We have a need for a medical advocate

Being a senior citizen may lead to being ignored by health professionals. Something changes in how we are viewed. 

Many have reported in the world of work changes happen where the older worker is treated more like one would treat a child. 

In my work the teens definitely treated me more like a grandparent than an adult in middle age. While there were times when I had to be the adult I also adapted the grandparent role to manipulate the students in more successful student behaviors and responsibilities. While they took on responsibilities for both themselves and me, this was a breakthrough to tap into their own growing up. Behavioral goals and education roles were reached as students became less dependent on me and assume greater responsibility for themselves. Underneath my façade I was still managing my role and function. The atmosphere in the classroom was less adversarial and more cooperative. 

There was an incident in which two girls were in a fight. I was the first on the scene so I was sorting out how to intervene a real physical fight, when two damsels came to my rescue. I being the gentleman that I am, gladly step aside as the two younger women competently dealt with situation. Would I have done that 20 years ago? I don't think so. As I walk back to my work area I was smiling thinking that I handled it quite well. 

But there're other times when people talk to me in a louder voice, repeated instructions several times, and I wasn't being asked to do the things I am done before. The times were changing. Some of this relates to aging. Toward the end of my career I did have significant issues with insomnia any ability to come to work everyday. While I resolve these issues it also became apparent to me that it was time for me to change. I would have to say I was given a lot of support. When I was at work I was good; but I also was missing too many days. This all happened in a time I could retire. 

Over the years I have heard many conversations that younger people have concerning older workers. It is not hard for people to pick up the vibrations that are negative.

Due to due process I can't disclosed a case ongoing. But It is possible to go into medical care and be ignored or not treated because of medicare limits or negligence. I would encourage each senior to have an advocate to speak out for your interests just in case you can't. A person who understands what is going on and will question things, look out for neglect and fight for you. Medical people may view you as an old geezer complaining with attitudes. We may say or feel things and express our selves in a bad way. We would not have done this earlier. Bottom line we may be written off. Hospitals like teachers, lawyers, can be lazy. We need a check and balance as we seek care. With so many things that can go wrong we want to communicate in such a way that we have a chance to survive. If the hospital is not really treating the problem we could be in serious trouble. Keep walking

Politics hides personal health

Health is in the news.

The top four candidates President were Ted Cruz 45, Bernie Sanders 75, Donald Trump 70, and Hillary Clinton 69. Trump and Clinton will beginning the age bracket as Ronald Reagan.

Through what many went think was a disappointing process to get us to this point, we have two candidates who are old. Part of it I think is our fault for only recognizing people that we have seen in media forever. Definitely I think the media is responsible for not making it easier for people who are qualified yet not as known. It seems like we have settled for the lowest common denominator in reality TV. We could say the fix was in. 

I was watching a PBS show on Churchill's second term in the 50s in which he went through a major stroke and recovered. At  that time people did not know about it. This is seems is that instinct in politics to never let on that there is health problems. I think it was in the program where Churchill said growing “old is not for cowards”. There is an heroic element older politicians struggle to do their job in declining health. They do make contributions. I also think it is remarkable that government can continue when a president or leader is hospitalized or recovering. 

If you get a chance look at the actual letters from doctors who have done the physicals you will notice age in the reports of both Donald and Hillary. Compare your own health numbers to the candidates and you may find similarities. Hillary has blood thinners, Trump statin drugs. Both could probably lose little weight. 

How does an aging president take care of their health? Does having an older president come with certain risks? I think we are of the mind set that life should be problem free? 

One of these two will be the next president of United States. The health problems that come to people in their 70s will be part of their story. Given the record of how we normally will hear optimistic reports. If it is bad we are likely not hear anything. Or if it's like reality TV maybe we'll we will get privy into the bathroom. God save the president.

Death and struggle does come to the Whitehouse

Reagan was shot and rec

We can learn from our past
FDR

overed at age 70 in assassination attempt. It can be argued that he battled with the effects from the assassination throughout his presidency. He was able to serve effectively into his second term. It appears he was able to manage the last two years with the onset of Alzheimer’s.

Pres. Eisenhower at the end of his office had a heart attack at 67. 

John Kennedy died at 46 by lethal gunshot.

Franklin Roosevelt died the age of 63 of cerebral hemorrhage. He and had long term battle with this health after he had polio. He was able to hide is paralysis with the cooperation of the press. 

Warren Hardy was 57 when he died of a heart attack. 

William McKinley died at the assassin's bullet at the age of 58.

James Garfield was 49 years old when he died from an assassin.  I found it very interesting to learn about his assassination and how poisonous the thinking can be in politics.

Abraham Lincoln was 56 when he was killed by and assassin.

