Quote:
Originally Posted by LuvNH
This is an excellent post. We never think we are going to lose our independence.In my Village there are several very elderly people who use walkers to get around and need paid caregivers to get around. What a lonely way to end your life.
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It's not really a lonely life at all. My parents have 24/7 home aide service and live in their own house in a very small 55+ community down in the southeast part of Florida. My sister lives near them and goes over there every few days. They still have plenty of friends in the area who either visit, or they visit (with the help of the aide).
Mom uses her walker to get to the pool almost every day, where she spends around an hour or more with other people who go to the pool at the same time she's there. She socializes with them while she's there, in addition to actually swimming. Their aide takes them to doctors' appointments, which tends to fill up a LOT of their time. Then they go home and take a nap. Have supper, watch the boob tube til bedtime, then rinse and repeat the next day. They enjoy dining out from time to time, often with friends, sometimes with family. Sometimes it's just a breakfast with the neighbor.
It's less "outgoing" than they were before, but it's still better than being stuck in a nursing home for the next five years, waiting to die.