In light of my most recent post (April 23, 2013) about the effect of music during my parents’ Bible study sessions, I am reposting this blog post describing an article about music, eurhythmics, and elders. How interesting to read about the research Effect of Music-Based Multitask Training on Gait, Balance, and Fall Risk in Elderly People (abstract), … Continue reading
Posted by Marti Weston …
Sharing Bible Study With Residents at VMRC’s Woodland Park
My father, a retired minister, and my mother are leading a short Bible study once a week at Woodland Park, Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community’s (VMRC), newly opened Green House Homes. The weekly activity is engaging and fun for mom and dad, and they enjoy sharing scripture as well as music with the group members. Most of the participants who … Continue reading
Thoughts on Medicare Changes at the Over 65 Blog
The Over 65 Blog is a part of The Hastings Center, an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit bioethics research institute that focuses on ethical issues in the areas of health, medicine, and the environment. The Center concentrates on and produces research about making decisions at the end of life, public health priorities, and the role of emerging technologies when it comes to … Continue reading
Dementia Among Inmates Poses a Growing Challenge for Prisons
Read the entire article at The Guardian. Below is a three-paragraph excerpt from an April 12, 2013 report by Adam Moll, a compelling look at the aging prison population and the increasing amounts of geriatric medical care that must be provided to inmates. Dementia is not a condition associated with incarceration, yet a demographic shift … Continue reading
Will Adult Children Be Liable for Parents’ Nursing Home Bills?
From a posting on Facebook by A Bittersweet Season author, Jane Gross. A bit scary, I think. Son Liable for Mom’s $93,000 Nursing Home Bill Under ‘Filial Responsibility’ Law Some 29 states currently have laws making adult children responsible for their parents if their parents can’t afford to take care of themselves. These “filial responsibility” laws have rarely been enforced, but six years … Continue reading
Businesses Profiting and Benefitting from Aging
An article in Fiscal Times, How Startups Art Profiting from Aging Boomers, describes how boomers and individuals in other age groups are creating new businesses and products that respond to the needs of people who are aging. Adult children may want to become acquainted with this business trend because products may pop up that are … Continue reading
Aging Parent Hospitalization
I’ve written about senior parent hospitalizations several times on this blog. When a parent is hospitalized, an adult child needs energy, clarity, and attention to detail. Recently Dale Carter, over at Transition Aging Parents, wrote an excellent post about her experience when her mother was hospitalized for surgery, and she includes lots of ideas that … Continue reading
Colonoscopies for Our Elder Parents? Maybe Not
I just finished reading Too Many Colonoscopies for the Elderly, a short article that appeared on the New Old Age blog at the New York Times. The March 12, 2013 post, by New Old Age journalist and editor Paula Span, explains how the United States Preventive Task Force recommends that routine screening colonoscopies not be … Continue reading
What’s It Like to Have Alzheimer’s and Get Worse?
Those of us who have lived with dementia or Alzheimer’s in our families know about the struggle. But rarely does an opportunity come along to read about what’s happening to memory from the perspective of the person who is ill and gradually becoming sicker. Facing a Fading Future: Retired Doctor Chronicles His Struggles With Alzheimer’s … Continue reading
And There Was Sight! A Coda for Retina and Cataract Issues
Check out the story about my retinal condition in the March 2013 issue of Prevention. The magazine does not allow non-subscribers to access the articles, but if you happen to be in the grocery check-out line, you can read about many of the eye problems that people experience as they age including the detached retina … Continue reading
Why is Hospice Still A Tough Call–Even for People Who Know?
When a person is approaching the end of life, we can find no easy answers, no solution that fits every person’s or family’s situation, even when they know a lot about the options available to them. To illustrate this you will want to read For Hospice Pioneer, Still a Tough Call, by Paula Span at … Continue reading
A Snow Story Never Heard Before: iPad for Dad #23
Read other iPad for Dad posts. Whether or not you help a parent get started writing on an iPad, when you encourage writing activities you often get the opportunity to read wonderful stories like the memory below. I had never heard about this event before Dad composed his short essay. Dad writes on his iPad at … Continue reading
Why Do I Blog? Maybe Because Dad’s Kept a Journal for 64 Years
Tomorrow I am co-leading a workshop at my school about blogging. One question I am always asked when I talk about my blogs and the huge body of writing I’ve created is, “What got me started?” In October 2009 I began work on this blog, AsOurParentsAge.net, with encouragement from my husband. His mother, Betty, was near … Continue reading
Whose Eyes Are Checking Out That Digital Content?
In his recent post over at the Changing Aging blog, Kavan Peterson describes a short video, Forwarders. Intended as a parody of people who continuously forward e-mail, the video reinforces stereotypes about elders and aging. It’s sad that this short film focuses solely on one older adult, especially since so many people of all ages … Continue reading
Check Out Quartet — The Perfect Movie — for Valentine’s Day
Quartet is the perfect movie to see on Valentine’s Day. When I visit my parents this weekend, I will suggest that we all go and watch, and I can’t wait to see it for a second time. The movie is about aging musicians, and the main characters are played by highly regarded and accomplished actors … Continue reading
Elder in Hospital: Does a Family Member Need To Be There, Too?
When one of my elderly parents is admitted to the hospital, the other parent stays there too, usually curling up on a pull-out bed or a recliner. Lately my husband and I have taken on some of this responsibility, either taking turns, one night at a time or breaking the night into two parts and … Continue reading
Are Boomers As Healthy As They Think?
Over and over the media refer to boomers as a health conscious generation, and boomers often assume that their generation is healthier than their parents’ generation. Now new research, just published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, reaches conclusions that dispute the rosy boomer heath assumptions. Using data from the National Health and Nutrition Health Examination … Continue reading
Be Sure to Create Multi-Generational Teams
At work do you ever feel especially old when teams or committees neglect to include veteran employees? Do you occasionally see younger colleagues roll their eyes or flaunt up-to-the-minute technology skills when an older colleague makes a suggestion or comment? Does this situation make you think defensively, sometimes making jokes about your senior moments or … Continue reading
Stroke and Recovery: Changes In a Politician’s Perspective
If you have ever had a stroke event in your family, you know — as we do — about the frustrating process of recovery and rehabilitation, as well as the constant bickering with benefits providers when it comes to whether a person is making “enough” progress to merit continuing rehab sessions. If this is a … Continue reading
Best Books on Aging — 30 Years Worth
As an adult daughter, not to mention an individual who is moving inexorably, but not unwelcomingly, toward retirement years, I read a lot of books about philosophy, aging, transitions, and mindfulness. I have plenty of books to choose from on all sorts of aging and life topics. Ronni Bennett over at Time Goes By has just updated … Continue reading
As Our Parents Age So Do We 