Your parent may already be past the 65 mark, or approaching it. Don’t let their aging catch you off guard, because then it can be too late to do some of the things you said you’d do “some day.” Here are things to do with your parents before they get too old.
Caring for an elderly individual who can no longer handle simple tasks like making a pot of tea or bathing is a full-time job. That’s why there are careers in elderly care. But you likely already have a career, and it’s not in elderly care. There is a good chance that your parent wouldn’t want you to take time off work—or slack off in work—to care for them. You have put in so much time making career gains.
An advanced healthcare directive is a document that states what medical actions this person would want to take, if they weren’t in a condition to make those choices. Perhaps due to illness or memory loss, your parent would not be able to make decisions about her health. She’ll pre-make these decisions now, and put them in a healthcare directive.
There’s that moment when your parent orders a senior movie ticket, because that means a discount. You have to stop yourself from saying, “You aren’t a senior” because you realize, oh, they are.
We never really know how much time we have with anybody but, since my dad is older, if I’m to assume he would live a normal life span, I do still have less time with him than people with younger parents. So I feel extra bad over not visiting more often.
It’ll take you by surprise the day your parents can no longer take care of themselves. You’ll start helping them out in tiny increments over the years, helping your dad run errands when he can’t drive far distances and accompanying your mom to doctor’s appointments in case she can’t understand all the information she is given. But you’ll […]
(Washington Post) — Murders and violent crimes are down around the Washington region and the country, but one kind of crime is rising steadily: scams against the elderly. Senior citizens are reticent victims who avoid telling family members for fear of going to nursing homes, or don’t even report swindles for fear of having to […]
How to incorporate caring for an elderly relative into your financial analysis.