(Snippets from the frontline)
The indignity of getting old
Eventually, we all get there. Some say it starts at 40; most hope not until 80:
- We see it in the mirror with growing wrinkles and gray hair;
- Diminished taste, smell, hearing, and vision;
- Decreased mobility and balance with falls, while walking with a stoop;
- Family and friends passing away, as we read obituaries more frequently;
- Embarrassed by incontinent stains and “skid marks” avoiding white underwear;
- Clipping coupons for pull-up adult diapers;
- We choose to shave, bathe, comb our hair, and apply deodorant less, and douse ourselves with perfume and aftershave;
- Get overdosed or have side-effects from prescribed medication worsening the aging process;
- Have fear of being pushed into a nursing home hanging over our head;
- While we are forced to retire, lose purpose, forfeit our driver’s license, and diminish independence.
Sometimes, our body fails us; other times our mind fails us. We hope it isn’t both.
Aging is a gauntlet of life.
Let us find a way to meet the challenge of aging with dignity.
Gene Uzawa Dorio, M.D.
Thank you for the wisdom and unspoken things in aging. Thanks for you comments and tireless work for the Seniors. Gregory Jenkins MD