TED Talks are one of my favorite ways to continue my life long education.
These 10 to 20-minute presentations feature experts from around the world sharing their passions, research findings, and innovative ideas. Aside from being educational, TED Talks are inspirational, motivational and highly entertaining.
The best part is that TED Talks allow you to stay current on trends and research in the comfort of your own home. Heck, I’ll even watch a TED Talk while I wash my dishes. Just please don’t place your technology too close to the sink #lessonlearned.
Below I highlighted 7 of my favorite TED Talks. I believe they are extremely beneficial for everyone to watch, but especially recreation therapists who work with vulnerable populations daily.
So grab your cup of coffee and keep reading to learn a few ideas worth sharing.
1. What makes a good life? Lessons from the longest study on happiness
By: Robert Waldinger
Time: 12mins 46secs
Worth the watch: If you are interested to learn how we can combat the loneliness epidemic to improve the health and wellbeing of our nation.
Spark notes: The Harvard Study of Adult Development researched the lives of 724 men since 1938. Through at-home interviews, observations with family interactions, brain scans, and other data, the finding of the study concluded that good relationships kept the participants happier and healthier. Since 1 in 5 Americans reports experiencing loneliness at any moment, this study is of particular interest to the health and wellbeing of our nation.
Quotable moment: “The good life is built with good relationships”
2. My stroke of insight
By: Jill Bolte Taylor
Time: 18 mins 34 secs
Worth the watch: If you are totally intrigued when science and spiritually collide.
Spark notes: Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor was drawn to the field of psychology due to her brother’s diagnosis of schizophrenia. She wanted to understand how their ideas of reality could be so different. At the Harvard Department of Psychiatry, she studied the biological differences between brains with schizophrenia and other severe mental health disorders hoping to solve this mystery. That was until one day a splitting headache turned into a massive stroke in her left hemisphere, causing her to experience a true “stoke of insight”.
“We are energy beings connected to one another through the consciousness of the right hemispheres as one human family”.
3. How childhood trauma affects health across a lifetime
By: Nadine Burke Harris
Time: 15 mins 58 secs
Worth the watch: If you work with individuals who have experienced a traumatic event. (Hint- That’s 67% of the population)
Spark notes: While working at the California Pacific Medical Center in Bayview Hunters Point, Dr. Harris noticed a significant trend in the patients she was seeing. Children referred to her for ADHD screenings had the shared experience of a significant traumatic life event. Needing to understand further, Dr. Harris began studying the effects of significant trauma on health. One fateful day she came across the Adverse Childhood Experience Study (ACES). This study was so transformative in her journey that is not only changed her clinical practice but ultimately her career.
Quotable moment: “There are real, neurologic reasons why folks exposed to high doses of adversity are more likely to engage in high-risk behavior.”
4. The world needs all kind of minds
By: Temple Grandin
Time: 20 mins 6 secs
Worth the watch: If you serve folks with autism, and you love seeing someone with autism thrive.
Spark notes: Temple Grandin was diagnosed with autism as a child. Diving into how an autistic mind thinks, she shares with the audience how thinking in pictures is much more common than thinking in generalities. Delving into the types of autistic minds, Temple Grandin makes a truly captivating case on why the world needs people with autism and how we can support them to flourish.
Quotable moment: “I actually feel quite at home here because there are a lot of autism genetics.” (To the TED Talks audience)”
5. The “dementia village” that’s redefining elder care
By: Yvonne van Amerongen
Time: 10 min 29 secs
Worth the watch: If you want to feel good about the possibilities of future dementia care services.
Spark notes: Dementia is continuing to be a growing concern around the world. Yvonne van Amerongen was a Care Manager at a nursing home in the ’90s. One day she came to the hard realization that this style of care was not what she wanted for her friends, family, or herself. She noticed that the environment was the most confusing part of the entire experience for her patients. Deciding to be the change that she wanted to see in the world, she took her experience and passion and created an innovated, family-style place of care. The best part – it was done all within the state’s budget.
Quotable moment: “We were offering people with an already confused brain, some more confusion.”
6. The best way to help is often just to listen
By: Sophie Andrews
Time: 14 mins 23 secs
Worth the watch: If you want to learn how a simple phone call with a volunteer can help combat loneliness among seniors in the UK.
Spark notes: While escaping her abusive father at the age of 14, Sophie Andrews turned to the Samaritans for aid. She recalls how the simple act of listening empathetically had a profound effect on her ability to pick herself up and rebuild her life. Being a victim herself, she is no stranger to judgment and shame. Over 20 years later, a new stigma has developed, loneliness and isolation. These serious health concerns are linked to a decline in health and wellbeing as well as early mortality rates. The organization The Silver Line is working to defeat loneliness through regular telephone calls between volunteers and seniors.
Quotable moment: “The profound impact of a volunteer listening to me, stayed with me”
7. The voices in my head
By: Elenore Longden
Time: 14 mins 13 secs
Worth the watch: If you work with individuals who experience severe mental health conditions.
Spark notes: Elenor was a “normal” college student, that was until she started hearing voices inside her head that narrated her life. At first, the voice was subtle, but distinctly there. Once she shared the voice with friends and health care professionals, she identified the voice as a “grave concern”. The voice went from innocent to menacing. Listen as Elenor recounts the story of her diagnosis of Schizophrenia and the great work that the organization Intervoice is doing to help others.
Quotable moment: “Don’t tell me what the people have told you about yourself, tell me about you.”
Do you have a favorite TED Talks that you would like to share with this growing community of Recreation Professionals? Please share in the comments below!
