The Other Side of 50

Aging is something we learn from family, our community and our culture. Sam, I’ll call him, is what can only be described as an 87-year-old curmudgeon. As a widower suffering from congestive heart failure, mostly homebound due to his fatigue and need for oxygen, he is bitter about his lot [...]

My husband is a finance guy, a CPA with a master’s in taxation. He is, by all accounts, a meticulous, detail-oriented individual. It’s nice to have one of those in a family. At least one of us should be reading the dishwasher manual when it malfunctions, checking a contract’s fine [...]

Recently my mother returned home to New Hampshire after two wonderful weeks visiting me and my husband here in California. I had lots of goals for the visit, and we accomplished many of them. Two remarkable things happened that I did not plan for. Because we finally had some quality [...]

My nephew Tanner is a pretty accomplished young man. He has a knack for mechanics. During his high school years, he worked for a company that made sensitive equipment parts for the military. On the side, he bought lawnmowers, dirt bikes, jet skis and other small vehicles that needed repair. [...]

After the recent wildfires ripped through our community, I mentioned to my husband that I didn’t want to let too much time go by before we debriefed on what we did right and wrong when we evacuated. I wanted this natural disaster— the first my husband and I have really [...]

After a 15-year hiatus, my mother is coming to California to visit me. During the many years she was caring for my father, who had Parkinson’s disease, my mother could not bring herself to leave his side. But now that he’s gone, she is ready to make the journey from [...]

The 55-plus community my mother lives in has a weekly get-together at its clubhouse. Everyone who chooses to come brings a food item to share; visiting with one another includes the goings-on in their lives: who welcomed grandchildren, who’s expecting visitors and talk of current events. Showing up at last [...]

On the heels of the Borderline shooting, Allison, a Senior Concerns case manager, was knocking on doors of the occupants of the senior low-income housing complex where she works. She was concerned the residents were isolated in their apartments watching the 24/7 coverage of the massacre, feeling shocked and frightened. [...]

My friend Dr. Sara Zeff Geber coined the term “solo agers” after realizing so many of her childfree friends were caring for their aging parents. The question loomed large: Who was going to care for them when they got older? Geber’s term has expanded to include older adults who are [...]

Recently my husband attended a tax conference in San Diego. He came home with a complimentary backpack filled with “swag” that included a journal, highlighters, pens and logo’d Post-it notes. Also inside the backpack was a webcam cover. This was a new one to me. My husband routinely has a [...]

Most of my medical challenges occurred when I was young. Years later, I can’t really remember my feelings after those experiences. But as I contemplate my recent health scare—a piece of steak lodged in my throat, resulting in a tear in my esophagus—I know that it’s definitely taken an emotional [...]

Every once in a while, the person upstairs gives you a wake-up call. Mine came a few weeks ago. Looking back, all the signs were there. I’d been keeping a supply of Tums in my purse for after meals. I could feel a sensation of acid backing up in my [...]

It seemed too good to be true. A set of exercises that, if practiced just 10 minutes a day, could make a positive difference in the quality of our body and brain. Activities that can be done by almost anyone, just sitting in a chair. And once learned, they are [...]

There comes an age when you begin to hear with increased frequency of the medical challenges or deaths of celebrities you loved growing up. It’s a harsh reminder of our mortality. Because the stories of these deaths are so widely disseminated, they can also serve as cautionary tales about later [...]

Shaving one’s face is a fundamental part of being a man. A generation ago, the act of shaving denoted manhood, pride of appearance, cleanliness, neatness and a person in control and well-groomed. In the U.S., Canada and Europe, about 85 percent of men shave their beards. Throughout recent history we [...]

Shaving one’s face is a fundamental part of being a man. A generation ago, the act of shaving denoted manhood, pride of appearance, cleanliness, neatness and a person in control and well-groomed.   In the U.S., Canada and Europe, about 85 percent of men shave their beards. Throughout recent history [...]

As if being admitted to the hospital isn’t challenging enough, there’s often an additional underlying and undiagnosed condition occurring in one-third of seniors who are admitted: undernourishment. Statistically, it is estimated that 1 in 3 adult patients age 60 and older are malnourished. Why is it then that in a [...]

I’ve recently rediscovered my enthusiasm for kayaking. In the past, I kayaked on a pond in Cape Cod, on the Charles River in Boston and on Westlake Lake. Those excursions were journeys of calm exploration. I’ve also kayaked in the ocean in Santa Barbara and near the Channel Islands. Those [...]

And I call forward an equally memorable time kayaking on the Charles River when I want to relive a great experience. Until I kayaked again on Westlake Lake after a 10-year hiatus, I really had forgotten how physical interaction with nature can nourish my psyche so significantly. In the next [...]

With an eye toward a potential future project, Many Mansions and the Area Housing Authority of the County of Ventura paid a visit to Senior Concerns to gather suggestions for features seniors would want to see in a new complex of independent senior apartments. We were delighted to know that [...]