Downsizing for seniors going mainstream
Published by the Associated Press
As Americans live longer, many people find themselves navigating a confusing web of interconnected services for themselves or their parents when it comes time to shed possessions and relocate. Some use hard-won lessons from their parents’ experience to take control of their own late-life downsize while they still have time to enjoy it.
Others have created a new industry, becoming “senior specialists” to help make those transitions less troublesome. Such specialists span business worlds, from real estate and financial planning to moving, home staging, personal organizing and “late-life coaching.”
Seniors and Depression
Many seniors experience depression as they age. While the causes or depression may be varied, it is important to identify depression and treat it. There is no reason a senior should suffer through depression. There are ways to help.
Causes of Depression
There are a number of causes of depression in seniors. As a senior, you may face significant life changes, which put you at risk for suffering depression. Some of these include:
• Increased health problems, such as illness or disability
• Loneliness and isolation, such as living alone or decreased social activities
• Lack of sense of purpose, particularly due to physical limitations
• Fear, particularly of death, or anxiety of financial or health issues
• Loss, such as the death of friends or family, particularly a spouse or partner
Depression is often linked to medical conditions. Physical illnesses that can cause depression include:
• Parkinson’s disease
• Stroke
• Heart disease
• Cancer
• Diabetes
• Thyroid disorders
• Vitamin B12 deficiency
• Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease
• Lupus
• Multiple sclerosis
Symptoms of Depression
Recognizing the symptoms of depression in seniors is necessary for getting help. Signs and symptoms may include:
• Sadness
• Fatigue
• Loss of interest in hobbies or pastimes
• Social withdrawal and isolation
• Weight loss or loss of appetite
• Sleep disturbances
• Loss of self-worth
• Increased use of alcohol or other substances
• Fixation on death
Ways to Improve
There are some self-help ways to handle depression. Activity is very important to staving off depression, including physical stimulation, such as exercise, and interacting with others, who can provide support and diversion.
There are a number of other things you can do to help with depression, including:
• Getting out of your home
• Participating in pleasurable activities
• Volunteering
• Taking care of pets
• Learning a new skill
• Laughing and surrounding yourself with those who do
• Maintaining a healthy diet
If you are concerned that you or a loved one is suffering from senior depression, getting help is an important first step. Read the Help Guide for more information about depression in seniors.
For retirees, the decision to move can be a lifesaver
Columnist Scott Burns tackles the conversation of when to move out of your home.
Excerpt from his article:
“Sadly, few people understand that where you live can literally be a life-or-death decision. The problem is that we freeze up as we get older. In decades of reader letters, I’ve seen the greatest error people make is being tied to their homes, even if it kills them. That’s where Rick Hunsicker comes in. Over the course of 90 minutes, he walks us through the real costs of owning a house. Then he adds the invisible cost of owning a house when you no longer have a mortgage — what economists call the “imputed income” from not having to pay rent. He points out that while your house may be your biggest asset, it is also a major point of vulnerability, subject to repairs and big-ticket replacement costs.”
Planning for Retirement
When you’re planning for retirement, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. There are a number of factors to consider. Online calculators, such as the one available through the Social Security Administration can help you decide what’s right for you.
Before you attempt to calculate what you will need for retirement, there are a few things you need to have already decided.
1. At what age do you plan to retire? Find out what benefits you will receive at that age. Also, consider what age you are at now and starting to save.
2. How long do you think you will live? A man reaching age 65 today can expect to live to 83, while a woman can expect to 85, on average.
3. What is the lifestyle you are accustomed to and do you intend to maintain a similar lifestyle? This can make a significant impact on the type of savings you need.
4. Do you plan to live on your own, with children, or in an independent or assisted living facility? While you may not know your specific needs, using your best judgment can help you figure out what you may need in the future.
5. What will you do about medical insurance? Does your retirement from your employer provide insurance? Will you need to sign up for medicare?
There are so many things to consider when you are planning for retirement, but planning ahead can make all the difference in the way you live after you retire.
Exercise for Seniors – Swimming
If you want an excellent way to get great cardiovascular exercise that is also low impact, swimming is an excellent option. It is full body workout.
Swimming uses your core muscles, your arms, legs, and glutes, and gives you a nice, even overall workout. You protect your joints from strain because there is no ground impact when you swim.
