Dealing with Your Aging Parent

Recent studies show that doctors have more influence on an
aging person's decision to stop driving than the person's family does. But if
you can’t speak to the doctor, there are a number of topics that, if not
handled correctly, can cause division between an aging parent and their
children.

• Is
  it safe for the parent to drive?
• Is
  the parent taking proper care of themselves or their pets?
• Should
  the parent consider moving into an assisted living center?

There are ways for the children to handle these topics in a
sensitive way. In some ways, these conversations need to be looked at almost
like an intervention. Children need to validate what their parents are feeling.

"You say, ‘Let's go over here and we'll go to this
assisted living [center]. We're going to try lunch.' Then, when she says, ‘I
don't want to live here,' you say, ‘I know. You really love your house. You
don't want to leave your house.'"

The conversation shouldn't be trying to blindside
your parent but help them deal with their emotions.