Tag Archives: elderly

Alzheimer’s Misconceptions

Posted on June 24, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

Alzheimer’s Disease is the most common form of dementia, responsible for an estimated 60-80% of cases. The range in estimated cases has to do with the difficulty of diagnosis; Alzheimer’s can only be definitively diagnosed by autopsy. There are an … Continue reading →

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Albert Schweitzer on Maturity

Posted on June 18, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

I recently ran across a quote about ‘maturity’ attributed to Albert Schweitzer. As he neared age 70, he reportedly wrote: “The meaning of maturity which we should develop in ourselves is that we should strive always to become simpler, kinder, … Continue reading →

Posted in Psyche | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

The Week Before Dad Left

Posted on June 11, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

Dad went into the memory unit at Christian Rest Home a week ago. A week before that, it didn’t seem that admission was imminent. However, that previous Wednesday, my mom said for the first time, “I can’t do this anymore.” … Continue reading →

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Why Are Boomers Working Longer?

Posted on May 23, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

I recently ran across an interesting article about boomer retirement. The author, James J. Green of Summit Business Media, summarizes a report by the Employee Benefit Research Institute. In 1993, 29.4% of adults 55 and older were in the workforce, a … Continue reading →

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Caring and the Aging Self

Posted on May 15, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

As I’ve written recently, we constantly revise our sense of who we are under the tutelage of life events. I am different today than I was yesterday, though only subtly so, and will be different tomorrow than I am today. … Continue reading →

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Are Your Memories High- or Low-Resolution?

Posted on May 7, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

Here’s a comment that most of us would attribute to an older adult: “I can’t remember what I did yesterday, but I can remember the name of my 4th grade teacher.” We seniors are known for being better at retaining long-term … Continue reading →

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News Flash! Old People Are Invisible!

Posted on April 29, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

In his excellent article in the New Yorker about the rigors and rewards of growing old, Roger Angell, who at age 93 certainly knows something about the subject, describes what it’s like to be treated as if he is irrelevant: … Continue reading →

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How Older Adults React to Adversity

Posted on April 23, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

According to Stoic philosopher Epictetus, “It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” Older adults may have an edge in reacting to adversity in a sanguine manner. At least that’s what a recent study … Continue reading →

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When Older Adults Think of the Dead

Posted on April 1, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

In a recent post about the unprocessed emotions that many older adults accumulate, I quoted a line by 93-year-old essayist Roger Angell to the effect that advanced age provides plenty of opportunities for bad news. Angell also describes his experiences with loss; in this post … Continue reading →

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The Death of a Parent

Posted on February 20, 2014 by Bob Ritzema

In January, the New Yorker website had an excellent (though rather long) article by novelist Mark Slouka on the effect that his father’s death had on him. He describes himself now as “orphaned at fifty-five, nobody’s son, trying to plot … Continue reading →

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