@begladmd
Book: ‘The Well-Lived Life’ (UK)
More about your host, Wendy
Wendy (49) founded Reclaim Movement after a running injury at 40 turned into 4 years of chronic pain. In her search for answers and to reclaim her own movement again she discovered natural movement. The philosophy of training real life practical movements to be able to keep using them as we age, coupled with the benefit of using strengthening and mobilising whole-body movement patterns that are underused in today’s modern world made her realise she had found a way to move for life.
Wendy’s aim is to help people embrace a movement-rich life, at any age, to improve mobility, strength and confidence to keep moving well and doing the things they love for as long as they want.
MovNat Level 1 certified & Functional Range Conditioning certified, she coaches online group classes live & by replay in the Reclaim Movement membership as well as online and in-person private coaching in Oxford.
Find out more about Reclaim Movement:
Instagram: https://instagram.com/reclaim.movement
YouTube: https://youtube.com/@reclaim.movement
Facebook: https://facebook.com/reclaim.movement
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