What You Never Learned In School About Your Aging Parents

No matter how far you got in your education, or what you studied, chances are you never had a primer on how to manage aging parents in failing health. The exceptions are those who specifically pursued healthcare, geriatrics or a related field. For everyone else, it may feel like you are totally lost when it comes to dealing with aging parents’ health, behavior, cognitive decline and finances. It can be scary!

At AgingParents.com, where we consult with families of elders who are facing various difficulties, we hear over and over the refrain: “I don’t know how to even start with this. I’m so overwhelmed.” It reminds me every time that we would be better off as a society if we did educate students about what they could face as their parents age and how to do what is right for all of them. We don’t so that, so people have to search and struggle for even basic information.