Medicine, medical devices and medical technology are advancing faster than ever. Take a look at some of the most innovative and exciting discoveries in recent years.

Dr. Anthony Atala, the first surgeon to build a human bladder and implant it in 2001, is now leading the way in the field of bioprinting, which according to the Oxford Dictionaries, is “the use of 3D printing technology with materials that incorporate viable living cells to produce tissue for reconstructive surgery.” (Discover Magazine, October 2016)
In the near future, the medical community hopes to have a working model of a tricorder, which was first inspired by Star Trek. The device will be a multifunction, hand-held medical instrument used for sensor scanning, data analysis and recording data.
HStar Technologies developed a robotic nursing assistant system. (RoNA) to help lift and move patients. According to Robotics Business Review, “the device will reduce the incidence of clinician workplace injuries and associated workman’s compensation claims and lost work time. It also results in fewer patient falls and injuries that occur due to improper or unsafe lifting.” The robotic system is getting positive reviews and feedback from clinicians and patients alike.
In some cases artificial retinas can restore sight to people who have lost their vision due to retinal degenerative diseases. Nano-Retina is an Israeli-based company that manufactures such a device that “replaces the functionality of the damaged photoreceptor cells and creates the electrical stimulation required to activate the remaining healthy retinal cells.” Just imagine the freedom and independence individuals with vision problems can experience as a result of this exciting new technology.
According to www.longevityatwork.org, the wearable devices market, or the remote patient monitoring devices market, is anticipated to reach $98 billion by the end of 2020. Remote patient monitoring allows patients to “keep a check on their own conditions, eliminating the need for repeated visits to the physician’s office. The precision of such devices have the potential to improve diagnosis, and a more customized treatment or post-treatment recuperative plan. The most significant growth drivers for the markets are the growing role these devices will play in diagnosis and treatment plans of chronic diseases such as diabetes, arthritis, and osteoporosis.”
Genomics is the study of genes and their function with the goal of understanding the structure of the genome, including the mapping genes and sequencing the DNA (www.medinenet.com). Since genes control everything, the more information scientists and medical researchers can discover, the greater the opportunities to extend life. The National Human Genome Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, produces an annual summary of advances in genomic medicine. Some of this year’s most exciting accomplishments include: ways to reduce risks in patients with minor strokes, an aid to treatment decisions in early-stage breast cancer and sequencing and the management of neurometabolic disorders. (www.genome.gov)

Based on the latest research in technology, medicine and psychology, the evidence is clear: Extending our healthy and engaged lives to 125 is attainable. By sharing this amazing and miraculous information with you, I am hoping you will join the quest to reach the status of super-centenarian. I can do it, and so can you!

Traumatic memories as reported by people who have experienced unspeakable physical and/or psychological abuse and brutality can have long-lasting negative effects on their personalities, their relationships with others and the way they live their lives in the present.

I remember as a young girl in Rumania, watching my father being beaten with no mercy as Nazi perpetrators yelled, “Filthy Jews”. We were forced onto a train where there was no food, no water, no toilets. I can still hear the sobbing and wailing by our fellow travelers. After several days, we were taken off the trains and forced to walk for what seemed like a very long time to a holding camp. We were covered with layers of mud, freezing, wet, filthy, miserable and terrified. The beatings continued. There was nothing I could do then to help my Papa. No child should bear witness to such a degradation of one’s parent.

These memories and visions are still very vivid to me. However, I have not let them destroy my life. My family and I were spared and did not die in the Holocaust. I don’t know why, and it doesn’t really matter. What does matter is that I emerged with a zest for life and the recognition of how lucky I was to have survived.

The truth is that your past does not own you. You own your future, and your past is your toolbox whenever necessary. What’s important is that you gain control of who you are, what you want to become and how you view yourself in the context of your life. These beliefs have stayed with me all of my life. I chose a life as a mental health professional so that I could participate in ‘TIKUN OLAM’ (repairing the world) uplift the vulnerable, inspire and empower them, in their plight against abuse and brutality toward a healthy meaningful life awaiting them.

Many people are traumatized during their lifetimes, some at an early age and some as adults. Regardless of when the trauma occurs, many people never really overcome it completely.

However, there are ways and steps you can take to minimize the impact and effect of trauma. The interesting aspect of the experience of trauma is that it doesn’t matter if you’ve been a victim of a crime or a witness to one, been in an abusive relationship, or been in an accident or experienced a natural disaster. The dynamics are very similar. Without help and a readiness to deal with the experience, the pain and the fear, you will tend to re-live the event over and over again. There will be flashbacks, nightmares and perhaps obsessive behaviors that surround the memory of the suffering.

To overcome trauma, it is important to first understand your role in it and the payback you receive for holding on to it. A competent counselor can help you understand these dynamics and move beyond them. In a safe environment, you can talk about your thoughts, feelings and reactions to the traumatic event or events. As a result, you will be able to move beyond your pain, fear, shock, anger—regardless of how justified they may be. Second, the recovery process involves a decision to let-go, forgive and become more forward-thinking. This requires individuals to take positive actions and create a new peace of mind that allows them to live in the moment, make better choices, and create a new reality. Music, meditation, yoga, and exercise are tools that can help with this process.