What Will Your Brain Have to Work With?

I retired at 62, and I got there on purpose. I sat down, looked at the family finances, made real decisions, and thought hard about what I wanted my life to look like once I stopped clocking in every day. I understood the basic truth our elders taught us: what you put in early shows up later.

That's an easy concept when we're talking about money. Put a little away now, and it's there when you need it. Prepare today for the life you want tomorrow. Sitting here at 65, I realized I should have been just as intentional about my brain as I was about my bank account.

Picture me at 50 or 55, asking myself: what am I building right now for the brain I'll need at 70, 75, and 80? My brain was aging right along with the rest of me the whole time, whether I was paying attention or not.

We Plan for Everything Else - Let's Plan for This Too

Think about everything we handle as we get older. We build retirement accounts. We think about where we want to live. We get our mammograms, watch our blood pressure, and keep an eye on our bones. Some of us spend real time on our skin and our hair so we still look good while we're handling all of that business. 😊

We plan family trips months out and make sure everybody else has what they need. Here's the question that rarely makes the list: what do I want my brain to be able to do 10, 15, 20 years from now? For me, the answer is simple. I want to stay in my right mind.

Do the same math I did. Add 15 to your age right now. If you're 50, you're looking at 65. If you're 55, you're looking at 70. If you're 60, you're looking at 75. Picture her clearly. What do you want her life to look like?

For me, I want to keep making my own decisions. I want to keep writing and teaching. I want to sit at the table and have real, meaningful conversations. I want to hold onto the stories I love to tell. I want to look at the people I love and know exactly who they are. I want to keep learning new things, because that's who I've always been.

I want to keep laughing. I want to stay close to my family, my faith, and my community. I want to live on my own terms for as long as I possibly can. Nobody can guarantee every piece of that, and I'm not pretending I can.

Aging, genetics, and disease carry pieces we can't fully control. Here's what I control: I'm going to give 80-year-old Janice every advantage I can hand her.

Researchers call it "cognitive reserve." Simply put, it explains why some brains handle the wear and tear of age better than others. I like to put it plain: give your brain more to work with. That's not a magic formula. No amount of the right foods, puzzles, water, or prayer erases every risk. Any woman who tells you that is selling you something.

Brain health works differently, and that's actually good news, because it means we have real power in this. Research keeps pointing to factors we can influence: staying active, keeping our hearts strong, protecting our hearing, staying connected to people, learning new things, and keeping our minds engaged. Some parts sit outside our hands. Let's put our energy into the parts that sit inside them.

Here's what concerns me. Too many women only start paying attention to their brain health after something shakes them. We forget an important name. Someone we love gets a diagnosis. We walk into a room and stand there wondering why. That's usually the moment we start searching the internet for answers.

I never waited until retirement to start saving for retirement. Taking care of my brain deserves the same head start. Midlife is exactly the right time to start thinking about the brain we'll need down the road, not the moment we notice trouble.

I Wish I Had Started at 50!

Looking back, I see things clearly now that I missed at 50. I'd have guarded my sleep better. I'd have understood stress differently. I'd have gotten more serious about movement, food, water, and staying connected to people.

Here's my decision moving forward: I'm putting my energy into the next 15 years, not the last 15. I can't sit down with 50-year-old Janice and pass her this wisdom. I can act on it right now at 65. And if you're reading this at 50, 55, or 60, this message found you at exactly the right time.

This is the heart behind my 14-Day In Her Right Mind: Midlife Memory and Focus Renewal Bootcamp. I built it because I want women to start today, not because something is wrong with you. Forgetting a name or misplacing your keys makes you human, not a diagnosis. Fourteen days won't determine your entire cognitive future either. I built it because I want women to stop putting this off.

For 14 days, we get intentional about the brain we have right now. We look at sleep, hydration, stress, nutrition, movement, and focus. We practice real strategies you can use in everyday life. We notice our patterns and name the habits that support us and the ones ready for an upgrade. Most importantly, we shift the whole way we think about caring for our minds.

Fourteen days won't decide the rest of your life. Fourteen days can absolutely change what you do with it.

Picture that woman again, the one you'll meet in 15 years. She's on her way, and Lord willing, you'll shake her hand. What are you doing for her today? Are you protecting her sleep? Moving her body? Caring for her heart and managing her stress? Keeping her connected to people and new ideas? Watching what you feed her? Giving her brain something real to work with?

We can't control every piece of aging. I refuse to let the pieces I can't control stop me from working on the pieces I can. At 65, I've got a new outlook. I'm not slowing down to stop living. I'm gearing up to keep living, and I want my whole mind riding along with me.

So here's my challenge to you: start today, right where you stand, with what you already have in your hands. Start before fear shows up. Start before a diagnosis lands on someone you love. Start now, so 70-year-old you already has a head start.  Start small if that's where you are.

Just start.

Take care of your brain now, so it has more to work with later. Your future self is counting on you. When you're ready to begin, I'll see you in the Midlife Memory and Focus Renewal Bootcamp.

Let's get in our right minds, and do the work to stay there.

Blessings,

Dr. Janice
In Her Right Mind