My dad is around 70 years old and has subsisted on a steady diet of shortbread cookies (those ones in the yellow box from the convenience store) and vanilla Ensure drinks for the past 2-3 years. How can we help him to help himself and eat real, nourishing food?
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posted by anonymous
on Mar 8, 2013 -
33 answers
My father (age 79) has gone from keeping a cane in the car for occasional use to steady himself (through 2012) to being in terrible pain and needing a walker around the house (the latter after a Synvisc injection to the knee 2 weeks ago, knee swelling, and falling - again - at home alone). So far he hasn't broken anything in his falls, but I live 90 minutes away from him and he lives alone. He's accustomed to being quite active and has often been mistaken for a man 10-15 years his junior.
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posted by pammeke
on Mar 4, 2013 -
10 answers
My dad is 78 and his body is breaking down due to a long bout with Parkinson's. He's been in a rehab facility for the last month and his time to stay there (that is covered by Medicare) is running out. He wants to go home, but he will need 24 hour care and I'm not sure that's a feasible option for many reasons I'd rather not go into (not the least of which is that "home" is a 4000 square foot loft with plenty of places to fall, which is a real danger with Parkinsons patients)
He and I are not (nor have we ever been) particularly close, and I do not live in the area anymore, nor am I particularly inclined to go care for him myself (not that I would have the expertise anyway). I do want him to be somewhere that he can be cared for and comfortable, though.
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posted by softlord
on Feb 12, 2013 -
6 answers
I'm in search of a personal medical alert product for my middle-aged mother and somewhat overwhelmed by the volume of incomplete solutions, vague descriptions, sketchy resellers, and keyword hoarding. Help me be the best geriatric technologist this side of sixty!
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posted by nominal
on Jan 22, 2013 -
11 answers
My 90-year old, very hardy but recently frail, mother now has pneumonia. Has anyone been through this, or something similar? Do you have any advice to offer about the whole thing - what to watch out for in her, what to say or do for her, how to deal with the hospital staff, how to handle my own emotional ups and downs as well as those of my sisters?
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posted by DrGail
on Dec 29, 2012 -
10 answers
Looking for prepaid phone recommendations for an older person in the US. No smartphone, no texting, just very occasional outgoing voice calls.
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posted by Ookseer
on Dec 12, 2012 -
11 answers
I'll try to stick to specifically relevant snowflake stuff here.
So, my father is 78 and has Parkinson's, which is compounded by long-standing blood pressure issues that leaves him prone to falling unexpectedly (moreso than a typical Parkinsons patient). He lives in a big loft in the East Village (NYC) that he's lived in for forty years, and has no designs on leaving.
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posted by softlord
on Nov 12, 2012 -
10 answers
My 72 year old dad just was prescribed oxygen. He has portable units and then an electric machine for home use. He is supposed to fly from Dallas to Phoenix to visit me for Thanksgiving. I saw the Southwest regulations for his portable, but should I rent him a home machine or can he check his? Are they heavy? Are they expensive to rent?
posted by bkf
on Nov 10, 2012 -
6 answers
Strategies for helping an elderly parent, who is living in assisted living, realize/come to terms with the fact that moving home will never be an option and it is now time to sell that home?
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posted by lovableiago
on Oct 11, 2012 -
21 answers
What to do about a mentally unstable brother who's taking advantage of my elderly mother?
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posted by anonymous
on Aug 27, 2012 -
8 answers
How can I help my grandma feel less lonely? She has dementia and alzheimers, but it still pretty together most of the time. She should be surrounded by family, but isn't- we are all so spread apart. . .
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posted by abirdinthehand
on Aug 25, 2012 -
13 answers
My 70+ year old mother-in-law just bought herself an iPad. Great! Except that she has LITERALLY never used a computer in her life. How should I approach teaching her how to use it?
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posted by photovox
on Aug 21, 2012 -
32 answers
Computing for a 90-year-old? Gramps might finally be interested in the wonderful world of the Internet.
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posted by notsnot
on Aug 7, 2012 -
17 answers
80 years old, lost 40 pounds since May, no appetite, weakening, diagnosed with lung cancer today. What can we expect now?
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posted by soulbarn
on Jul 17, 2012 -
30 answers
Please help me get a flight quickly & cheaply! This may have been answered in a previous question - if so, please point me in the right direction, but I need input quickly.
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posted by kbar1
on Jun 28, 2012 -
17 answers
Please tell me about your in-home elder care solutions in the US, specifically in the rural Northeast/upper Midwest.
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posted by Snarl Furillo
on May 15, 2012 -
10 answers
What happens to elderly people in the United States who have run out of retirement savings, can't work, and aren't getting enough from Social Security to cover their living expenses?