Different Strokes
There are a number of strokes you can do for different benefit when swimming. The most common is the crawl. The crawl uses a simple flutter kick and a windmill arm motion while on the belly. The backstroke uses similar motions, but while on the back.
More difficult strokes include the breast stroke and the butterfly. The breast stroke involves impeccable timing where your arms pull, you breath, kick, and glide. The butterfly is perhaps the most difficult stroke. The butterfly involves moving the legs together like a dolphin kick, while the arms move together, forcing water downward.
Changing Things Up
You can up your cardiovascular workout while swimming much in the same way you can with running, by doing sprints–short intervals of swimming at a higher exertion.
Water aerobics classes are also great exercise and the buoyancy of the water maintains the benefits of the exercise without the harm of impact.
No matter which way you swim, getting in the pool is great exercise for seniors because of the positive cardiovascular and muscle strengthening and the low impact.
Fighting High Blood Pressure
One issue that commonly plagues seniors is high blood pressure. New research shows that it may be easier to reduce hypertension (high blood pressure) than previously thought. One great way to reduce hypertension is by eating these healthy foods that work to naturally dilate blood vessels and decrease blood pressure.
Berries
Blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries contain natural compounds called anthocyanins, which protect against hypertension, according to an article published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Cereal
Whole-grain, high-fiber cereals like oatmeal, oat squares, bran flakes or shredded wheat, can reduce your chance of developing high blood pressure, according to Harvard University researchers.
Dark Chocolate
Consuming a one-ounce square of dark chocolate each day can help lower blood pressure, especially in people who already have hypertension, according to Harvard researchers. Dark chocolate is high in flavinoids, which naturally cause the dilation of the blood vessels. You want chocolate with 50 to 75 percent cacao.
Skim Milk
Women who consume low-fat dairy products reduce a risk of developing high blood pressure. Milk is great, but so is yogurt, low-fat cottage cheese, and frozen yogurt.
Potatoes
Baked potatoes are high in potassium and magnesium, which are two important minerals that can help fight hypertension. Halibut, spinach, bananas, soybeans, kidney beans and plain nonfat yogurt are all also high in potassium and magnesium.
Beet Juice
Beet juice can lower blood pressure within just a few hours, according to a Queen Mary University of London study. The nitrate in the juice has the same effect as taking a nitrate tablet. Whole beets will do the trick too. Other nitrate-rich foods include spinach, lettuce, cabbage, and carrots.
Many of these foods are readily available all year round, so grab a bar of dark chocolate and a glass of skim milk and enjoy your way to lower blood pressure.
Keeping You Young
(Infographic via RealAge)
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City comes in number one. Having a big chunk of residents who don’t smoke, are physically active and happily married, and take a daily aspirin made Salt Lake City younger than any of the other largest metropolitan areas in the United States. Looking for Senior Living in Salt Lake City? We’ve got you covered.
Other Honorable Mentions
San Diego, California – With gorgeous weather and healthy exercise habits, San Diego has a lot to offer. There is nearby assisted and independent living in Victorville, as well as Alzheimer’s, dementia, and memory care in Riverside.
Phoenix, Arizona – Phoenix boasts warm weather and a pretty healthy lot of individuals, and there’s Alzheimer’s Care in Phoenix at Paradise Valley.
Portland, Oregon – Portland has tons to do in a bustling city that prides itself on being bike friendly. Encore offers both residential care and independent living at Calaroga Terrace and Alzheimer’s, dementia, and memory care at the Senior Village at Portland.
For seniors, retiring in a place that will make them not only feel younger, but healthier is a good thing, and we’re happy to welcome you to any of our favorite young and healthy towns.
Exercise for Seniors – Biking
If you are looking for a great low impact exercise for seniors, consider biking. Biking is both a moderate, or when desired, intense workout for strengthening legs and glutes and increasing cardiovascular fitness.
One of the great things about biking is that it is not typically cost-prohibitive, and it can be done virtually anywhere. It can be done in isolation, or with a group. Whether riding through a paved park path or on trails, bicycling can be a fun outing for families with riders of different skill levels grouping together.
There are some important safety issues to consider when biking.
1. Always wear a helmet. Proper safety equipment is a must.
2. Make yourself visible. Wear bright colors and equip your bike with reflectors and lights for night riding.
3. Be prepared for repairs. Carry a portable repair kit and know how to use it.
4. Know the rules of the road. Follow basic traffic rules as set out by the League of American Bicyclists.
5. Protect yourself. Drink plenty of water, wear sunscreen, and dress appropriately.
Biking is an excellent low impact exercise for seniors and it’s a ton of fun.
