How are you preparing to get older?

fuzzybuddy

fuzzybuddy

SF VIP
Location
The Sticks, Northeast PA.
Years ago, my idea was to live to be 96. Then one day after chopping a load of wood, if would just slip quietly away in my sleep. Well, reality set in. I'm 71 and had a stroke. Plus I've never chopped a load of wood in my life. I have to admit I did a lousy job of preparing to get older. And I stupidly didn't think I would get old. But I did. It's a thousand little things, like the TV volume is on '100'-maximum out put. It happens to you.
 

I am actively preparing myself for the years to come.

Our house has had certain modifications made such as a few handy railings near the front and back steps and in the shower and toilet. We are open to having the bathroom remodelled to accommodate a wheel chair should that look like becoming a necessity.

If I live another 10 - 15 years ( I am now 75) I expect to enter a nursing home because dementia has been a common destination for the generation before me. I am not disturbed by this prospect but I am doing a few things that will make that time less problematic.

Osteoarthritis is another common family ailment and I am no exception. I am proactive in dealing with it now. In the last three years I have had one hip, one knee and two shoulders replaced to eliminate chronic pain and my mobility in such improved. I do think extreme old age is less of a trial if one can move around without needing to be hauled to your feet by a mechanical hoist. Before the operations even turning over in bed was extremely difficult.

Today I had my GP check me all over for skin cancers and he zapped a number on my hands, face, leg and torso. I have observed aged people in nursing homes with untreated skin cancers. They are horrible to look at and probably very unpleasant for the person too, so I am having periodic check ups as every pale skinned person living in a hot climate would be wise to do.

I have just purchased a second hand mobility scooter which I don't really need right now. We have just come down from two cars to one and I reckon it could come in handy for those times when we both want the car on the same day. I also want to be familiar with the machine itself and the best routes to take long before I need to because I have noted that older people avoid thinking about their future needs until forced to. Often by then their capacity to adjust has fallen away. I tried it out for the first time when I visited the doctor's surgery today. It went well apart from discovering that building sites tend to block the footpath without regard to access for mobility scooters. There is a lot of building going on where I live.
 
I guess I must have done something right because I'm 85 (in couple of months) and am still able to live alone in a small apartment and care for myself with a little bit of help from daughter who lives not with but nearby. The body has slowed down but brain still works reasonably well. I also hope I slip away in my sleep one night. I don't fear death, only what frequently precedes it and I do hope I die before I need more care.

About 15 years ago I began to gear down and simplify my life by slowly ridding myself of things that no long added to either my quality or enjoyment of life. I'm lucky in that I have family nearby and several hobbies/activities that comfortably fill my days.

I never planned or expected to live this long. It just happened.
 

I started preparing long ago, but I keep getting older so have given that up and just live because all that "preparing" stuff got to be a nuisance. If I'm not prepared, oh well...
 
We haven’t done anything yet but we are learning a lot from our others.
Currently we still have a mortgage but that’s almost paid. We have paid off all our debts and got a home ownership loan to purchase new windows, doors, roof, downspouts etc.
We are also upgrading everything in our house now for when we want to sell it. We still have to make some new kitchen cabinets but have all the wood & tools.

One HUGE issue that we are going to gradually organize is STUFF!!!
Is anyone else ‘shocked’ at how much stuff they have ?
My main goal is to declutter. I think living would be much easier with LESS STUFF!
 
Funny this question came up ! Just yesterday I was saying I want to start a new chapter in my life. I want to downsize my clutter. The less I have to clean and dust when I get older , the better. I want to give up 90% of my crafts,too. I want to know what it's like to have a kitchen table to sit at ! LOL I don't want to have boxes full of things that I don't remember. I want to simplify my life from now on and if I go about it alittle at a time, I'll be happy as a lark !
 
i have donated my body to science--i just hope i dont pass here at home-it would be hard for my daughter to take-(-the youngest one) it might make my son in law happy=====lol
 
We are getting rid of a lot of stuff too. Shocking how much we have. Our kids don't want it. The few keepsakes they want we've already given them for the most part. In fact our kids are starting to declutter their homes too. And since they know mom and dad have a yard sale every year, guess who they are giving all their "treasures" to? I don't mind though, they have good stuff and we get to keep whatever we get out of it. Grandkids will help us set up the tables and put things out. I told BH the other day, "I knew I'd get old sometime I just didn't know it'd be so soon."

