Blog Post: Our Aging Parents

My mom is 90, and she's at an acute rehab center in Lomita with three compression fractures in her T-7.

This situation is very stressful, depressing and frustrating.

I know that my sister and I are not alone in this drama, but it feels as if we are. It seems that we have to reinvent the wheel on the transition of independant parents, to elderly, suddenly helpless aging parents in need. Many families must face this dilemma of how to deal with mom, dad or both when inevitably the final fall that eliminates independence happens.

This scenario must be repeated 100 times a day, and yet to find the information for the next phase of our parents lives is so difficult to come by. You would think it would be easy you; one would think the systems would be in place to help the families through these difficult processes, but alas, it is not.

Luckily our mom is at The Lomita Care Center. She was transferred from Sherman Oaks hospital via ambulance to Lomita and from the moment she arrived the staff was kind, warm, loving and wonderful it's been a very difficult transition.

When you have loved ones that are placed in a transitional situation and where they are so far removed from what they're accustomed to the elderly become very prone to stress. So do the adult children!

Many people are in the same situation. It's not surprising—it's the natural progression of life to get older and then to become less independent.

I have to say that I don't know what I do if I didn't have my sister to go through this process with. I feel very sorry for only-children when it comes time to deal with elderly parents when you don't have a sibling to turn to, to share in this emotional journey.

My sister and I don't spend as much time together as we'd like. We live in the same area, 40 minutes apart; however, our lives are different, and we're so busy.

When our father passed away and during the process leading up to his death, my sister and I spent a great deal of time together in Maine. As odd as it might sound, and as depressing and sad as the situation was, the time spent together was so memorable. We bonded, we laughed through the tears. Even during the most excrutiating moments, we survived because we were together.

Our paths converge for large blocks of time when we're dealing with our elderly parents and now it's moms time. Mom's journey.

I want to say thank you to my sister. Thank you for always being there, thank you for being my support I hope that I offer you the same.

We'll get through this sis, and everyone else out there who is going through this process, you'll get through it to somehow, someway. There is light at the other end and life's continuum continues.