Zachary Taylor died of "bilious diarrhea, or a bilious cholera” at age 65. Whatever it was sounds awful. Did his age contribute to his death?

William Harrison died of pneumonia he caught up from a cold from too long of a speech at his inauguration he was 68. There is something to learn about that. We tend to immortalize short speeches. 

Take a look yourself.

http://digitaledition.chicagotribune.com/launch.aspx?pbid=3e7227b1-e3b7-4fac-aa07-5f943e58b4c5

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/16/us/politics/hillary-clinton-campaign.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fus&action=click&contentCollection=us&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=9&pgtype=sectionfront&_r=0

http://www.wsj.com/articles/donald-trump-in-good-health-but-overweight-doctors-letter-shows-1473951876

http://www.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/DJT_Medical_Records_09152016.pdf

http://www.wsj.com/articles/campaign-releases-more-information-about-hillary-clintons-health-1473886020

http://www.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/HRC_physician_letter09142016.pdf

Bad day on the court.

The old boy looking good. My team was international The US,
India, France, Viet Nam, France, Mexico. I would learn to coach,
but this year I was learning. These kids would have been champs
otherwise. Very good players.

I have follow professional sports all my life. Overtime I am seeing my favorite players going strong and then starting to decline somewhere between 34 and 40. There is so much money in sports that athletes after into science and medicine in an attempt to extend their careers. Overall they have improve their performance to have the ability to play a year we're too longer. Regardless of the effort age kicks in and they lose their ability to play at a high-level. Rising stars soon takeover.

A sport that I picked up and played was tennis. I was never great at it but I love the game. If you like a game where it is just you against an opponent, the wind, the net, boundaries and fitness level tennis is a great game.

Well I'm out on the courts with my son who has come into his own with the game. I knew going that I was done with a competing effort. I hit the ball okay, but the side movement I was totally out of balance. For me it took on a scary experience. A big part of it is out of balance, too top-heavy order be specific too fat. So I’m retired from the game. If I do some serious weight loss, maybe it would be worth working on the balance or I may find my balance is gone. 

Jimmy Connors was a great competitor but he has since undergone various joint surgeries. After his career he is completed in senior events, but now chooses not to play. He remembers how he used to play and he doesn't like the pain and performance in his aging body. So he left the game and is moved on his life.

I know that I can never play the games the way  I used to with the reckless abandonment. And now I seriously think that I can play the game at all. A local doctor was playing in his 70s and fell backwards in his head which resulted in serious impairment.

We can never guarantee our safety or go through life without risk. We live it and hopefully survive our accidents, and move on is best we can.

What can I take away from this experience?

It gives support to the necessary idea to keep moving. Thank God I have a recumbent bike, but I also have to make strides to use in-home walking to build up my movement and challenge my balance.

It is just one more motivation keep my weight loss going down.

It's a good time to give my son my training equipment in tennis so that he can train his children. 

I took a day to say goodbye to tennis. There is no sense in getting into a bad mood about it. There are plenty of things to move on with. Loss is probably the biggest issue in aging. It's a big deal to lose something, but we have to keep growing, finding new things to love, new friends, new interests. What is something that you lost because of aging? What did you find the best way to get through it? I think it helps remind full I'm going through this with little things saw that we get a handle on it when we lose something big. Keep walking!

Always adjustments

Today I'm drawing upon things I've learned about walking. I have broken out my walking today in three 10 minute segments. This is given my back time to stay loose as I walk to an aerobic pace. In between my walks I have done my old man exercises and several exercises with suspension training. Working on the computer I get up several times an hour and move around. Right now I'm standing as I dictate this note. There's been a lot of attention lately in health literature about the benefits of standing over sitting and with the dictation software that came with my computer I'm able to write while standing. 

All these little behaviors actually benefit our health. This time of year is when we start thinking about driving to see the fall colors. If you have to go some distance take regular breaks from the ride and get out for just a little walk using your muscles get your blood moving. When you're sitting in the car or driving in the car and you're in cruise control move your feet and do toe raises, wiggling your toes, and heel raises. This is also good when you're riding in a plane. Helping move your blood to your extremities may help you not develop a clot. I know the little walks help us to stay alert while we're driving and helps a little gray cells as well. Walking helps rebuild the brain better than crossword puzzles. Walking can also help people delay the onset of diseases related to older age. For years I known the benefits of walking in relationship to stretching out my muscles. When I used to play tennis people who know me could see that I was getting more flexible. Regular walking can delay the baby steps we take when we get older. I see this all the time on the trail of people who walk regularly. They take nice long strides being in their 70s and 80s. 

