Senior Citizen Advice: Tips for Letting Loneliness Go

Senior Citizen Advice: Tips for Letting Loneliness Go

Loneliness is a painful and frightening life experience for senior citizens, especially when it is tied to a death, moving away or divorce.

“Growing old can bring people into the situations that make them feel and live in emotional and social isolation,” said Dr. Jim Wirth, a human development specialist .

According to Wirth, loneliness is different from solitude or depression.

“Some people think social activities can relieve loneliness. Social activities can reduce the sense of loneliness temporarily, but a lonely person needs to have meaningful activities and true friends to care, share and support,” said Wirth.

Wirth offers these suggestions for handling loneliness:

· Form new relationships to repair a sense of emptiness and loneliness.

· Be confident about your ability to deal with loneliness. Remember, if you make some effort, things can become better.

· Spend your energy on friendships, groups and activities you like.

· Build and maintain your social network. Maintain personal contact with people to help you find acceptance and belonging.

· Do things for others. Volunteering to help people or the community will let you feel good about yourself. If there is no volunteer work in your community, get some projects going.

· Work. Do some work every day. Work is a natural antidote to reduce loneliness. Work at home can be joyful, however, work at the workplace can expand opportunities to interact.

· Believe in yourself. Believing in yourself builds your confidence and competency to control your lifestyle.

Hands of an Angel Home Health 

"For Quality Care Let Us Do Our Share"

What Is In-Home Care?

What Is In-Home Care?

What it does
In-home care is the term that broadly defines the various types of care and services delivered by individuals or agencies to those with mobility limitations or other frailties that make it difficult for them to leave home.
In-home care generally includes help from the following:

• Elder companions, who primarily provide friendly companionship and supervision
• Personal care assistants, who help with some chores and daily grooming
• Live-in care providers, who ensure a constant monitoring presence

How it helps
In whatever capacity the extra care is needed -- from periodic social visits to help with daily medication management to around-the-clock monitoring -- in-home care can help accomplish the goal of allowing a person to stay at home rather than move to a facility. For many people, staying at home among their possessions and in a familiar community is a primal urge and plays a big role in assuring a good quality of life.
What it costs
In-home care ranges in cost from free help from volunteers who provide assistance with visits and chores to live-in care that can run several thousand dollars or more a month for constant monitoring.

Contact Hands of an Angel services for Quality in home care
Phone : (239) 295-1233

12557 New Brittany Blvd Suite 3v-5, 

Fort Myers, FL 33907

The Ultimate Guide to Senior Finance: Fiscal Fitness for The Over Fifty Crowd

The Ultimate Guide to Senior Finance Part 1

Benefits and Social Security

Social Security was designed as a “safety net” of sorts. Aside from your personal savings, and an employer pension, Social Security provides you with the money you’ll need during your retirement. This benefit plan reaches nearly every family in America and is a significant source of income for many seniors.

There are about 38 million people who rely on Social Security for at least part of their income, and this number continues to grow as more and more people retire. Understanding how your benefits work will allow you to make the most of it.

More Than Retirement

The most popular view of Social Security is that it is merely retirement income. However, there are actually several types of benefits paid out under the Social Security plan. The program pays benefits for the disabled, pays money to a spouse or child of someone who receives benefits, pays money to a spouse or child of a worker to died, or pays money to a dependent parent of a worker who died.

Because Social Security provides more than just retirement income, you may be eligible for Social Security prior to retirement, depending on your circumstances.

Retirement Income

During your working lifetime, you pay Social Security tax and earn “credits.” As of 2012, you earn 1 credit for every $1,130 you earn. You get a maximum of 4 credits per year. You will generally need 40 credits to be eligible for Social Security. This usually translates into at least 10 years of work.

Choosing when you retire dramatically impacts some of your benefits. If you choose to retire before your full retirement age, for example, you’re retirement benefits paid under the Social Security system will be lower than if you had waited until your full retirement age.

If you were born between 1943 and 1960, for example, your full retirement age would start out at age 66 (if you were born in 1943) and gradually increase to age 67 (if you were born in 1960). If you delay taking benefits beyond your full retirement age, you’ll receive a gradual increase in your benefit amount until you start taking benefits or until you reach age 70, whichever comes first. On the other hand, you can always decide to take your Social Security benefits early. However, if you do, you’re income will be chopped down. At age 62, you may start taking benefits at a reduced rate of 1 percent for each month you start your benefit payment before your full retirement age.

