Dancing into Reflection with Szewah Chin and Hilary Brown-Istrefi

Special Issue: More Good Days, Together - Mental Health, Brain Health & Community

In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month 2026, DanceStream Projects executive director Magda Kaczmarska sat down with Mark Timmons, artist, advocate and person living with dementia, for a conversation about the intersections of mental health and brain health. Resources:  Mental Health Month Action Guide https://mhanational.org/2026-mental-health-month-action-guide/ [https://mhanational.org/2026-mental-health-month-action-guide/] Pathways To Wellbeing with Dementia: https://daanow.org/pathways/ [https://daanow.org/pathways/] Mark Timmons Poetry: https://marktimmonsphotography.com/poetry/ [https://marktimmonsphotography.com/poetry/] About Mark Timmons:  Mark Timmons is an active member of the Eden Alternative and serves as a leader within the Dementia Action Alliance (DAA). Since being diagnosed with dementia in early 2017 at age 48, he has drawn on his personal experience to inform his advocacy and leadership. As his condition has progressed, Timmons has focused on the creative arts, strongly supporting the link between artistic expression, movement, and brain health. He is a member of the Eden Alternative’s Speakers Bureau, is the longest-serving member of DAA’s Advisory Board and co-hosts several of DAA’s Virtual Engagement Programs and Discussion Groups. Mark also routinely collaborates with DanceStream Projects on artistic and advocacy projects. In addition to his work with DAA, Timmons is a photographer, writer/poet, and advocates for causes related to homelessness and mental health. You may find him in the garden, on a hike (always with his camera), or researching family histories.  Content Note:  This conversation includes personal experiences related to mental health, including discussion of suicide loss and eating disorders. We recognize that these topics may feel sensitive or activating for some listeners and readers. We invite you to engage with this conversation in whatever way feels most supportive for you, whether that means taking breaks, listening with support, or choosing to return to it at another time. Our hope is that this conversation offers compassion, connection, and a reminder that no one has to navigate these experiences alone. More than one billion people in the world live with mental illness. You are not alone. If you or someone you love is in crisis, please call or text 988 or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741.

Inclusive Design for Brain Health w/ Macarena Espina Díaz

Brain health is not merely the absence of disease; it is the sum of our physical, emotional, social, and cognitive well-being. Designing social and physical environments that support brain health as we age is essential to ensuring dignity, autonomy, and security across the lifespan. In this episode of the Dancing into Brain Health Podcast, we are joined by Macarena Espina Díaz, whose work centers on building precisely these kinds of supportive environments. With a focus on inclusivity and human-centered design, she cultivates social and physical spaces that uphold dignity and enhance quality of life for people living with dementia. Macarena brings together her expertise as an industrial designer and artist to bridge academic, community, and policy spheres. Through her work, she fosters meaningful dialogue, advances policy, and promotes environmental adaptations that expand equitable access to resources for people living with dementia in her home country of Chile. As an Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health at Trinity College Dublin, she collaborated with the University and local housing organizations to develop policy briefs, educational seminars, and design recommendations. These efforts contributed to envisioning Ireland’s first brain health–focused intergenerational housing community. Together, we explore the importance of inclusive design—particularly for those living with dementia—and consider how each of us can engage more intentionally with our social and physical environments to support brain health for all. Learn more about Macarena Espina Díaz: https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/macarena-espina-diaz [https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/macarena-espina-diaz] Read and watch more: https://www.viviendocondemencia.cl/ [https://www.viviendocondemencia.cl/] Inclusive Design for People Living with Dementia in Chile [In Spanish/ En Español] https://www.canal9.cl/episodios/nuestra-casa/2021/05/05/viviendo-con-demencias-caja-de-herramientas-para-adecuar-el-hogar-de-quienes-viven-con-demencia [https://www.canal9.cl/episodios/nuestra-casa/2021/05/05/viviendo-con-demencias-caja-de-herramientas-para-adecuar-el-hogar-de-quienes-viven-con-demencia] [In Spanish/ En Español] The “Living with Dementia” toolkit free download via the following link | La caja de herramientas «Vivir con demencia» disponible para su descarga gratuita a través del siguiente enlace:https://www.uchile.cl/publicaciones/174559/caja-de-herramientas-viviendo-con-demencias [https://www.uchile.cl/publicaciones/174559/caja-de-herramientas-viviendo-con-demencias] [In Spanish / En Español] Launch and Discussion: "Let's Talk About Living with Dementia" | Lanzamiento y conversatorio "Hablemos de Vivir con Demencia" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s18pImHoglg [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s18pImHoglg] Inclusive Environments for People Living with Dementia from Rural Areas of Chile and their Families https://www.gbhi.org/projects/inclusive-environments-people-living-dementia-rural-areas-chile-and-their-families [https://www.gbhi.org/projects/inclusive-environments-people-living-dementia-rural-areas-chile-and-their-families] Fostering the Enjoyment of Eating through Inclusive Strategies for People Living with Dementia https://www.gbhi.org/news-publications/fostering-enjoyment-eating-through-inclusive-strategies-people-living-dementia [https://www.gbhi.org/news-publications/fostering-enjoyment-eating-through-inclusive-strategies-people-living-dementia] Tool Kit: Strategies to facilitate eating and swallowing in people living with early-stage dementia (2025) https://libros.uchile.cl/1494 [https://libros.uchile.cl/1494] Caja de herramientas “Estrategias para favorecer la alimentación y deglución de personas con demencia en etapas tempranas” https://uchile.cl/publicaciones/217343/caja-de-herramientas-estrategias-para-alimentacion-y-demencias [https://uchile.cl/publicaciones/217343/caja-de-herramientas-estrategias-para-alimentacion-y-demencias] Built environments that foster lifelong brain health Brain Health and Housing (Global Brain Health Institute – Trinity College Dublin and Respond Housing Association – Ireland) https://www.gbhi.org/projects/brain-health-and-housing [https://www.gbhi.org/projects/brain-health-and-housing] Bringing brain health home: the importance of housing and the urban environment for building this generation’s brain health https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/23748834.2024.2327815 [https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/23748834.2024.2327815] This episode of Dancing into Brain Health was edited and produced Magda Kaczmarska and Hilary Brown-Istrefi. The music for this show is the title cut from the album, Critical Path by Joe Venegoni and Carl Weingarten.

