Twelve Advantages of Being Old

I am a Public Health Nurse visiting elderly and dependent adults in their home environment for Adult Protective Services. Although I encounter many challenging situations, I am rewarded often as they share the stories of their lives with me. I am inspired by the courage and the strength the clients and their caregivers demonstrate on a daily basis. I stumbled upon this website after spending the day at a syposium in which the speakers discussed the shift from an acute care model to a "chronic care model". Our challenges continue to grow and I look forward to sharing and learning with you. I found this site for a reason. Bless you!

am 57 disable amputee still want to enjoy life more ever day more than when i was younger ever day is new to me thank you muchly buster

I'll be 83 soon and still serving as organist for an Episcopal church. A month ago I broke (don't even ask how!)my left wrist--nasty break requiring surgery, insertion of pins & rod to stabilize. After a couple of weeks "vacation", I decided I could play hymns $ service music with one hand & 2 feet. So I'm back on the bench & several parishioners have told me they can't even hear the difference! Is that a compliment? Have also composed a couple of organ pieces for 1 hand/2 feet to use until I can handle organ literature again. Wes E.

I am 72, husband is 77. I've had a heart attack, he's had many mini strokes. We still manage to go places, do things, see the state and the world. Just to let people know that older people can still enjoy life. When we do get "old" we have no one to take care of us, so we do what we can for others and hope that sometime someone will do the same for us. Merry Christmas and Happy New Life!

I couldn't agree more. I'm a 65 yr old, memtally disabled vet/grandmother. Don't have memory, judgement, and not supposed to handle money but God helped me buy a house and my family helps me daily. One of my friends sends me humorous/touching e-mails and my current bedfellow (no husband anymore/I live with daughter in my home) is a 100 lb labrador who doesn't care what I look like as long as he gets love and treats.

Leslie, I am not a caregiver--though I wish very much my 84-year-old Mom would move in with me--she's currently about 800 miles away. But I just wanted to thank you for the life lessons, for sharing your own experiences through this blog, and also for your decision to work with folks who are sometimes forgotten or dismissed. You obviously find great joy in working with seniors--and I am sure they do, with you. All the best in a long and wonderful career--Cassie