|
|
By Carol April 17th, 2012
A friend alerted us to the recently posted TED talk given by Dr. Peter Saul, an intensive care physician in Australia. The problem of frail elders’ lives artificially prolonged in the absence of clear instructions about end of life wishes is not simply an American problem. Dr. Saul’s research in Australian intensive care units illuminates the difficulty families everywhere experience at the end of life if there are no instructions and no history of open discussion about these tough issues.
Deaths made difficult by inappropriate medical intervention are not only inhumane and expensive. They leave their mark on those closest to us. Caregivers may be left to struggle with many difficult feelings in the aftermath. The guilt–did we really do our best? The fear–is this how we will die?
Dr. Saul encourages us to …
Continue reading this post here
By Judi April 15th, 2012
This is a very good interview with Jane Gross, author of A Bittersweet Season, Caring For Our Aging Parents…And Ourselves, available on our shelfari-top shelf. In this interview, Ms. Gross shares some of her wisdom from her time as a family caregiver. It is always so good to learn from those who have made this journey before us. Please listen and comment below.
Social Bookmarking
Technorati Tags: A Bittersweet Season, assisted living, end of life care, end of life decisions, family caregiver, geriatric care manager, Jan Gross, medicaid planning, Medicare, siblings caring for parents
By Carol April 10th, 2012
One of my favorite books these days is called What are Old People For? by William Thomas, M.D. If you need your consciousness raised about ageism–and most of us do, I think–this is the book to read first.
Now, Dr. Bill has written a novel. This is actually his second novel, and it is called Tribes of Eden. Set in a post-apocalyptic America, the book addresses the issues of loss of freedom and inter-generational cooperation and eventual triumph over an opportunistic totalitarian authority. It is available in paperback or electronically.
Dr. Bill talks about the book in this video.
You can see an excerpt of the book by clicking this link. Social Bookmarking
Technorati Tags: ageism, Dr. Bill, theories of aging, Tribes of Eden, What Are Old People For?, William Thomas M.D.
By Judi April 8th, 2012
My husband came home for the weekend with the flu. He had no appetite, cold and hot flashes, no energy and a bad cough. He slept on the couch all weekend so that I wouldn’t get sick, too. I don’t think it worked.
I tried to nurse him back to health in the short time that we had. No matter what I fixed for him to eat, he just couldn’t enjoy the food. The chicken soup was tasteless, the pot roast and vegetables tasted good but upset his stomach, and the Easter brunch I fixed this morning didn’t sit well on his stomach either.
I had to accept that no matter what I did, I could not make Willie feel better, I just couldn’t “fix” him. I really wanted to make him feel better, …
Continue reading this post here
By Carol April 3rd, 2012
Many years ago our wonderful accountant Darv gave us the magic number. He suggested that we needed to step up our savings in order to have $500,000 put away to support us during our retirement years. Since at that moment our combined IRA’s and 401(k)’s totaled only a very small fraction of that amount, we were quite sure we would never manage to save such a vast amount.
Over the years we have revisited the idea of the magic number often, looking here and there for the elusive path to achieving financial security in retirement. We have filled out on-line retirement planners, gathered financial data together to calculate our net worth, and engaged the help of several financial planners. The experts all seemed glad to see us come in their office door. In the …
Continue reading this post here
|
|