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posted by El Sabor Asiatico
on Apr 3, 2012 -
22 answers
Will the cognitive problems associated with severe sepsis improve as the sepsis itself is treated?
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posted by Jamesonian
on Mar 5, 2012 -
9 answers
Can anyone offer me recommendations, guidance or personal experiences in choosing a "Rescue Alert"-like service? TL;DR inside. (I will never, ever use the term "snowflake" that way.)
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posted by BleachBypass
on Feb 23, 2012 -
9 answers
My elderly mother needs a project or three to do during the winter. What can you suggest?
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posted by Ookseer
on Jan 10, 2012 -
8 answers
Elderly father, living alone a long way away, may not be coping. I am trying to investigate & get him help if he needs it - please tell me if I am leaving something out or overstepping the mark.
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posted by andraste
on Jan 10, 2012 -
16 answers
Best Christmas gifts for nearly impoverished older family members (location: northern New Mexico).
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posted by anonymous
on Dec 5, 2011 -
16 answers
I will no longer travel with my elderly mother. Do I tell her so or just keep changing the subject? Details inside.
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posted by eleslie
on Nov 5, 2011 -
24 answers
My elderly neighbor lived in my rented room before I moved in. He still uses the public areas of the house as his own. What are my obligations? Lots of snowflake details inside.
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posted by dd42
on Oct 18, 2011 -
31 answers
I'm getting an iPad for my (aging) mother -- what am I missing? How can I make this as simple as possible for her? If it's at all complicated, she won't go for it.
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posted by cgg
on Oct 15, 2011 -
7 answers
This is my first Ask MeFi question, and I'm asking on behalf of my parents. My father is in reasonably good physical health but poor mental health, which may be related to the meds he's on and the "quality" care he's getting in the American "system". Are there some kind of additional resources for me or them to help make their way through the bureaucrat-ese and get some better care? And maybe some additional health care (or heck, elder care in general) resources I could find for them?
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posted by no relation
on Sep 25, 2011 -
9 answers
My parents are in their 70s and are on a fixed income– a fairly low fixed income– and were forced to declare bankruptcy last year due to significant medical bills. These medical issues also made it difficult for them to maintain their household, resulting in an accumulation of dirt and debris that has forced their current rental complex to issue a polite but firm eviction notice. I am attempting to relocate them much closer to me so that my family and I can provide regular assistance to them, both financial and day-to-day, but they've already been rejected by two rather modest rental complexes (including one at which they previously lived for 25 years). To complicate matters, my mother is in a wheelchair and needs an apartment with few or no barriers (stairs, hills, etc.). Moving them into my home is not an option for a variety of reasons. I'm trying to locate a rental apartment somewhere in Northern Virginia and at this point would take anything. Can anyone tell me where to turn?
posted by Jamesonian
on Aug 25, 2011 -
12 answers
Old people have sex? Please help me find media representations of geriatric sexuality in various media such as in commercials, movies, posters, television, newspapers, and so on.
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posted by Knigel
on Aug 16, 2011 -
30 answers
Is there a "Life Alert" type medical alarm that doesn't call 911 without permission? My sick relative is terrified of being taken to the hospital against his will.
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posted by ROTFL
on Jul 10, 2011 -
18 answers
How can I be the best granddaughter possible now that my dear grandmother's health is in decline?
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posted by lovableiago
on May 17, 2011 -
15 answers
Long Term Nursing Care in Toronto for 87 year old great uncle. Recommendations for particular homes and/or resources to help find one?
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posted by Mave_80
on May 4, 2011 -
6 answers
I'd like to make a meal once a week for our elderly neighbors who are having medical issues, but I'm already really busy. What can I make that they can freeze and is easy for me?
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posted by Leezie
on Apr 12, 2011 -
14 answers
How would you go about explaining basic computer features to someone who cannot conceive of what a gigabyte is? (Or, to a more extreme degree, what a username is or how the internet works?)
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posted by patronuscharms
on Jan 9, 2011 -
27 answers
Houston, Texas filter. My visiting grandfather wants pictures in which he is posing in front of marvels of engineering: complicated highway overpasses, most importantly, as well as bridges and downtown skyscrapers from afar. What are the best places in town from which to take these photos?
Also, accessible tourist activities for senior who get tired quickly and don't speak English.
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posted by halogen
on Dec 18, 2010 -
12 answers
How to safely and legally stop my elderly mom from driving. Complication: She's in hospice (yes, really). Special snowflake WTF details inside.
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posted by anonymous
on Dec 3, 2010 -
56 answers
Is there a Meals on Wheels alternative for an elderly woman living in the Sacramento, California area?
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posted by mps
on Nov 23, 2010 -
3 answers