That means that if your full retirement age is 66, and you sign up for Social Security when you’re 62, then you would only receive 75 percent of your full benefit amount.

You may also continue working while receiving benefits. However, if you do, you may receive reduced benefit payments. In general, if you receive benefits before your full retirement age, $1 in benefits will be deducted for each $2 in earnings you have above the annual limit. In 2012, this limit is $14,640.

In the year you reach full retirement age, your benefits are reduced $1 for every $3 your earn over the annual limit. Obviously, working and receiving benefits is possible, but far from idea. You paid in a lot of taxes. Consider holding off on taking benefit payments until you absolutely need them.

Disability Benefits

Social Security pays a disability benefit if you become disabled. This benefit payment is a little different from the private plans you might be used to. If you qualify for benefits under another government or private disability plan doesn’t, you will not necessarily qualify for benefits under Social Security. For example, most companies and government agencies consider a note from your doctor as mostly or totally satisfying the requirements for disability. The Social Security Administration does not consider this an automatic qualification for benefits. If you do become disabled, however, don’t wait to apply. The process may officially take several months, but many people see waiting times of up to a year before benefit payments begin.

Benefits For Family

Your family might be able to receive benefits under Social Security if you’re receiving benefits. For example, your spouse may receive benefits if:

• he is age 62 or older, or
• at any age if she is caring for your child (child must be younger than 16 or disabled)

Your unmarried children can also get benefits if they are:

• under age 18
• between 18 and 19 but enrolled in college as full-time students, or
• 18 or older and disabled (i.e. dependent on you for financial support)

In general, your family members are eligible for up to half of what you receive for retirement or disability up to 150 or 180 percent of your total retirement or disability benefit. The exact maximum benefit depends on various factors including the age you claim retirement benefits and the age of the family member claiming benefits under either the retirement or disability benefit program.

Survivor Benefits

When you die, your family receives survivor benefits. These benefits are like beneficiary payments to your spouse and child under a private retirement plan. Your family can collect benefits if:

• 60 or older and have been married to you for more than 10 years
• 50 or older and disabled(the 10 year requirement still applies)
• any age if she is caring for your child and the child is younger than 16 or disabled

If you are divorced from your spouse, she may still get benefits after you die. In general, your spouse must be:

• 60 or older and have been married to you for more than 10 years
• 50 or older and disabled(the 10 year requirement still applies)
• any age if he is caring for a child who is eligible for benefits and
  • not eligible for an equal or higher benefit
  • not currently married unless she remarried after age 60 (50 if disabled)

Death Benefits

Your beneficiaries are also entitled to a one-time payment of $255 at your death. While this doesn’t pay for much, it is still a benefit payable under the Social Security Benefits program. The payment is normally paid to your spouse or surviving children.

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239-295-1233

The Ultimate Guide to Senior Finance: Fiscal Fitness for The Over Fifty Crowd (part 2)

The Ultimate Guide to Senior Finance: Part 2

Budgeting and Saving

Even the most thrifty people in the world need a budget. As you get older, budgeting becomes increasingly important. In fact, it will often dictate whether you’re able to retire or not. Fortunately, a basic budget is all that’s required to keep tabs on your income and expenses. Once you’ve organized everything through a budget plan, it’s time to revamp your savings to ensure you meet future financial goals.

Outline Your Budget

• Income – Write down all sources of income. If you and your spouse receive income from only one source, this part of the budget will be easy.
• Expenses – Gather up all of your expenses for the year. While many people sit down to think of monthly expenses, remember that some expenses might be paid annually or semi-annually like taxes or insurance, for example. Include every expense that you have for the year. Then, break everything down into monthly amounts, even if you don’t pay certain expenses on a month-by-month basis.

Build Your Budget

List all of your income and expenses. There are two ways to go about doing this:

• Spreadsheets – A basic accounting ledger can work. The only problem is the amount of manual work involved with this method. If you’re comfortable with writing each income and expense item as they happen, just pick up a basic ledger book from an office supply store and use that. If you’re savvy with a computer, use anything from Microsoft’s Excel program, or any of the Excel-like clones on the market. These spreadsheet programs mimic an accounting ledger and will allow you to accomplish the same thing. The difference is that you can automate some aspects of the data entry process and there won’t be any erasure marks in your ledger.
•  Software Programs – Software programs do a lot to automate the budgeting process. If you’re looking for simplicity, this is the way to go. Computers won’t get the math wrong, and will often save you a lot of time in the long run. Generally, you can enter the income or expense item one time and many programs will automate as much of the record keeping process as possible. Variable expenses won’t be automatically accounted for, but that’s because they change each month. Ditto for any variable income you receive.

