Preparing to Age in Place

Isn’t it amazing how our society is so different from the ones who have their elders living with them.

I’m 74 years old, and have been living solo for 6 years. I absolutely love the freedom!
Three years ago I was diagnosed with Mild Cognitive Impairment. I was doing well for a while, but about one year ago I noticed some strange behaviors. I also became off balance, my eyes had problems focusing so I started using cane, then a walker.

First I was diagnosed with Ataxia (balance and vision), then my neurologist did extensive testing for dementia.
Three weeks ago I was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Dementia (mild)!

Now living alone, being off balance, and having double vision is making life interesting. Oh, and I cannot drive anymore. I am managing!
There is the Volunteer Group, “Helping Hands” that provides me with free rides to appointments. I found a woman hairstylist who cuts my hair in my home. I’m using Meals on Wheels so I can get a meal instead of a snack for dinner.

Now the question is, how long will I’ve able to run my own “show”? I’m hoping to hang on for as long as I can.

I love this story!
I was an avid walker and race walker for many years before slowed down by Multiple Sclerosis. My health has declined dramatically since age 50, I went on parliament disability in my mid fifties, and I will be 70 this year.
I'm pretty much housebound but no wheelchair. So I walk when I can but slowly.
I'm envious of your good fortune and wish you continued good health and many more happy years. & thanks for your response!

I hope everyone is able to stay cool in this heat wave.
What we're experiencing now is likely to be typical summer weather for the rest of our years, so we would be wise to take this chance to consider how we will cope with extreme heat.

We were especially lucky that our home came with geothermal heating. It's not something we would have installed on our own, but we are grateful for it, as our heating and cooling costs are quite low. The cost of this is maintenance inspections every six months and the possibility of expensive replacements some day. All the houses in our neighborhood were built with similar geothermal service, so we get good advice by sharing our geothermal news up and down the sidewalk.

The north side of our house has large windows for solar heat in the winter. For summer I've added a sun sail, just large enough to shade the windows when needed. (Low cost if you can use a prefab size.)

A week ago there was a 36 hour advisory from the county water service that water should be boiled before drinking. Water in the river has gotten low, and there was concern for backflow pollution. Fortunately water tests showed it was o.k. and the advisory was lifted, but not before supermarkets were sold out of bottled water. So now we are stocking at least a few gallons of emergency water, at least enough to keep us hydrated for a week if needed. Looking into filter systems, we could not find anything affordable that really filters microorganisms.

We're doing our dog walking mornings and evenings, not as fast or far as usual and following the shade as much as possible.

What concerns and methods have folks used to deal with extreme heat? What are your future concerns...and hopes?

Stay cool!!!

I have friend who has same problem as you. She hired a person to clean and make meals , then stick in freezer, so she has at least dinner.
Have you tried a caregiver agency. . It can get expensive, or a reverse mortgage if own a house.

I hope everyone is able to stay cool in this heat wave.
What we're experiencing now is likely to be typical summer weather for the rest of our years, so we would be wise to take this chance to consider how we will cope with extreme heat.

We were especially lucky that our home came with geothermal heating. It's not something we would have installed on our own, but we are grateful for it, as our heating and cooling costs are quite low. The cost of this is maintenance inspections every six months and the possibility of expensive replacements some day. All the houses in our neighborhood were built with similar geothermal service, so we get good advice by sharing our geothermal news up and down the sidewalk.

The north side of our house has large windows for solar heat in the winter. For summer I've added a sun sail, just large enough to shade the windows when needed. (Low cost if you can use a prefab size.)

A week ago there was a 36 hour advisory from the county water service that water should be boiled before drinking. Water in the river has gotten low, and there was concern for backflow pollution. Fortunately water tests showed it was o.k. and the advisory was lifted, but not before supermarkets were sold out of bottled water. So now we are stocking at least a few gallons of emergency water, at least enough to keep us hydrated for a week if needed. Looking into filter systems, we could not find anything affordable that really filters microorganisms.

We're doing our dog walking mornings and evenings, not as fast or far as usual and following the shade as much as possible.

What concerns and methods have folks used to deal with extreme heat? What are your future concerns...and hopes?

Stay cool!!!