Giving Thanks

Hi everyone!

Thanks so much to those of you that shared your experiences over break with us. I'm so glad that this helped spark some conversation that otherwise might not have occurred.

I also discussed some of these things with my family while I was with them. My grandma said, when asked about how she feels about getting older and being in later life, "Sometimes it stinks, and sometimes its great." I feel like this really coincides well with what we've read about health concerns and negative changes but also about good social networks and other activities.

I had the chance to briefly discuss with my parents what they would like in the event that they need extra care in later life. The seemed as though they would be happy to go into an assisted living facility if it came to that. I was a bit surprised in this answer, especially because of how difficult it has been to find a suitable place for my mother's parents to be. They were fairly resistant to the change. However, upon further thought, I think the resistance was not really about the living arrangements themselves, but rather the realization that they had gotten to the point where they could no longer completely care for themselves. This has to be very difficult, especially with the general sense of independence and autonomy that we are raised with in the U.S.

Thanks again for participating in this with me, and I hope you will continue the dialogue about issues in later life with your families!
Megan