List all of your income as an “asset” in one column on your ledger (you can also use an entire page devoted to assets/income) and one column or page for expenses. This way, you’re only dealing with one or two pages, at most. Software programs already have a built-in process for this and you’ll have to follow whatever format the software already uses.

Tracking and Updating

When tracking your income and expenses, pay special attention to variability in your budget. For expenses, it may be helpful to build up a cash reserve. This reserve will help to manage that variability and won’t leave you bouncing checks when you need to pay an unexpectedly large expense. Generally, a cash reserve equal to one month’s expenses is sufficient. While there’s no need to track and update your expenses every day, you could do this. Ideally, you would track and update your budget each week to make sure your income and expenses are not veering off-track.

There are a few ways to do this:

The Reconciliation Method – the reconciliation method is one you are probably most familiar with. Every bank in the United States encourages this through the use of “balancing your checkbook.” In effect, you reconcile your expenses after you have spent money. Notations are made in your ledger after each expense. Then, at the end of the week or month, you reconcile those expenses. It’s labor intensive, and it could potentially leave you bouncing checks if you’re living paycheck to paycheck, but it’s an old and trusted method for many folks.

The Envelope Method – The envelope method prevents you from overspending by allocating all of your money to envelopes. Each envelope represents a different expense. Income is generally not tracked using this method, so it’s considered a simple cash flow planning method. Today, various computer software programs eliminate the need for physical envelopes but you could certainly stuff money into an envelope and carry it around with you if you wish.

Determine Savings Goals

Once you have a budget, it’s time to make some savings goals. Don’t go crazy with these. Just start with three to five goals to start. If you can’t think of three, that’s fine. Choose one to start. These goals could be long-term, like retirement planning, or they could be short-term, like a vacation this year. A few things to remember:

Make value-driven goals. Your financial goals should be directly tied into your values. Don’t pursue goals that you think a financial planner would want you to pursue. Also, don’t worry so much about what your neighbor, friends, and family are or aren’t doing. Make goals oriented around things that you really want to do now and into the future. This is the secret to staying motivated through to the end.

Never sacrifice your values. It’s never a good idea to sacrifice something that you really find valuable. For example, many financial advisers might tell you to stop going to the movies on Friday night or to stop going out to Starbucks for coffee every day. If these things are important to you, then you should do them. You should, however, weigh everything you do against your long-term goals. The idea is to not do anything that would sacrifice the “here and now” for the future and vice versa. It’s difficult, but well worth it in the end – you won’t feel like you’re “giving up” anything when saving money.

Don’t try to take on too much at once. You can only focus on so many things at once. If you find yourself saying “I have too much on my plate,” it could be a sign that you’re stretching yourself thin. You can’t possibly save money for every single contingency, and you can’t pursue everything little thing that interests you in the least little bit simply because there are only so many hours in the day. Choose your top values in life to pursue, make a commitment to them, and don’t look back.

Simple Tips and Guidelines For Saving Money and Investing

Some financial advisers suggest that, if you’re in you’re 50 or over, you should be saving at least 20 percent of your income. Much of your savings needs are driven by your financial goals, and what you want to do in the future, however. If you already have $500,000 saved up, and you don’t plan on ever fully retiring, you may need less money that if you only have $50,000 saved up. A good retirement planning calculator will help you determine how much you should be saving.

Investments can be a tricky topic. In general, never use investments that you don’t understand. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t invest in anything if you don’t really understand anything. You should investigate a variety of simple to use investment products (to start out), learn how they work, and then save and invest enough to meet your financial goals. Some good investments to research would be bank CDs, annuities (to guarantee your income when you retire), index mutual funds, precious metal-based investments (if you are worried about inflation of economic uncertainty), and dividend-paying stocks from well-established and financially stable companies. You can find a wealth on information on sites like Investopedia.com and by talking to an experienced financial adviser.

www.hopefulneverhopeless.com

239-295-1233

The Ultimate Guide to Senior Finance: Fiscal Fitness for The Over Fifty Crowd Part 3

The Ultimate Guide to Senior Finance: Part 3

Consumer Protection

Consumer protection is something most people don’t think about. However, the U.S. Government does have special consumer protection laws set in place for people as they get older. Most of these protections are specifically for seniors, but you should know about them even if you haven’t entered your “golden years” just yet.

