For many people, retirement is one of those things that has always been on the horizon at just enough distance not to warrant any real concern related to what to do about it in practical day to day terms. That is, until the horizon is upon us and the more pragmatic aspects of the retirement […]

If your aging parents are a bit leery about using today’s technology, call in the grandchildren. Even the youngest ones seem to intuit how to use smart phones and tablets, search for and download apps, and have mastered the Internet.  And they no doubt can show their grandparents how to use a fitness tracker or […]

According to ExperienceWorks, an organization that helps older adults find work, by the year 2020, nearly 25% of workers will be age 55 or older. Older women, veterans, and workers with special needs will make up an increasing percentage of the workforce, and many will be staying in the workforce far beyond “retirement age” due […]

Elderly Social Security recipients are easy prey for scammers, as headlines remind regularly. Whether through a sweet-talking individual who claims to be from the Social Security Administration or the response to an authentic-looking email that looks like it is from the Social Security Administration, once a scammer gets the beneficiary’s information, the trouble begins. With […]

In most cases, the need to downsize is a function of the need to move. Moving from the family home can be one of the most stressful events an older adult ever faces. Tough decisions have to be made about what to take and what to do with the things that are being left behind. […]

Oftentimes, family members become frustrated if they face resistance from their elderly relatives when they suggest having help or considering another place to move. In many cases, this resistance comes from fears that seniors have while they face the challenges of staying active and independent as they age. Understanding and acknowledging these fears can help […]

The Hospice movement was started in Britain in 1967 by a physician, Cicely Saunders, who advocated pain management for the dying. Her philosophy was that dying people needed dignity, compassion and respect. and “abolished the prevailing ethic that patients should be cured, that those who could not be cured were a sign of failure and […]

Updated August 2025 Data from the Census Bureau’s 2022 Population Survey reveals that 28% of Americans who are 65 or older live alone (but not in a nursing home or assisted-living facility), including about 6 million men and 10 million women. About 11% of American households consist of a person age 65 or older who […]

The impact of one individual’s health can have a ripple effect on an entire family. Family members are caring for their loved ones in the home more today and for longer periods of time than ever before. If you are the primary caregiver for a dependent loved one, you are at risk for developing caregiver […]

Updated July 2025 The Journal of General Internal Medicine published a report in 2012 that looked at data from more than 3,000 people covered by Medicare to gauge the impact of health care cost on seniors. Researchers measured how much Medicare-eligible seniors had spent out of pocket on healthcare in their last five years alive, […]