We live on acreage so we have 2 or 3 chairs stationed here and there around the place. When we need to sit down we don't have to walk so far. We have 4 rockers on our front porch so that might tell you what we do with a lot of our time. :playful:
 
Wow...that's a broad-brush question, that I doubt there is just one answer for? We all have our needs & our ways. "Old" IMO is when we are slowed by lack of physical ability. Some are in there 50's Others last till their 70's & beyond. I know a guy [81] just put a roof on his garage. I met a man in Kansas years ago that was from Canada, he was 83, and heading home from a motorcycle trip {on a motorcycle}...@ the time I was 53 & I thought ......man-o-man hope I can........It ain't lookin' good...:(
 
Well, at 55, other than financial planning, exercise & healthy eating......I'm not preparing to get older. Just trying to appreciate each day of the here & now, getting through the challenges to get to my goals. Time does fly though......whether we are ready or not.
 
I always imagined getting older with my husband taking care of me and me him. Not going to be so, he's been diagnosed with Mesothelioma and probably won't last the summer. Big shocker to both of us and our kids. My plan alone? Sell our house and move to Scottsdale where my youngest lives. At least that's my goal, but who knows.
 
My biggest concern is not leaving a mess for someone else to clean up.

The second is trying to be honest with myself and not fuss about changes in what I can do, where I need to live, etc...

I have been through these things in the past with various family members and I don't want to put anyone else through it on my account.

I have been out looking at senior apartments to get a feel for what is available in my area.

I've been downsizing my possessions to the basics that I need for me and also getting rid of the knick-knacks, collectibles, etc... that are not important enough to me to take to the nursing home. When I move I've vowed not to take any boxes of things that end up in the back of closets or under the bed! I think that it will be refreshing to have an apartment with a couple of empty cupboards or closets.

I've also been trying to simplify and organize my business affairs so people will have a clear uncluttered file of important things like investment records, car titles, etc...

The one huge remaining item on my to-do list is to find a trustworthy person to strike that final match over me and my possessions!
 
I'm just trying to stay here long enough to take care of my mother. I'm pretty sure after that I'll change gears and will probably have time to think about it. If not.. I've been prepared since I was 13 to go be with my Lord.
 
When I first moved here I was 'only' 63 and felt like superwoman. These last 12 years I've felt I've aged 100 years. So, death is more on my mind these days. Just last week I added my daughter (only child) to my bank accounts so that she will have the cash available to have me cremated. They're a live day-to-day couple and will not have the cash to do it before being able to use the inheritance. I'm also trying to get rid of 'stuff', it's mostly paperwork and crafts. I only hope I go quickly and don't have to suffer long and/or painful illnesses, but who knows.
 
In 16 years I will be 100. My preference is to expire like my mother who went to bed and never woke up at age 91. 100 is a nice round number.
 
.

One can try to prepare, but sometimes life throws curved balls.

My grandmother was in her early 80s, in good health, living alone and independently in her own country home
when she died in a traffic accident while returning from town with her groceries.

My 38 year old son died suddenly and unexpectedly at home during a seizure.

A co-worker retired... less than two weeks later she died in a car accident.
 
KingsX said:
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One can try to prepare, but sometimes life throws curved balls.

My grandmother was in her early 80s, in good health, living alone and independently in her own country home
when she died in a traffic accident while returning from town with her groceries.

My 38 year old son died suddenly and unexpectedly at home during a seizure.

A co-worker retired... less than two weeks later she died in a car accident.
Click to expand...



I have heard many of these ....unfortunately. Trouble is the "curve-ball" is harder on the survivor , than the victim of it.
 
I have budgeted for the next twenty-four years. That's as long as I plan to be around, if I make it that long. I don't understand those who cling so tenaciously to life even through horrible pain and suffering, even when there is a need for their constant care. The day I can't do what I want, when I want, on my own, is the day I put my plan in action to leave this existence, thereby depriving the detestable, despicably greedy, Big Med of my money, and the use of my body as a guinea pig for unproven regimens from Big Pharma. My body goes to the med school in my will, thereby depriving Big Death (the rip-off, blood-sucking, literally, funeral business) of my money, as well. My heirs will be happy that I don't drain my bank account in an asinine attempt to suck air for as many days as possible. As for immediate plans, I plan on getting rid of more and more "stuff" in my house, so when I move, in the next two to three years, I will be moving with some clothes, my dog, some tools, my music equipment and that's about it. If it won't fit in my pickup, and an enclosed 6X9 trailer, it ain't going!
 
I am prepared for the final years, got enough of everything to last, plus a little bit. Nowhere I want to go, nothing I want to do I haven't done.
 
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You have this vague idea that you'll muddle through "getting old". After all, "old age" is way off in the distance. Right? That's how i used to think about it. I had a stroke, which tends to mess up your day. It turns out that I made NO provisions for getting older. I had to rearrange the furniture for a wheelchair. Quite honestly, I never really thought about getting older. Now, it seems kind of stupid that I didn't do something. After all, I am AGING, and I can't stop it, and will have to live with it.
 
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