Aging Parents: The Importance of Psychological Support from Adult Children

When people live alone (with a diminished social network and plenty of time to think), it’s easy to dwell on problems and become depressed. That’s when my counseling training automatically kicks in–
                                          Words and Listening

Really listening is a skill. We usually hear and respond in ways that seem appropriate and there’s nothing wrong with that.  But really listening can put us in the other person’s head and allows us to show understanding with a simple phrase (e.g. “it must be so hard,” “it sounds very frustrating”) –few words; no advice.

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Aging Parents: It's the Haa, Haa-py-est Time of The Year?

© ElaineLeBerg

It's The Haa, Haa--py--est Time of The Year

The words and melody from the radio fill my car as I drive to the post office to mail the holiday cards. We have snow, it looks like a winter wonderland; and kids, amid shrieks of laughter and merriment, are sledding down our shared driveway on anything they can find that's large enough to sit on. Sun is 
shining, snow balls are flying, and I'm certain school vacation is adding to this happiest of times.

And then my counseling background kicks in and I remember that holidays aren't always the happiest of times for people. So I decide to check in with a few older people and see how they're doing. As a counselor, I'm trained to ask objective questions--not leading questions that will give me the answer I want (or think I want). That said, let me share my findings.

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Wise Words: 9 Pearls of Wisdom From our 99-year-old Sr. Advisor

                                    R’s 9 Original Sayings:
                               Words of Wisdom About Life

Original sayings must be in Sr. Advisor R’s DNA. One of her mother’s sayings, “Do the best you can, angels can do no more,” has appeared in previous posts. Wisdom…based on many year’s of living. R’s mother died in her early 90′s. R will be 100 in September. 

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