State Protections Against Abuse

Each state has become part of an initiative to protect seniors from abuse and neglect. As a result, each state lists a hotline number. This hotline number is not for emergencies but rather for ongoing abuse. Abuse can be both physical or mental and includes physical abuse, verbal abuse, sexual abuse, exploitation, neglect, and abandonment. You can report abuse or you can call this number yourself if you think you’ve been a victim of a scam. A report will be taken and someone will follow up with you about your case.

The National Center on Elder Abuse is a federal agency directed by the U.S. Administration on Aging and provides an additional layer of protection at the federal level. The NCEA provides a wealth of resources and information for you and your family to make sure you are never a victim of abuse.

Nursing Home Advocates

You and your family believe that you will be safe in the hands of a qualified skilled nursing facility. However, reports of abuse are commonplace. It’s unfortunate, but some certified nurses assistants and even nurses themselves may not treat you with the full respect that you deserve. Even if they don’t, there’s no excuse for physical or verbal abuse. The state protects you, or your loved ones, if you’re admitted to a facility and are abused by the staff.

Avoiding Scams

Avoiding scams is sometimes as easy as running stopping and thinking about what is being offered. If something sounds too good to be true, it often is. Scams come in all shapes and sizes, but are normally cloaked in promises of high investment returns or offshore tax havens. While these aren’t the only types of scams out there, the common thread running between them is that they promise some secret method of achieving some kind of success that isn’t available to other people. Often, scam artists want you to keep your activities a secret, and they won’t be totally upfront and transparent about how their system, strategy, or offering works.

You should not have to push too hard for answers. The scam artist doesn’t like being pushed for answers, however, and will likely become increasingly evasive about what he’s doing. Don’t settle for partial answers. Always demand full disclosure and regular progress updates and statements (if applicable). Lastly, you should understand the strategy being suggested. If there is any part of an investment, tax, or other financial strategy you don’t understand, don’t do business with the seller of such advice. Move on. You’ll be glad you did.

www.hopefulneverhopeless.com

239-295-1233

10 Essential Health Tips For Seniors

From baby boomers to senior boomers: 10 tips to keep you healthy and fit

The first wave of baby boomers are turning 65 years old this year and becoming "senior boomers" and Medicare-eligible. In fact, more than 10,000 baby boomers a day are now turning 65—that’s one every eight seconds, a pattern expected to continue for the next 19 years.

Happily, aging is different now than it was for our parents and grandparents. Today, there are more people living longer than at any other time in history. In fact, boomers will number 78 million by 2030. “This generation, associated with social change including the civil rights and anti-war movements in the 1960s, has another important cause—staying healthy,” says soon-to-be 65-year-old Arthur Hayward, MD, a geriatrician and clinical lead physician for Kaiser Permanente. “We need to become activists in promoting healthful behaviors and try our best to remain active and healthy the rest of our lives.”

How to do it? Dr. Hayward recommends these 10 easy health tips for seniors to help baby boomers live longer and thrive:

1. Quit smoking. Take this critical step to improve your health and combat aging. Smoking kills by causing cancer, strokes and heart failure. Smoking leads to erectile dysfunction in men due to atherosclerosis and to excessive wrinkling by attacking skin elasticity. Many resources are available to help you quit.
2. Keep active. Do something to keep fit each day—something you enjoy that maintains strength, balance and flexibility and promotes cardiovascular health. Physical activity helps you stay at a healthy weight, prevent or control illness, sleep better, reduce stress, avoid falls and look and feel better, too.
3. Eat well. Combined with physical activity, eating nutritious foods in the right amounts can help keep you healthy. Many illnesses, such as heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and osteoporosis, can be prevented or controlled with dietary changes and exercise. Calcium and vitamin D supplements can help women prevent osteoporosis.
4. Maintain a healthy weight. Extra weight increases your risk for heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. Use the Kaiser Permanente BMI (body mass index) calculator to find out what you should weigh for your height. Get to your healthy weight and stay there by eating right and keeping active. Replace sugary drinks with water—water is calorie free!
5. Prevent falls. We become vulnerable to falls as we age. Prevent falls and injury by removing loose carpet or throw rugs. Keep paths clear of electrical cords and clutter, and use night-lights in hallways and bathrooms. Did you know that people who walk barefoot fall more frequently? Wear shoes with good support to reduce the risk of falling.
6. Stay up-to-date on immunizations and other health screenings. By age 50, women should begin mammography screening for breast cancer. Men can be checked for prostate cancer. Many preventive screenings are available. Those who are new to Medicare are entitled to a “Welcome to Medicare” visit and all Medicare members to an annual wellness visit. Use these visits to discuss which preventative screenings and vaccinations are due.
7. Prevent skin cancer. As we age, our skin grows thinner; it becomes drier and less elastic. Wrinkles appear, and cuts and bruises take longer to heal. Be sure to protect your skin from the sun. Too much sun and ultraviolet rays can cause skin cancer.
8. Get regular dental, vision and hearing checkups. Your teeth and gums will last a lifetime if you care for them properly—that means daily brushing and flossing and getting regular dental checkups. By age 50, most people notice changes to their vision, including a gradual decline in the ability to see small print or focus on close objects. Common eye problems that can impair vision include cataracts and glaucoma. Hearing loss occurs commonly with aging, often due to exposure to loud noise.
9. Manage stress. Try exercise or relaxation techniques—perhaps meditation or yoga—as a means of coping. Make time for friends and social contacts and fun. Successful coping can affect our health and how we feel. Learn the role of positive thinking.
10. Fan the flame. When it comes to sexual intimacy and aging, age is no reason to limit your sexual enjoyment. Learn about physical changes that come with aging and get suggestions to help you adjust to them, if necessary.
    

Hands of an Angel Home health 

 "For Quality Care Let Us Do Our Share"

 (239)295-1233

 

Senior-Proof Your Bathroom 13 Tips for Preventing Falls and Increasing Safety in Your Senior’s Home

Senior-Proof Your Bathroom
13 Tips for Preventing Falls and Increasing Safety in Your Senior’s Home
Senior-Proof Your Bathroom

For many seniors, staying at home is the most economical and desirable living arrangement. But without proper preparation, home can also be surprisingly dangerous. Consider these facts:

6 out of every 10 falls happens at home
1 out of 3 adults over 65 will get injured in fall
Falls are the leading cause of nonfatal and fatal injuries in elderly adults
The good news is that many home injuries are preventable. The bathroom is a great place to start. With hard, slick surfaces that frequently get wet and slippery, bathrooms can be danger zones. A little work, however, goes a long way toward creating a safe, comfortable environment.

Senior-proofing your bathroom: Small projects
These projects and purchases can be completed by most homeowners in a weekend, and make a big difference in your loved one’s safety.

Put non-slip pads or strips on the bathtub or shower floor.
Remove bathmats or area rugs that could cause trips and falls.
Install grab bars and/or safety rails in the bath or shower and near the toilet. Safety bars should be long and wide enough to grasp easily, be covered in a non-slippery grip, and be well-anchored enough to hold an adult’s weight.
Get a toilet safety frame or raised seat to add stability while using the toilet. Two options are molded plastic and the adjustable variety; both will add between 3 and 6 inches to the toilet.
Buy a shower stool, seat, or transfer bench. It should have a rigid seat and back, and rubber tips on the feet to prevent slipping.
Make sure toiletries and supplies are within easy reach.
Set the water heater to 120 degrees or lower to prevent scalding.
Add nightlights or motion lighting to the bathroom to ensure it’s well lit even at night. Think about lighting the path from your loved one’s bedroom to the bathroom, as well. Don’t forget to ensure that any and all light switches are easily accessible.
Senior-proofing your bathroom: Bigger projects
These projects may require professional help, but can also play a big role in making your loved one’s bathroom as safe as possible.

Hang the door so that it opens outwards in case of a fall (if necessary). Remove any door locks.
Install a hand-held shower nozzle, which can be simpler to use while sitting down.
Replace glass shower doors with plastic or shower curtains.
Create a tub cut out. Lower one side of the tub so that it’s easier for seniors to get in and out.
Install a walk-in tub. Updating your bathroom with a complete walk-in tub isn’t cheap, but it is a very effective way to make it easier for seniors to bathe. Expects the cost of the tub and installation to range anywhere from $3000 to $15,000.
Remaining in the home can provide seniors with a strong sense of comfort and confidence. By following the tips listed above, you can help make sure that your loved one stays safe as well as satisfied.