Life's challenges become more difficult with age, especially those older than 60 years of age who I'll call "seniors". These challenges include health issues, moving, getting good medical care, caregiving, and coping with various forms of stress. The chapters herein discuss these problems including personal experiences with the medical and health care systems, experiences as a caregiver, and the stress caused by all of the political conflicts and scandals as the world around us is changing at an accelerating pace. These stresses are particularly difficult for seniors. The honesty and trust of people, including government and medical personnel, lawyers, and the public in general becomes overwhelming at times when it seems that the situations are getting worse, and not being resolved. It is hoped that the information presented herein will help others when faced with similar issues.
A Senior's Experiences and Observations
Moving, Health, Caregiving & Conflicts
By E. Grant ReesTrafford Publishing
Copyright © 2016 E. Grant Rees
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4907-6945-5Contents
Chapter One — Moving Problems for Seniors, 1,
Chapter Two — Finding and Selecting a Doctor, 4,
Chapter Three — A Diagnostic Surprise, 9,
Chapter Four — Overwhelming Number of Tests, 17,
Chapter Five — Hospitalization and Surgery, 20,
Chapter Six — First Experience at a Nursing Facility, 23,
Chapter Seven — Hospital Again and Start of Chemo, 26,
Chapter Eight — Hospital a Third Time and Rehab Again, 29,
Chapter Nine — Re-start of Chemo & Hospitalization, 31,
Chapter Ten — Rehab a Third Time and Home, 34,
Chapter Eleven — Other Treatment Options, 37,
Chapter Twelve — Seniors in a Changing World, 47,
Chapter Thirteen — Review of Medical Observations, 61,
Chapter Fourteen — A Remarkable Lady and the Future, 68,
About the Author, 71,
CHAPTER 1
MOVING PROBLEMS FOR SENIORS
MANY OF OUR FRIENDS HAVE died or are requiring help from others, including their families.
Thus we started to plan for a different life style. Growing older and having health issues from time to time, my wife and I decided to move closer to our family. Family members had to travel relatively long distances to visit us when we were in the hospital or not feeling well. Thus we contemplated moving.
We looked at various locations and considered different types of housing. Our homes have been split level, colonial style with all bedrooms on the 2nd floor and laundry in the basement, and ranch style homes with basements. As we get older and have difficulty walking, using stairs in multiple level homes is an additional challenge.
Some seniors want to move to a senior living facility The living facilities are usually small apartments with one or two bedrooms with limited area for clothes, a living room for a small kitchen table, a couch, a TV, and a small desk. A portion of a wall is usually designed as a "kitchen". Most of these small "apartments" do not have a laundry room within the individual units and one has to use a community laundry room down the hall. Usually there are no covered areas or garage for your vehicle. Some seniors may need to move to an assisted living facility if family members are not able to assist or such a living environment would make life more enjoyable by associating with others. In either case this means getting rid of many household items, and most people just don't want to part with anything. Excess clothing, furniture, and other items need to be disposed of or put in storage that generally means paying storage fees for items that likely will never be used or even seen again! The advantages of these living facilities include meals, activities, and transportation to shopping centers or doctor appointments. Those who have the ability to scale-down to the bare essentials are free to relax in these facilities and can focus on enjoying the rest of their lives, including friends, TV, movies (DVDs), their photo albums and updating their personal journals and family history.
We were not ready for a senior living facility so we decided to move into a senior development designed for persons 55 years of age or older. These homes are single level and some have basements. We found a development to our liking in Utah where one of our sons lives. The home owners association has strict covenants that does not per
