takeing care of our elderly

[timmie]

whi;e i'm adding to my supplies i try to include things i know my parents like also, i have every intention of taking care of my parents. i remember my Mother doing without so us kids had what we needed, now it's my turn.

 

[Cnsper]

The world would be better if more people would take care of their parents as they age.

 

[Weedygarden]

In my genealogical research, I have come to learn that in Europe, and in particular, the Czech Republic, the oldest son would inherit the family property and the parents would live there until they died. Once they came to America, it changed. In my family, the youngest son inherited in some instances, but the parents continued to live on the property until they died. This was until around 1900. It was built into the way life worked.

It is still like that in many parts of the world. I know some people, married and with children, whose parents live with them. In one situation, the parents are retired, but active. They drive and are involved in all kinds of activities. They have a bedroom on the first floor of the home while the grown children and their two children have bedrooms upstairs. I can see many benefits to this. I can also see potential problems with challenging personalities.

 

[timmie]

my Mother is 88 and Stepdad is 87. so for me it's a no brainer. I have 2 sisters and 2 brothers. we are a very close family. they took care of us .now we take care of them. i was already married and had 1 child when my Mother married my Stepdad' he helped her raise my 2 younger sisters

 

[Amish Heart]

In my family, the parents build a smaller house on their land, and live in that. One of the adult children and family move into the "big" house. They look after the mom and dad until they pass.
Tried to look after my mom when we rescued her from the dementia home, but once she was off the drugs, she decided to move out on her own again. She thinks we're too conservative and annoy her to no end. I still stock her up in her little apartment when I'm there. I tell her that she can never have too many canned soups. Our farm is only 15 minutes away and I'm fully stocked there.

 

[Cnsper]

They don't have to live in your home to get care. Grandma lived 2 doors from dad. He would get coffee in the morning and leave his dog with her while he worked and then have dinner with her.

I believe this kept her going for years. She was always wanting to feed people that came over. It gave her a purpose. During the day one of the grandkids would occasionally stop by and they always drove her where she needed to go.

 

[CrackbottomLouis]

Family should take care of family. Period. Our elders are not a burden. They are a resource of wisdom gained over a lifetime that allowed them to get to advanced age in the first place.

 

[lonewolf]

my parents are both deceased and I have no children.

 

[backlash]

I have 3 brothers, no sisters. I thought that was good until I grew up and realised that with no sister to dump the responsibilities on it would fall to me because I'm the oldest.
My wife is a Godsend because she didn't hesitate when it came time to step up and take on the responsibility. She was the daughter my Mom always wanted and Mom liked her better than me.

 

[VThillman]

I don't recall mentioning it (memory recall is not one of the 1.3 strong points still with me), but if you are retired, with time on your hands and a car at your disposal . . . There are organizations around that can help you connect with other "mature" folks, who are shut-ins for one reason or another, and don't get to, um, casually communicate (chat/socialize) with their friends because they ain't around anymore. In my area, I discovered an outfit called Senior Companions. The feds provide the funds to support the administrative framework, so there are federal and state bureaucratic strictures involved. Some of them make sense, and of course some of them don't - including a minimum number of hour the volunteers must 'serve'. Maybe worth checking out, if you feel the urge to ease another geezer's tedium.

 

[lonewolf]

anyone when SHTF who is elderly and needs outside care and assistance, i'm thinking from care assistants not family, and anyone who needs life saving treatment in hospital will probably be on the front line.