Guest Author - Pam Garlick

I’m a Baby Boomer. Yet, that hasn’t been something I’ve thought about much until recently. There’s been a lot of television about us. So, I know I’m not alone in some of the things I’ve been facing.

We are said to be a generation like non before us. For the most part we are more active, living life to the fullest. Yet, for some of us, living that life isn’t as easy as we’d hoped it would be. Our active lifestyle has had its ups and downs.

One of the other things our generation is facing is longer life. It’s important to us that the quality of that life be good. However, while we are looking at our own quality of life, we may need to take a look at the lives of our parents, who are also living longer lives.

Ken and I are blessed to still have our parents. Yet, while we have them, we want their quality of life to also be as good as possible. Yet, it seems we are working so much ourselves to survive, we are neglecting the little things that can help improve the lives of our parents. Like giving them some of our time.

I know we’re not alone in this. Just the other night on the news they presented this problem and it showed many people facing this same dilemma. And the guilt they feel because distance or time have prevented them from spending the time they would like with their parents.

While we are again fortunate that we live close enough we can be there for our parents some of the time, we also have others in our family who are available when we cannot, many people are not as fortunate. For them, I thought it was worthwhile passing on the information from the news special I mentioned above.

There are caregivers out there who are hired specifically to look in and provide for some of the needs of aging people. It could be just to look in and make sure their clients are okay, to helping them with their medication or paying bills. These professional caregivers come at a price, but then so does everything. When one doesn’t have the time, perhaps the service is well worth the price.

While nothing compares to the TLC we can provide for our aging family members, this service could be looked upon as a supplement rather than a substitute. Whatever the case, if you are facing concerns for aging family members whose health may be limiting them from doing many things for themselves, you may want to look into the sites below for help. One word of caution though, always research your options carefully.