Lifelong Learning
As retired seniors, you may find yourself in the unique situation of having more time on your hands to pursue your interests and learn new things. There are tons of great resources for seniors online, many of which are free. While you can still pay to take online courses through many academic institutions to earn credits, you can also tap into some free courses where you can learn a lot, and don’t have to pay to obtain that high quality information.
Open Culture
A great resource for finding free educational media online is Open Culture. The materials you can find on the site are great for personal enrichment. The site highlights a number of educational opportunities in the humanities and social sciences, including courses from professionals at UC Berkeley, Pratt Institute, Yale, Columbia, Stanford, and many others.
OpenCourseWare
Another great resource for online learning is Massachusetts Institute of Technology. MIT has the OpenCourseWare project, which offers full syllabuses, assignments, exams, and audio or video lectures. Courses fall into the categories of architecture and planning; engineering; health sciences and technology; humanities, arts, and social sciences; management; science; and other programs, including cross-disciplinary topics.
Whether you want to learn more about the world’s religions, or how to do linear algebra, the internet has a ton of free courses for livelong learning.
AARP’s Fat to Fit Program 2011
AARP lauched its 2011 Fat to Fit Program. Fat to Fit is an online program aimed at helping seniors make lifestyle changes to improve their health.
The Fat to Fit community will be lead by Carole Carson, who at the age of 60 lost more than 60 pounds. She wrote about her experiences in From Fat to Fit: Turn Yourself Into a Weapon of Mass Reduction. Winners will be chosen from the eight-week program that demonstrate:
- Being a role model for the community
- Having faced and overcome challenges
- Embodying the principles of the Fat to Fit Program
Interested in finding out more about embracing a healthy lifestyle? Get more information and advice from Carole Carson.
Encore in the News
- Downsizing for seniors going mainstream
- Seniors and Depression
- For retirees, the decision to move can be a lifesaver
- Planning for Retirement
- Exercise for Seniors – Swimming
Senior News
- Alzheimer's Association Welcomes President Nicolas Sarkozy to International Conference
Alzheimer's Association
The Alzheimer's Association is the world's leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer care, support and research. Our mission is to eliminate Alzheimer's disease through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's. For more information, visit www.alz.org. Learn more about Alzheimer's Association International Conference.Contact: Alzheimer's Association
Media line: 312.335.4078
E-mail: media@alz.org - International Study of Genetic Alzheimer's Disease Gives Clues to Presymptomatic Detection and Progression of the Disease
Alzheimer's Association
The Alzheimer's Association is the world's leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer care, support and research. Our mission is to eliminate Alzheimer's disease through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's. For more information, visit www.alz.org. Learn more about Alzheimer's Association International Conference.Contact: Alzheimer's Association
Media line: 312.335.4078
E-mail: media@alz.org - International Survey Reveals Attitudes Towards Alzheimer's Diagnosis and Treatment
Alzheimer's Association
The Alzheimer's Association is the world's leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer care, support and research. Our mission is to eliminate Alzheimer's disease through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's. For more information, visit www.alz.org. Learn more about Alzheimer's Association International Conference.Contact: Alzheimer's Association
Media line: 312.335.4078
E-mail: media@alz.org - Late Breaking Research Results from the Alzheimer's Association International Conference 2011
Alzheimer's Association
The Alzheimer's Association is the world's leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer care, support and research. Our mission is to eliminate Alzheimer's disease through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's. For more information, visit www.alz.org. Learn more about Alzheimer's Association International Conference.Contact: Alzheimer's Association
Media line: 312.335.4078
E-mail: media@alz.org - Research Advances from the Alzheimer's Association International Conference 2011
Alzheimer's Association
The Alzheimer's Association is the world's leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer care, support and research. Our mission is to eliminate Alzheimer's disease through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's. For more information, visit www.alz.org. Learn more about Alzheimer's Association International Conference.Contact: Alzheimer's Association
Media line: 312.335.4078
E-mail: media@alz.org
Financial Solutions
From Veteran's Aid & Assistance Benefits to Lifetime Fixed Pricing, Encore has financial solutions for you. Learn more.
Senior Resources
Need to know what type of living options are right for you and your family? We have developed a list of terms and information to help you. Learn more.
