“Will We Still Be Relevant ‘When We’re 64’?” – Kaiser Health News
Click here to listen to The Beatles song, “When I’m Sixty-four” while you read this article.
by Sharon Jayson
“A gnawing sense of irrelevancy and invisibility suddenly hits many aging adults, as their life roles shift from hands-on parent to empty nester or from workaholic to retiree. Self-worth and identity may suffer as that feeling that you matter starts to fade. Older adults see it in the workplace when younger colleagues seem uninterested in their feedback. Those who just retired might feel a bit unproductive.
New research suggests this perception of becoming irrelevant is very real. And that’s why some seniors are determined to stay social, remain relevant and avert the loneliness often linked with aging.
“As people get older, there are fewer and fewer opportunities to feel like they make a difference and matter … ”
Click here to read this Kaiser Health News article in its entirety.
“Do you know someone who needs to ‘hang up the keys’?” – AARP
“There’s nothing more important than an older loved one’s safety. And when someone you care about is still driving, it’s crucial to pay close attention to their habits and, possibly, talk with them about planning for a life without driving.
Of course, it’s never easy to know the right time for them to “’hang up the keys,’ but these discussions can be easier. To help you, AARP Driver Safety has created an easy-to-complete program called We Need To Talk.
This FREE online seminar offers practical tips and advice in three interactive sessions:
- The Meaning of Driving – Find out what driving means to older adults and the emotions they may face when they have to give it up.
- Observing Driving Skills – Learn to notice and assess your loved ones’ driving skills objectively and talk about alternatives to driving.
- Planning Conversations – Discover ways to have “the talk” while encouraging independence. It’s a difficult conversation to initiate, but with the right tools, you can really make a difference in the life of an older driver.
“AARP Driver Safety offers many valuable educational programs. Click here to find out more.”
Falls Prevention Conversation Guide for Caregivers
“Falls are the leading cause of fatal and non-fatal injuries for older Americans, but most falls can be prevented. This resource highlights fall risk factors and ways that caregivers can work with loved ones to develop a falls prevention action plan.
“The National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC) has partnered with the National Council on Aging (NCOA) to create this resource highlighting fall risk factors and ways that caregivers can work with loved ones to develop a falls prevention action plan. This resource provides a guide for starting conversations about falls with loved ones. It also outlines specific falls prevention action steps and highlights additional resources which may helpful.”
Click here to download the Falls Prevention Conversation Guide.
Link partners’ networks schedule “active shooter / active threat” in social services settings
The next sessions are scheduled for Berks County on June 13 at Abilities In Motion. There’ll be two iterations, a morning session and an afternoon one. A few seats for the afternoon session are available. If you want to attend, please RSVP.
“Your Top 10 Objects Your Kids Don’t Want” – next avenue
“Your house, and what it contains, is a minefield in the eyes of your grown children. They can see from your example that collections of stuff are a curse; such objects are superfluous to a life well lived. They want a clean, clear field in which to live their lives. Your grown children will not agree to be the recipients of your downsizing if it means their upsizing.
“In the following list of the Top Ten Objects Your Kids Do Not Want — inspired by conversations (or lack thereof) about my keepsakes with my 30-year-old son, Lock, and his wife, as well as by similar conversations I’ve had with hundreds of boomer clients and their millennial heirs — I will help you find a remedy for dealing with each:”
Click here to see the top 10 list and what you might consider doing to help your kids.
“A pioneering doctor tries to upend the nursing home industry — and give seniors back their independence” – STATnews
“The creator of the Minka bristles at the notion that this is a tiny house. ‘Tiny houses are terrible for older people,’ says Dr. Bill Thomas. Jon Reis“
“KING FERRY, N.Y. — It’s an unlikely place to launch a war against the nursing home industry.
“But here on the black-stone edge of a gloomy Cayuga Lake stood the pioneering geriatrician Dr. Bill Thomas, a few feet away from his weapon of choice in this battle: a 330-square-foot, plywood-boned home he calls a Minka.
