Guest BloggerHow to Cope with Empty Nest Syndrome
Well, here you are: The last kiddo has left home and you’re feeling pretty blue. Maybe you’re worrying all the time. You’re probably a little lonesome (or a lot). You may feel like it, but you are not alone. The Empty Nest Is Actually Full—of Emotions According to GoodTherapy.org, empty nesters may experience insomnia, anxiety and/or panic—as well as feelings of extreme grief, isolation/loneliness, guilt and purposelessness. They may even lose interest in activities they once enjoyed. Psychology Today notes that “...parents often struggle with a profound sense of loss, not just because they miss their child, but because their very identities have
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Richard BitnerHow to Notice Signs of Functional Decline in Seniors
After a certain age, some level of decline should be expected year after year. In our forties and fifties, this decline is incremental. It happens slowly, and while it can affect our physical and mental performance, most of us are still able to live our lives comfortably. But in our sixties and beyond, decline begins to speed up. Eventually, seniors reach a point of functional decline. This is the point where elderly care is required for seniors to live comfortably and safely. Unfortunately, it can be hard to spot functional decline. While decline accelerates in seniors, it still happens gradually
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Carol MarakBiggest Senior Concerns
Health and financial security is a prime concern to seniors. In a survey sponsored by the National Council on Aging, found that financial security (71% of seniors) comes ahead of staying involved with family and friends (68%) but women are even more vulnerable than men to financial matters. The study names other worrisome factors like health care and prescription drug costs. The other two are being a burden to family and losing independence. Individuals who help a loved one will risk losing their financial security because they quit their job or work part-time to become a caregiver. They forfeit contributing
Continue readingIs it Possible to Prepare for the Future?
Most seniors have not saved enough money for retirement much less compiled a carefully thought out plan for the future. In total, more than 40% of households headed by people aged 55 through 70 lack sufficient resources to maintain a living standard in retirement, a Wall Street Journal analysis concluded. That is around 15 million American households. According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, Americans aged 60 through 69 had about $2 trillion in debt in 2017, an 11% increase per capita from 2004, according to New York Federal Reserve data adjusted for inflation. They had $168 billion
Continue readingWhy Seniors Isolate
There's a growing concern that seniors in retirement are not actively involved and it puts them at risk for chronic conditions. Social isolation and loneliness among older adults are linked to depressive symptoms, poor cognitive functioning, disrupted sleep, lack of physical activity, and impaired mental health-all of which have implications for increased mortality. Other risks include a weakened immune system, increased use of emergency services, early admittance to a nursing home, and frequent falls. In 2018, an academic researcher asked 550 seniors in a Facebook group who frequently discuss feeling isolated, "What are your reasons for being socially inactive? Is
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Kendall VanBlarcomControlling Confusion in Older Adults
There are many who find themselves getting in family arguments about controlling confusion in older adults. This is because it is common for family members and their caregivers to notice changes in behavior, and cognitive abilities, over time. When these shifts happen unexpectedly, a family caregiver might view the behavior as irrational or paranoid. But, for the senior experiencing the confusion, it is very real. A change in your loved one’s behavior could be due to an undiagnosed cognitive impairment. Sometimes these manifest themselves as fears and worries. Or there may be complaints and confusion. In more extreme cases, shifts
Continue readingHow Dangerous is Social Media to Seniors’ Well-Being?
Ten years ago, few people would have predicted that seniors would become some of social media’s most passionate users. But a study last year by Pew Research Center found that 62% of online seniors are on Facebook. Other studies show that social media use among seniors is rising at a rapid rate. How Dangerous is Social Media to Seniors’ Well-Being? As more and more seniors use social media, there are growing concerns. Most research indicates that social media improves quality of life for elderly adults. But some senior care professionals are increasingly worried about the dangers that social media could pose
Continue readingAttitudes to Enhance Aging
What is your mindset about growing older? Do you want to avoid thinking about it for as long as possible? Is it a negative passage to be endured? To set an ideal mid-life into motion, you need a positive outlook. A study of 660 adults aged 50 and older in Ohio, published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, found that people who had positive attitudes about aging lived more than seven years longer than those with negative attitudes. While the results remain unproven by other researchers, the study does link positive outlook and good health. For example, depression
Continue readingHow to Thrive When Aging Alone
Have you heard of the term Elder Orphan? It's a new way of framing categorizing who are aging alone. I began to think about aging alone after caring for my parents. My mother struggled with heart problems, while my father lived with Alzheimer’s disease. Watching their decline was heartbreaking. It was close to one year after dad’s passing when the question hit me: “Who will care for me?” That was 10 years ago. Today, I’m 65. The U.S. Census Bureau tells us more than 27 percent of people age 65 and over live alone. One reason is because baby boomers
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