UnRavelling Creativity w/ Dr. Bruce Miller and Jake Broder

Creativity is one of the most admired and universal human attributes, taking form across genres, ages, and levels of professionalism. Whether it contributes to an individual’s sense of flow and multimodal expression or inspires awe in those who witness the artistic output of others, creativity undeniably evokes—and amplifies—what makes us most human. From a neuroscientific perspective, creativity is a highly complex and multifaceted process, engaging numerous regions of the brain in dynamic interplay. Yet despite its universality, much about creativity remains a mystery. In this episode of the Dancing into Brain Health Podcast, we are joined by two individuals helping to illuminate that mystery: renowned behavioral neurologist Dr. Bruce Miller and award-winning actor and writer Jake Broder. Their conversation is brought together through the story of Anne Adams—a woman whose emergent artistic expression in the face of a progressive neurodegenerative condition radically reshaped how neuroscientists understand creativity in the brain. Through Anne’s journey, Dr. Miller and Jake Broder invite us to look beyond a deficit-based narrative of dementia and toward a more expansive view—challenging long-held assumptions about degeneration and revealing how shifts in neural networks can give rise to new forms of expression and meaning. Together, they take us on a journey through the intersection of neuroscience, art, and lived human experience, inviting us to reconsider what creativity is, where it lives in the brain, and how it can persist, transform, and even flourish in the face of profound change. Learn more about Dr. Bruce Miller: https://memory.ucsf.edu/people/bruce-miller [https://memory.ucsf.edu/people/bruce-miller] Learn more about Jake Broder: www.jakebroder.com [https://www.jakebroder.com/] https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/jake-broder [https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/jake-broder] Read and watch more: UnRavelled Play https://www.unravelledplay.com/ [https://www.unravelledplay.com/] Creativity & FTD: Past Present Future: The Story of Dr. Anne Adams and Maurice Ravel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-tCG6m79pk&t=1s [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-tCG6m79pk&t=1s] ‘UnRavelling’ Stigma to Find Common Threads https://localnewspasadena.com/2025/unravelling-stigma-to-find-common-threads/ [https://localnewspasadena.com/2025/unravelling-stigma-to-find-common-threads/] Unravelling Boléro: progressive aphasia, transmodal creativity and the right posterior neocortex  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18057074/ [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18057074/] Art & Creativity: UCSF Memory and Aging Center https://memory.ucsf.edu/brain-health/art-creativity [https://memory.ucsf.edu/brain-health/art-creativity] Emergence of visual artistic creativity in frontotemporal dementia https://alz-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/alz.065202 [https://alz-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/alz.065202] Prevalence, Timing, and Network Localization of Emergent Visual Creativity in Frontotemporal Dementia https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36848111/ [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36848111/] Unraveling Bolero https://radiolab.org/podcast/unraveling-bolero [https://radiolab.org/podcast/unraveling-bolero] This episode of Dancing into Brain Health was edited and produced Magda Kaczmarska and Hilary Brown-Istrefi. The music for this show is the title cut from the album, Critical Path by Joe Venegoni and Carl Weingarten. Follow us on our website: https://dancestreamprojects.org/dancing-into-brain-health-podcast [https://dancestreamprojects.org/dancing-into-brain-health-podcast]