“‘I spent my career trying to change the nursing home industry,’ he said. ‘But I’ve come to realize it’s not really going to change. So now what I’ve got to do is make it so people don’t need nursing homes in the first place. That what this is about.’
“The idea sounds, in one sense, simple: create and market small, senior-friendly houses like this one and sell them for around $75,000, clustered like mushrooms in tight groups or tucked onto a homeowner’s existing property so caregivers or children can occupy the larger house and help when needed.
“Thomas wants to help people grow older on their own turf and terms, while helping spare them the fiscal and physical stress of maintaining bigger homes.”
Attendant Care / Act 150
If you have a physical disability, the Attendant Care Waiver and state funded Act 150 program may be available to you to continue to live in your home and community with support and services.
To download the above graphic as a .pdf format for enlarging, printing or sharing, click on the graphic or here: Act 150.
LEARN MORE HERE | Eligibility details, application forms and other information are available here.
“‘Crisis mode’: As boomers age, a shortage of caregivers” – The Baltimore Sun
“Open Arms Solutions caregiver Kamlesh Debi, left, brings a slice of pie to Frank Shapira, 91, right, Monday, Nov. 20, 2017 at Shapira’s Skokie apartment, where he receives 24-hour home health care.” (Chris Walker / Chicago Tribune)”
by Robert Channick, Contact Reporter Chicago Tribune
“As more and more baby boomers cross the threshold into old age, members of the Me Generation are confronting a growing problem: Who will take care of them when they can no longer care for themselves?
“It’s a situation few families are prepared for, but one many will face. As relatives gather for the holidays, it often becomes clear that falls, memory lapses and an assortment of maladies have taken a toll on aging loved ones and help is needed.
“But a shortage of qualified workers, rising costs and a massive demographic shift have newly minted seniors facing a caregiver crisis that could take some of the luster out of their golden years.”
Read this article in its entirety, click here.
“Good Friends Might Be Your Best Brain Booster As You Age” – Kaiser Health News
by Judith Graham
“Ask Edith Smith, a proud 103-year-old, about her friends, and she’ll give you an earful.
“There’s Johnetta, 101, whom she’s known for 70 years and who has Alzheimer’s disease. ‘I call her every day and just say I just say, “Hi, how are you doing?” She never knows, but she says hi back, and I tease her,’ Smith said.
“There’s Katie, 93, whom Smith met during a long teaching career with the Chicago Public Schools. ‘Every day we have a good conversation. She’s still driving and lives in her own house, and she tells me what’s going on.’
“Then there’s Rhea, 90, whom Smith visits regularly at a retirement facility. And Mary, 95, who doesn’t leave her house anymore, ‘so I fix her a basket about once a month of jelly and little things I make and send it over by cab.’ And fellow residents at Smith’s Chicago senior community, whom she recognizes with a card and a treat on their birthdays.”
You can read this Kaiser Health News article in its entirety, click here.
Technology | Meet the grandPad
“Technology has become fully integrated into our daily lives; smart phones, tablets, laptops, and other devices connect us to the world at large and allow us to share in the lives of our close friends and family. Seniors across the globe have tried with varying success to embrace technology to stay in touch with loved ones and perform basic functions at home.
“Tablet devices, with their array of options, menus, and applications, can prove too difficult for most seniors to effectively use. As such, many companies have developed tablets designed specifically for seniors as a way to boost revenue and reach this key demographic. But are these tablets really worth the investment? This infographic from grandPad helps highlight key features of the grandPad tablet, other senior tablets, and the standard tablets on the market.
We’re sharing this link and infographic received in an email from next avenue. This is not an endorsement but is shared in the interest of information sharing.
“Not only do Next Avenue readers get a special discount, but for every grandPad sold using the code nextave, grandPad will make a contribution to Next Avenue that helps support our non-profit journalism.”
The Annual Plan (regularly $65.50)$49 /month – billed upfront annually.
