Hi, I'm Melissa Levi 👋🏼

Dear families,

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Thank you so much for taking the time to be here - to become the best carer you can be, to make caring for your ageing parents easier, and for letting me help transform your family's care story. 

 

My Professional Background

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• I spent more than a decade working at St Vincent's Hospital (Sydney, Australia) Older People’s Mental Health Service (OPMHS); working with a team of clinicians specialising in older people's mental health, dementia, caregiving

• Lecturer at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS)

• Author of 'We Need to Talk About Ageing' (2023, published by Hachette)

• Co-author of the St Vincent's Hospital Handbook of Clinical Psychogeriatrics

• Media & Speaker: I've appeared on numerous television and radio programs, as well as featuring on many podcasts (including TODAY Show, ABC, Life Uncut, Oldie Goodie).

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To think that my family’s story, and the stories of my patients’ families, may positively impact another family’s ageing journey truly fills my heart and was my dream for Talking Ageing.​

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PS: I want to note that ageing is a universal experience. Being Australian, I use 'Mum' instead of 'Mom', 'Ageing' instead of 'Ageing', but the knowledge, strategies and exercises can be used by all families, irrespective of where you live. ​​

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My Beliefs & Philosophies

 

Two things are true:

​❤️  We can provide the best possible care for our ageing parents, and

❤️  Caring is tough, but we can make it easier

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I believe in:

🙏🏼  The lifelong need to feel seen, heard and that you matter 

🙏🏼  We need to no longer confuse the inevitability of ageing with an inability to shape the journey ahead

🙏🏼  Caring is a marathon not a sprint, and we need to care for and empower carers.

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I don’t believe in:

👉🏼  Dismissing carer stress and burnout as unavoidable and something carers simply need to learn to live with

👉🏼  Telling carers to look after themselves, without giving them the strategies to free up the necessary time, energy or resources

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