Senior Living

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Scott Olson/Getty Images North America/TNS

Older Americans quit weight-loss drugs in droves

Year after year, Mary Bucklew strategized with a nurse practitioner about losing weight. “We tried exercise,” like walking 35 minutes a day, she recalled. “And 39,000 different diets.”

But 5 pounds would come off and then invariably reappear, said Bucklew, 75, a public transit retiree in Ocean View, Delaware. Nothing seemed to make much...Read more

Scott Olson/Getty Images North America/TNS

Older Americans quit weight-loss drugs in droves

Year after year, Mary Bucklew strategized with a nurse practitioner about losing weight. “We tried exercise,” like walking 35 minutes a day, she recalled. “And 39,000 different diets.”

But 5 pounds would come off and then invariably reappear, said Bucklew, 75, a public transit retiree in Ocean View, Delaware. Nothing seemed to make much...Read more

Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times/TNS

'Stop exercising, you're killing yourself1'

LOS ANGELES -- One day my left foot hurt for no good reason. I stood up to shake off the pain and tweaked my right Achilles tendon, so I headed for the medicine cabinet, bent over like an ape because of a stiff back.

Actually, I lied.

It wasn't one day. It's pretty much every day.

None of this is severe or serious, and I'm not complaining at ...Read more

Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Stop exercising, you're killing yourself!

LOS ANGELES -- One day my left foot hurt for no good reason. I stood up to shake off the pain and tweaked my right Achilles tendon, so I headed for the medicine cabinet, bent over like an ape because of a stiff back.

Actually, I lied.

It wasn't one day. It's pretty much every day.

None of this is severe or serious, and I'm not complaining at ...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

Wheelchair? Hearing aids? Yes. ‘Disabled’? No way!

In her house in Ypsilanti, Michigan, Barbara Meade said, “there are walkers and wheelchairs and oxygen and cannulas all over the place.”

Barbara, 82, has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, so a portable oxygen tank accompanies her everywhere. Spinal stenosis limits her mobility, necessitating the walkers and wheelchairs and considerable...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

Wheelchair? Hearing aids? Yes. 'Disabled'? No way!

In her house in Ypsilanti, Michigan, Barbara Meade said, “there are walkers and wheelchairs and oxygen and cannulas all over the place.”

Barbara, 82, has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, so a portable oxygen tank accompanies her everywhere. Spinal stenosis limits her mobility, necessitating the walkers and wheelchairs and considerable...Read more

Wavebreakmedia Ltd/Dreamstime/TNS

The heartbreak and relief of accepting what is

For the better part of this year my brain rejected that my father could not get the care he needed at home.

He has advanced Parkinson’s, and it took a turn for the worse early this spring. My siblings and I were convinced this flare up would be treated like the others in the recent past — a short hospital stay, a stint in rehab to regain ...Read more

Fabian Sommer/PA Media/dpa/TNS

Five signs of frailty later in life and how it’s diagnosed

LONDON — Frailty refers to a person’s mental and physical resilience, or their ability to bounce back and recover from events like illness and injury.

“Frailty is regarded as a syndrome, and a syndrome is a group of signs and symptoms that helps recognize frailty which includes things like being slower,” says Dr Nasrin Razzaq, GP lead ...Read more

Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images North America/TNS

Dick Van Dyke shouldn't be the exception -- Helping America's seniors stay engaged

The fact that Dick Van Dyke turned 100 on Dec. 13 is remarkable enough. But the entertainment icon hasn’t simply made it to the century mark; he’s remained purposefully engaged in life and with those around him: acting, dancing, mentoring younger performers, and spreading joy to millions.

Van Dyke is a reminder that aging does not diminish ...Read more

Your mother is dying. Doctors call it loneliness

She’s sitting in a chair by the window. It’s 2:14 p.m. on a Tuesday. The home health aide left an hour ago. Her daughter won’t call until after work. Her grandson is in school. The television is on, but she stopped watching it 20 minutes ago. She’s looking at the street, waiting for something she can’t name.

This is the hour no one ...Read more

Paul Bersebach/The Orange County Register/TNS

New congressional effort tries to ensure seniors have access to legal services

There’s a new, bipartisan congressional effort underway to support senior legal hotlines.

Led by Reps. Derek Tran, D-Orange, and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pennsylvania, the bill establishes a competitive grant program to ensure hotlines are appropriately staffed with trained attorneys and paralegals, can provide older adults with support services,...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

High suicide rate among seniors is a tragedy for entire community

While many people will be enjoying the next few weeks surrounded by friends and family, many of our neighbors will be isolated, especially those in their senior years.

This isolation can contribute to depression and other disorders, which in turn can contribute to the rising levels of suicide or suicide attempts among the senior population.

A ...Read more

 

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