Professor Ellen Langer, better known as "the mother of mindfulness,” spent the better part of her 45-year career challenging widely-held assumptions about the power of our minds. Her famous "Counterclockwise" study, first conducted in 1979, showed it's possible to reverse the affects of aging in one week. In her latest book, The Mindful Body: Thinking Our Way to Chronic Health, she says our minds can make us more hopeful, speed the healing process, and even help us live longer. The key: remember your mind and body are one integrated unit. "Where you put the mind, the body will follow." Langer defines Mindfulness as being in the moment — noticing new things about yourself and the environment rather than assuming today will be the same as yesterday which, in turn, opens us to new possibilities. In this rapid-fire conversation with Melinda Blau, Langer talks about applying mindfulness to aging, grief, caretaking, and serious illness. You can find Ellen's books on Amazon and her website