Other Side of 50

My dog’s specialty vet closed her practice last week, a result of an elder experience that’s becoming far too commonplace in today’s world. When I asked why she was shutting down, my vet told me she’d been struggling over the past year to deal with issues related to her aging mother. The problems had become [...]

I marvel at my husband, who’s asleep as soon as his head hits the pillow. Not me.  If I had a nickel for every time I lay awake at night thinking about something I needed to do the next day or replaying in my mind something that happened at work I’d be rich. In my [...]

The average American visits a doctor four times a year. Seniors visit a doctor nearly twice that much. At each doctor visit we are asked to show our identification and our insurance card. For most adults 65 and over, that is their Medicare card. It’s always been a catch-22. Seniors need to show their Medicare [...]

If you’re an older adult and recent news reports about the firing of media icons Bill O’Reilly, Matt Lauer, Charlie Rose and Garrison Keillor have rattled you, you’re not alone.  I’d like you to read these two statements: “Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times.” “Lance Armstrong was banned from [...]

Recently my friend Ken sent me a link to a Washington Post article about protecting your Social Security number. The article was in response to the breach at Equifax—one of the top three credit reporting agencies—that had exposed the personal information of 145.5 million people earlier this year. On Oct. 12 the company said it [...]

In my conversations with home-care agencies, residentialcare facilities and hands-on family caregivers, I hear an almost universal challenge: family members who are in denial about their senior loved one’s mental, physical or emotional health.  “Dad has never been violent,” says the son whose father with dementia punched the female caregiver in the chest. “I visited [...]

My friend John surprised me last week when he told me that for the first time in a year he’d hauled out his computer to do some work. He said, “If I can’t do it on my smartphone these days, it doesn’t get done.” John’s specific demographic is embracing smartphone technology at a rapid pace. [...]

My parents have new neighbors. Jack and Carole, both in their early 80s, realized their cape-style home in Rhode Island was too much for them, with bedrooms on the second floor and the washer and dryer in the basement. They would soon need some help and decided a one-story home, minutes from their son in [...]

The number of older people in emergency rooms is expected to increase significantly over the next 30 years, doubling in the case of those older than 65 and potentially tripling among those over 85. Our healthcare system is in critically short supply of primary care physicians and geriatric specialists to treat seniors. As a result, [...]

Last week I asked my mother if there was something she thought I should write about in my column. Quick to reply, she said, “How does one cope when their spouse is dying?” “What do you mean by cope?” I asked. “Are there things I should do? Are there ways to prepare for what is [...]