The gifts of aging are bitter – now there’s a generalization. Rant on. The title and sub-heading in the Times caught my eye. Age and Its Awful Discontents and sub-heading "Is there anything good about getting old? No. Its gifts are bitter.” The article was Louis Begley’s gloomy reminiscence about his mother and his abhorrence of the 'ravages and suffering inflicted on the body by age and illness.' You wonder, why 'awful,' why 'discontent,' and 'bitter'? Well, it turns out that his mother was very lonely in her last decade (she died at age 94). "She couldn’t hear well, she had arthritis, too proud for a wheelchair, couldn’t get the hang of a walker, stopped even going to museums, concerts, or sitting on a park bench." Today the 78-year-old Begley feels the "full measure and anguish of his mother’s solitude and that of other old people who end their lives without a companion." It’s too bad Jane Gross and her New Old Age blog wasn’t around (that launched in 2008). Mr. Begley might have read about how other adult children coped (and helped) aging parents. Or he might have hired a geriatric care manager, around since the 1980's. It’s really too bad that despite plenty of money, neither he nor his mother had the inclination to look for ways to maintain the quality of her life.
AUSTIN, Texas (February 27, 2012) – Imagine someone for whom you care having round-the-clock access to an individualized audio library of inspirational readings, prayers, sermons, and classes from the religious or spiritual tradition of their choice. This is the heart of CoroFaith, a streaming audio web application that is launching today. CoroFaith is the latest initiative by audio wellness solutions pioneer Coro Health.
Majority of American Tax Payers Want Aging Parents Receiving Care claimed as Dependents
SEATTLE, Wash., FEBRUARY 28, 2012 – Approximately 23 percent of Americans anticipate they will have to provide care for a loved one in the next year, according to a survey released today by A Place for Mom, Inc. (APFM), the nation’s largest senior living referral information service.
San Mateo, CA, January 5, 2012 –– One hundred nineteen assisted living communities in 24 states across the United States rank as the “Caring Stars” of 2012, a new nationwide designation based on consumer ratings and reviews recognizing service excellence.
About 66 million Americans take care of a parent, spouse, relative or other loved one. Roughly a third also are raising children, according to the nonprofit National Alliance for Caregiving.
So many posts, 2011 was such a short year. For those of you news junkies or folks with too many Google alerts, like me you must be drowning in recaps of the 2011 best movies, worst mistakes, top tech this, worst tech that. So as the year rapidly slips to a close, I thought I'd recap the most read posts from Aging in Place Technology Watch written during 2011, beginning, not so cleverly, from the beginning of the year:
Sharpening the end of life discussion. Jane Gross published a New Old Age blog this week in the NY Times called Mad as Hell. The gist of it was about how retired Boston Globe columnist Ellen Goodman is starting up the "Conversation Project, one of many nascent efforts to make the rigors of caregiving and advanced old age into a kitchen-table issue — not just a topic for policy wonks and health care professionals." Ellen and Jane are talking about 'family caregiving'. Something is not quite right, though, about this article and other 'conversations' that depend on first stating the facts about seniors and where they live, what they live on, and who takes care of them.
Being a caregiver is the toughest job that no one ever talks about.
According to the National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP, more than 65 million Americans are caregivers to family members with a vast array of illnesses, including Alzheimer’s disease, advanced diabetes, Parkinson’s disease and many others.