Surviving the Senior Citizen Years

  Eye problems and cataract surgery I’ve worn glasses since I was in the third grade. I had to go to a specialist in Pittsburgh every year for a checkup with an eye doctor. I grew up in a small town on the border of Pennsylvania and West Virginia, so it was about an hour’s ride to Pittsburgh, and I didn’t mind that I got to miss a day of school. What I did mind was having my eye dilated. But I still missed a day of school, and that was nice. It seems my pupils were not shaped right, so I have vision problems. There wasn’t much to do about it except to have them annually checked out. I let my vision exams go for quite a while when I became an adult. Of course, when I went back, the doctor told me about a procedure I needed to do to prevent having cataract surgery. A laser was used on my eyes to release pressure. Well, this lasted a few years until the doctor told me I was going to have to have cataract surgery—one eye at a time, which makes sense. I was hesitant and worried...

  I can remember a time when I didn’t take any pills daily. It was quite a while ago. I felt physically fit; I ran a few miles daily and lifted weights. That was a long time ago.   Fast forward forty years, and I’m now on a bucket of pills every day—pills for this and pills for that. The last few years of my father’s life, he took what seemed like quite a bit of medication. He had heart disease and died in 1977 at the age of 61. I guess without the meds, he would have died sooner. Of course, in 1977, there weren’t many options for someone who had severe artery blockage.   My problems aren’t heart problems. I still take blood pressure and cholesterol medicine, just the same. The thing that always bothers me when a doctor suggests a new drug is the interaction with the numerous pills that I already take. Even though they assure me there shouldn’t be a problem, sometimes there is. With the advent of the internet age and Google, you can check up on any medication. It’...

  Try a little Gratitude   At times it’s hard to be grateful for anything. Your body aches, your memory isn’t so great and things that used to be easy aren’t anymore. I know. But reaching the senior citizen years is a gift for most people.   I miss being able to drive. The last four years have been difficult because I feel uncomfortable behind the wheel. In the past, I’ve had vertigo attacks while I was driving, and it’s very frightening. The worst attack came about a mile away from my home. I was driving with no problem, and then my vision turned upside down. Luckily, there was a firehouse station close by. Unfortunately, the firehouse was empty; I think they were out on an emergency. Someone did pull over and call 911. After that episode, I was very hesitant to get behind the wheel.   But you know what? I didn’t get hurt, and someone stopped and helped me out. I will be forever grateful to that lady. And I have my wife of 38 years who supports me a...

What did you say?  This must be one of the most exacerbating things that have happened to me over the last few years. Due to my Meniere’s disease problems, I have lost about 80 percent of my hearing. I can no longer talk on the phone or have a normal conversation without asking someone to repeat what they said.   I went to my ENT about five years ago when things started to get bad, and he told me there wasn’t much he could do. We tried a bombardment of steroids. It didn’t work. The next step was a hearing aid. I was stunned when I learned my wife’s insurance paid for it. The only one they paid for was the cheapest one, and it didn’t work. It was more of an amplifier than a hearing aid.   It's discouraging because I can’t listen to music and watching TV or movies with closed captions doesn’t always work.   My son suggested that I learn sign language. But who would I communicate with since no one in my family knows sign language either?   ...

  Water under the bridge for senior citizens I’m sure many of us wish there was a time machine to take us back to a place where we made decisions that affected our future lives. We can’t do it. Dwelling on the past can be debilitating and emotionally draining. Things would have been great if we had just done this or that. I’m guilty of this as well. I wasted time in college pursuing an economics degree. Why economics? It was easy and didn’t have a heavy class requirement. That was my thinking: to get through college the easiest way possible, and like magic, I would have a job waiting for me. Of course, it didn’t happen. Jobs were hard to come by when I graduated in 1980, and a vague degree like economics wasn’t helpful. I wish I had investigated other career paths, but I didn’t think of that then. So, I ended up at a shoe store for a year. After another year of wasted time, I moved from Pennsylvania to Georgia, which was a good move. It took a while to find a good job, but on...

  Not everyone has a large family or many friends to share time with. Isolation is a problem for senior citizens. I have many relatives, but they live far away from me. I see some of them on Facebook, but that’s it.   I’ve always been a bit of a loner, so I don’t have friends in the Atlanta area. (I know this is sounding a little whiny) It’s a problem because isolation ties into developing dementia . I’m not sure how I can change this. I am lucky that my wife and son are supportive of me. So that is a positive. Human interaction is powerful in the fight against health issues for senior citizens. Many places have activity centers for senior citizens. You should investigate that or even go to church if you’re comfortable with religion. It’s always good to talk to someone about anything, really. As I might have mentioned, I’m also hearing impaired. But that’s enough complaining. Here is an excellent link from the National Institute of Aging. Loneliness and Social Isolat...

  While physical exercise is essential, exercising your brain is just as important. Dementia is a scary prospect when you get older. Everyone knows someone or has a family member in those dire straits. It’s sad to see and frightening to think it could happen to you. There is no absolute cure for dementia, but there are things you can do to reduce your chances of having it. Can I Prevent Dementia? (alzheimers.gov) It is a great site and very informative. I worry about dementia quite a bit because of my Parkinson’s disease diagnosis and my isolation. I have been writing for many years, and I believe it has helped me. I also read a lot as well. You can also do other things like crossword puzzles, problem-solving games, jigsaw puzzles, and more. Proper diet and exercise combined with critical thinking are a great combination. Comments are always welcome David