OlderWiserWomen

I’m still amazed at how many women (and men) I see in my practice who seem to be hell bent on getting OLD. Read the rest of this entry »

As soon as I saw the title of the article, I loved it… Aging Deliberately.

The author of Aging Deliberately: Safety Circles Good Way to Build Safety Net as We Age   is Liz Taylor.  She is talking about making plans in the event that you need them. In other words, you are making plans  so you can “control over what happens to us when we’re not” in control. It’s  a great idea. It goes beyond having a Living Will and Health Care Power of Attorneys.

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Have you seen the projections? Nearly 71.5 million adults, age 65 and over are projected to be living in the US by 2030. That is only 23 years from now. Already there is a huge and ongoing shortage of health care providers and that trend shows no sign of getting better. What about housing for Elders? And what about care? Do we have families that will provide us with any assistance? If not (which is likely for many), how are you going to find assistance? What services may or may not be available? Many folks think that Medicare will pay for in home assistance…it does not.

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When I was growing up, I never thought about the idea of middle age so much, and certainly, old age described my grandmother’s age. But then…getting older is not what it use to be!

Certainly as we’ve all gotten older, we have changed our definitions of what middle age and old age are - but for most of us, it’s still rather a vague number. While our average life expectancy in the US is around 76 years for women, it makes no sense to me that middle age would be 38. I certainly didn’t feel middle age at 38. May now at 51…but not at 38.

And “old age”? I’m not even sure when that’s suppose to begin. For me, it’s not really a number, but more of an attitude. In my practice, I see women in their 30’s and 40’s who are “old” - their health, their beliefs, their looks. At the same time, I see women in their 70’s and 80’s who cannot possibly be “old”.

How do you define middle age and old age?

Well it’s finally official…those of us who are single can be happy too! For years many women have been plagued by the notion that we “had” to be attached to someone in order to find happiness in life. I’m starting to see studies published that say “not so!”. Here is one article that addresses not only the issue of women being alone, but our financial future as well…..

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“Single women are doing OK, AARP survey finds”

Single women of a “certain age” used to be considered almost pathetic. Whether widowed, divorced, or never married, the older woman was perceived as being lonely and financially insecure.

Well, the stereotypes are wrong.

The AARP polled more than 2,500 women aged 45 and older for its AARP Foundation Women’s Leadership Circle Study. The results, says AARP author Sarah Mahoney, indicate that older women are in a much better place than thought.

For one thing, while having a “significant other” is still important to many single women, it is no longer key to their happiness. Eighty-one percent polled said they were comfortable with the prospect of being alone as they age.

You can read the entire article here.

I recevied a commentary this morning regarding women’s natural aging vs not allowing oneself to age nautrally. I was unaware of the woman and her book who took aim at women with “waddle necks” and aging, who felt that we, as women should not let ourselves “go”.
Personally I very much enjoyed reading the commentary, it was like a breath of fresh air.

You’ll find the commentary at: Women’s eNews. Nora Ephron’s sour dislike of what she considers women’s bodily aging, one subject of her new bestseller, took up an hour on NPR last month. Margaret Morganroth Gullette responds from what she calls “the feminist country of later life.”

The National Institute on Aging (NIA), a component of the National Institutes of Health, now offers two free booklets designed to help people with limited literacy skills learn about Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and memory loss. In these easy-to-read booklets, the medical and technical language has been replaced by plain language, stories, photographs, and other features to help readers understand the content. “Our goal was to produce strong, clear materials to make information about AD and memory loss accessible to everyone, including those with limited literacy skills,” says Richard J. Hodes, M.D., director of the NIA. “These booklets also are excellent starting points for anyone who needs basic information about AD and memory problems, regardless of reading capability.” They are valuable additions to the comprehensive collection of health education materials available from NIA’s Alzheimer’s Disease Education and Referral (ADEAR) Center, adds Hodes. Read the rest of this entry »

As we get older, we begin to think of our living situation…for ourselves and for our parents. No one WANTS to eventually end up living with others, yet living or being around family memebers and/or close friends far outweights the possibility of moving into an asissted living type of home or a nursing home.

More and more, people are making choices to remodel their homes so that Mom and Dad can live at home longer. See what others are doing? Does it spark any ideas for you? If not about your parents, what about for yourself?

Feeling Much Safer At Home

THE SURVIVORS
Science Showing Women Have An Edge Over Men

By SUSAN BRINK
Los Angeles Times

Somewhere, in most women’s conscious or unconscious minds, is the unspoken expectation that, if their marriages or relationships last, they will most likely outlive their partners. They know their children, for whom they’re primarily in charge, will grow up and leave. And they face a barrage of advertising and other societal cues that subtly but ever so steadily suggest that they’re not getting older, they’re getting invisible.

Table tennis world wowed by 95yo champ

A Sydney woman has attracted international headlines by competing in an international table tennis tournament at the age of 95.

Dorothy de Low was the oldest competitor at the World Veteran Table Tennis Championship in Germany.

Mrs de Low’s story has appeared in newspapers around the world and she has also reportedly been contacted by producers with the Dave Letterman chat show in the US.

Her son, Peter de Low, says his mother will handle the attention well.

“I think she loves it,” he said.

“She’s got a purpose behind playing table tennis and that is to raise cancer awareness because I lost a sister through that 20 years ago, so that is sort of a purpose behind any publicity she gets as well.”

(Reported by ABC News Online)