Smart watches, like this Samsung Galaxy Watch3, have valuable safety features that can help you as you age. (Jennifer Bardsley)

Smart watches, like this Samsung Galaxy Watch3, have valuable safety features that can help you as you age. (Jennifer Bardsley)

Embracing new technology that gives security and independence

It’s important to adapt to wearing a smart watch, for example, while your brain is healthy enough to figure it out.

It’s been a while since I shared how my recovery has been after my episode of transient global amnesia on April 2, which sent me to the hospital and temporarily made me lose three months of memories for 24 hours.

April and the first half of May were rough. I recovered nearly all of my memories but I couldn’t multitask, I missed important emails and, worst of all, I developed a stutter. I felt like I was a balloon bopping along the sidewalk in the wind. But now I’m 100% better. My stutter is gone, and I’m back to my normal turbo-mode.

There is still a small risk that I could experience TGA again, so I purchased a smart watch that will call my husband if I take a hard fall. It also has an SOS feature that will send for help if I’m in trouble. Looking down at my wrist and seeing the date and time in gigantic font has been grounding. It was especially helpful in April when I was struggling.

I’m Generation X, but I know that lots of Baby Boomers read my column, and I’d like to encourage you to look into getting a smart watch yourself. They vary in features, but Apple and Samsung both make models that do important things, specifically the fall-detection alert and the SOS function.

If you are running and fall, it will call your spouse. If you are out for an early morning bike ride without your phone and feel chest pains, you can message for help. But unlike the dorky “I’ve fallen and can’t get up,” devices from decades past, these watches look cool.

Adapting to new technology like wearing a smart watch is important to do while your brain is healthy enough to figure out how to use it. I speak from experience on that one.

Right now in June, my watch is easy for me to use. But in April when my brain was recovering, it was tricky to understand. So don’t wait until it’s too late to embrace a new technology that could help you remain independent. Download it into your mental hard drive now, and familiarize yourself with every feature.

Still, I must confess that smart watches do have their downside. The other day I was at my exercise class, laying on my yoga mat during the last three minutes when everyone was meditating, and my watch showed an incoming text from my daughter: “When are you coming home?”

I panicked. She had never texted me in the middle of class before and I knew she was home alone. I rolled up my yoga mat, grabbed my things and flew to the car. “I’ll be right there,” I replied.

It wasn’t until I pulled into the driveway that I saw her next text. “Can we go thrift store shopping?” she asked.

Yup. My smart watch had turned me into a dummy. Deep breaths, Jenny, deep breaths.

Jennifer Bardsley publishes books under her own name and the pseudonym Louise Cypress. Find her online on Instagram @jenniferbardsleyauthor, on Twitter @jennbardsley or on Facebook as Jennifer Bardsley Author. Email her at teachingmybabytoread@gmail.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Photo courtesy of Kristi Nebel
Folk duo Steve and Kristi Nebel will be among the musical acts performing at the Edmonds Arts Festival, which takes place Friday through Sunday.
Photo courtesy of Kristi Nebel
Folk duo Steve and Kristi Nebel will be among the musical acts performing at the Edmonds Arts Festival, which takes place Friday through Sunday.
Coming events in Snohomish County

Send calendar submissions for print and online to features@heraldnet.com. To ensure your… Continue reading

Cascadia College Earth and Environmental Sciences Professor Midori Sakura looks in the surrounding trees for wildlife at the North Creek Wetlands on Wednesday, June 4, 2025 in Bothell, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Cascadia College ecology students teach about the importance of wetlands

To wrap up the term, students took family and friends on a guided tour of the North Creek wetlands.

Kim Crane talks about a handful of origami items on display inside her showroom on Monday, Feb. 17, 2025, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Crease is the word: Origami fans flock to online paper store

Kim’s Crane in Snohomish has been supplying paper crafters with paper, books and kits since 1995.

A woman flips through a book at the Good Cheer Thrift Store in Langley. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Pop some tags at Good Cheer Thrift Store in Langley

$20 buys an outfit, a unicycle — or a little Macklemore magic. Sales support the food bank.

Audi SQ8 Wows In Motion Or At Rest. Photo provided by Audi America MediaCenter.
2025 Audi SQ8 Is A Luxury, Hot Rod, SUV

500 Horsepower and 4.0-Second, 0-To-60 MPH Speed

The Mukilteo Boulevard Homer on Monday, May 12, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
‘Homer Hedge’: A Simpsons meme takes root in Everett — D’oh!

Homer has been lurking in the bushes on West Mukilteo Boulevard since 2023. Stop by for a selfie.

Sarah and Cole Rinehardt, owners of In The Shadow Brewing, on Wednesday, March 12, 2025 in Arlington, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In The Shadow Brewing: From backyard brews to downtown cheers

Everything seems to have fallen into place at the new taproom location in downtown Arlington

Bar manager Faith Britton pours a beer for a customer at the Madison Avenue Pub in Everett. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Burgers, brews and blues: Madison Avenue Pub has it all

Enjoy half-price burgers on Tuesday, prime rib specials and live music at the Everett mainstay.

Ellis Johnson, 16, left, and brother Garrett Johnson, 13, take a breather after trying to find enough water to skim board on without sinking into the sand during opening day of Jetty Island on Friday, July 5, 2019 in Everett, Wash. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Epic ways to spice up your summer

Your ultimate guide to adventure, fun and reader-approved favorites!

The 2025 Nissan Murano midsize SUV has two rows of seats and a five-passenger capacity. (Photo provided by Nissan)
2025 Nissan Murano is a whole new machine

A total redesign introduces the fourth generation of this elegant midsize SUV.

What’s Up columnist Andrea Brown with a selection of black and white glossy promotional photos on Wednesday, June 18, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Free celeb photos! Dig into The Herald’s Hollywood time capsule

John Wayne, Travolta, Golden Girls and hundreds more B&W glossies are up for grabs at August pop-up.

PUD Manager of Generation Operation and Engineering Scott Spahr talks about the different gages and monitoring on the control panel at the Henry M. Jackson Hydroelectric Project on Wednesday, June 18, 2025 in Sultan, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish County PUD to change its contract with Bonneville this fall

The contract change will enable PUD to supply more reliable and affordable energy, Senior Power Supply Manager Garrison Marr said.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.