Walking outside with my cane is helping. It has been a while since I have fallen. I am almost scared to tell you this because it seems like when I do, pretty soon I fall. But the strategy behind the cane is not for bearing weight but for giving me that extra point of balance. I think it also makes me just little bit more mindful to mentally pick up my feet. I can recall my father telling me that when I was just a wee lad. Walking though has its own natural pace and I really can't stay conscious every step of it. I mean there's a blue sky, the green grass and trees, the flowers, the birds, and cute girls to notice. But as I flow along with the cane, it is there to help me when my foot catches. In my mind I am Sherlock Holmes and Watson with the game afoot. As I walk the uneven ground in the frisbee golf course or park again definitely supports me very well. There is a timing to it and like a walking stick on a nature trail in a state park or national Park is very helpful. 

I hope in the cooler temperatures of fall you find time to take your walks. Short walks, 30 minute walks or even more are all good. Keep walking

Big picture for baby boomers on depression and aging

Got an article in today's Wall Street Journal about Robin Williams suicide as it relates to suicide rates of the BBB boomers between the ages 35 and 64. Reported by Zusha Ellison. Traditionally suicide occurs more often in older people. This is consistent with two recent blogs that I wrote about. Aging I believe brings its own problems of suicide. Lifelong struggles with self-esteem and mental health, stress can pay a toll on people as they age. Sometimes the older we live our options seem less. Certainly in our health issues we can face problems that are life-threatening. There is also something that happens to our very minds as we get older like every other part of her body our brains can show where and tear. 

It seems suicide is declining for people who live past 75. This makes sense to me for two reasons: one, if you lived to 75 you were probably healthier to begin with both in the mind and body. And the longer you live the truer that would seem to be. I have read studies from different countries and those who live a long life are going to be people who more likely can handle stress. People who had health problems earlier in their 50s and 60s like heart disease, cancer, and diabetes have a harder time living older and need more medical invention. Two, people who have economic and social stress along with drug abuse and alcohol were themselves at higher risk for suicide. I read a quote that Robin Williams apparently said, "I used to think the worst thing in life was to end up all alone. It’s not. The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel all alone." – Robin Williams No matter what problems you have I believe there's hope if you're willing to want to deal with it.

Like many comedians who say good things, they often have insight into their emotional sides. One of the things that article brought out is our increasing isolation from each other. It's ironic that the very blessing sharing on my blog shows another phenomena of our life on the computer. People spend more time under devices than they do with each other.

I noticed a trend in education. 25 to 30 years ago the teachers lounge, due to having a place for people to smoke, created quite a place for dialogue and debate. At the time I was just a young guy listening to the old sea lions as they bellowed their sage wisdom. For me it was actually informative, funny, entertaining and at least worth three graduate courses of knowledge. When I retired from education, we were healthier because of non-smoking, but the teachers lounge was more isolated with individual groups staying within their little friendships. And as I walked the halls of the school I notice more and more teachers would spend time under computers rather than their comrades of arms. Even when the kids were in the classroom teachers would be on their computers and not engage with their students. To be fair in the good old days teachers may have spent time reading the newspaper or book and not be engage with the students. Different tools with the same problem, people not engaged in a dynamic classroom.

Believe it or not, I would rather bring back the smoking and bull sessions over one's favorite drink then the corporation training that education has become. It is always more refreshing to hear honest opinion than political correctness that bores me to tears.

So Robin Williams makes us more aware of the problem of drugs both prescription and not and alcohol and how that those things hinder dealing with depression. It seems everybody who knew him or had contact with him made a similar observation, “Robin is a class act and often took time to cheer others up,” like Christopher Reeve when he underwent back surgery. Many were asking today, “Why he couldn't get help?” That will always remain to me an unanswered question. Depression will always remain a complicated and painful experience where there are victories and defeats. 

One of the last good points that was pointed out is the fact that baby boomers wanted to deny aging. And when ageing happens, they seem less prepared for that then earlier generations. On one hand we have the AARP ideal of happy sunset experiences. I am actually all for that at least most of my days. But then there's the other side of aging which has its challenges that we have to do our best to cope with. If we can't face our challenges, they may do us in. 

For now what can we learn from our explorations with depression: 

• Put a psychiatric expert on our medical team as we get older. It is always good to be prepared if something does come up.
• Be more aware of drugs and alcohol and how they affect our discernment and mental state. 
• Become more aware of how our mind changes as we get older. Like every other system in the body there's always something. 
• If you have stress in your life, don't deny it, don't do nothing about it. Stress can hurt the body and mind and finding ways to reduce it is always a good idea. 
• Live life, keep developing friends. Remember computers are a thing and a tool, people are the real deal. Give less time to negative people and more time to people that really care about you. And don't forget care about them. 

Keep walking

http://online.wsj.com/articles/robin-williamss-age-group-at-heightened-suicide-risk-1407875597