Dancing into Co-Creation w/ Michelle Memran

Even as global populations age and the incidence of dementia continues to increase, the collective narratives of what it means to be aging and living with dementia continue to perpetuate deficit driven, one-note narratives of loss. Such narratives drive fear and stigma, driving wedges between generations, further siloing individuals and expanding age-based isolation. Our guest today on the Dancing into Brain Health Podcast is Michelle Memran, a documentary filmmaker and dementiaadvocate who has dedicated her life’s work to transforming these narratives. Through collaborative visual storytelling alongside individuals living with dementia, Michelle amplifies the voices that most need to be heard while transforming the entire ecosystem of what we perceive living with dementia canand should be. Together we discuss her latest projects and consider the role of artists in collaboration with communities living with dementia to shape new narratives and inform social change.   Learn more about Michelle Memran here: https://www.michellememran.com/ [https://www.michellememran.com/] https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-memran/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-memran/] Read and watch more: The Rest I Make Up https://www.therestimakeup.com/ [https://www.therestimakeup.com/]   Let This Be A Symphony YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LetThisBeaSymphony [https://www.youtube.com/@LetThisBeaSymphony] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/letthisbeasymphony/ [https://www.instagram.com/letthisbeasymphony/] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/let-this-be-a-symphony/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/let-this-be-a-symphony/]   https://www.caringfortheages.com/article/S1526-4114(22)00495-4/fulltext [https://www.caringfortheages.com/article/S1526-4114(22)00495-4/fulltext]   https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-front-row/an-extraordinary-documentary-portrait-of-a-playwright-facing-alzheimers-disease [https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-front-row/an-extraordinary-documentary-portrait-of-a-playwright-facing-alzheimers-disease] https://bombmagazine.org/articles/2018/11/21/in-a-dark-time-the-eye-begins-to-see-michelle-memran-interviewed/ [https://bombmagazine.org/articles/2018/11/21/in-a-dark-time-the-eye-begins-to-see-michelle-memran-interviewed/]   https://www.library.ucsf.edu/news/we-as-a-way-forward-notes-from-the-hiv-aids-epidemic-collection/ [https://www.library.ucsf.edu/news/we-as-a-way-forward-notes-from-the-hiv-aids-epidemic-collection/] This episode of Dancing into Brain Health was edited and produced Magda Kaczmarska and Hilary Brown-Istrefi. The music for this show is the title cut from the album, Critical Path by Joe Venegoni and Carl Weingarten.

Advocacy in Action w/ Helen Bundy Medsger

Dementia in an umbrella condition defined by a change in brain function that affects daily activities. Dementia can be caused by a number of underlying pathologies, but despite extensive advances being made in diagnosis and understanding of some forms of dementia, such as Alzheimer’s Disease, those navigating other forms of dementia are still frequently met with a very different experience, one of misdiagnosis and lack of support.   Lewy Body Dementia is the second most common form of progressive dementia, yet for the estimated 1.4 million individuals living with Lewy Body Dementia in the US and around 11 million globally, much remains to be done to ensure their journey is met with understanding and guidance. Our guest today on the Dancing into Brain Health Podcast, Helen Bundy Medsger, has dedicated her life to changing this reality. Transmuting decades of partnership in care to three family members living with Lewy Body Dementia, she is a passionate advocate across research, clinical, public and policy spaces, paving a way forward and building community along the way. Together, we discuss the role of lived experience experts at every stage of the dementia care journey, reflect on lessons learned from a lifetime of advocacy and envision a future where all those who receive a diagnosis of Lewy Body Dementia are met with clarity, community and hope. Learn more about Helen Medgser and her work: https://www.lbda.org/lbda_story/helen-medsger-volunteer-of-the-year/ [https://www.lbda.org/lbda_story/helen-medsger-volunteer-of-the-year/] Learn more and engage with Lewy Body Dementia Association: www.lbda.org [http://www.lbda.org] Read more – articles co-authored by Helen: Implications and Opportunities Regarding Biological Frameworks in Overt and Prodromal Dementia with Lewy bodies, July 2025, Alzheimer’s & Dementia, The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70470 [https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70470] Research Priorities in Neuropalliative Care: A Consensus Statement from the International Neuropalliative Care Society, JAMA Neurology, Published online February 03, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2024.4932 [https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2024.4932] Long-term Effects of Collaborative Dementia Care on Quality of Life and Caregiver Well-being, November 2024, Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.14370 [https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.14370] Public and Participant Involvement as a Pathway to Inclusive Dementia Research, November 2024, Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.14350 [https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.14350] A Global Conversation with Care Partners – Commemorating the United Nations International Day of Care and Support, November 2023, https://www.gbhi.org/news-publications/global-conversation-care-partners-commemorating-united-nations-international-day [https://www.gbhi.org/news-publications/global-conversation-care-partners-commemorating-united-nations-international-day] Optimizing Brain Health Across the Life Course, 2022, World Health Organization, Geneva, CH, https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240054561 [https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240054561] Peer Mentorship with Lewy Body Disease: A Protocol for Co-developing and Piloting a Program for Post-diagnostic Support, June 2023, Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.066048 [https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.066048] This episode of Dancing into Brain Health was edited and produced Magda Kaczmarska and Hilary Brown-Istrefi. The music for this show is the title cut from the album, Critical Path by Joe Venegoni and Carl Weingarten.