Stay Connected

A recent study finds that 65 percent of us spend more time with our computer than our significant other. The only surprising thing about that bit of research is that it’s not surprising. We have become an increasingly tech-tied world, and more and more we relate to others by virtue of an electronic device. I’m not saying this is necessarily a bad thing, but if all our connections live in a virtual world, then Houston, we have a problem.

Your Linked in community may number in the thousands, but they can’t compare to the friend next store who you can kvetch with over coffee, or your sister, the first person you call when you have good—or bad—news. Then there’s your girls’ night out pals, spending time with good friends is a sure-fire stress-buster.

Having a circle of family members, friends and co-workers to swap stories with, to lean on and to support, is essential for our mental and physical health. Without those connections, stress wears us down more easily, leaving us more fatigued and vulnerable to illness.

For over two decades study after study has documented the protective effect that strong social ties have against disease. It lowers blood pressure, heart rate, and cholesterol. Those people with few social connections are far more likely to experience poor mental health, poor physical health and to die prematurely.

As we age, strong social ties can also help us maintain an active mind. In a study of more than 2,800 people ages 65 or older, Harvard researchers found that those people with at least five social ties—church groups, social groups, or family and friends—were less likely to suffer cognitive decline than those seniors who didn’t. And people with strong social ties rate themselves as happier, more satisfied and more fulfilled.

The bottom line, good relationships make us healthier, happier, less stressed and that makes us energized. So continue to strengthen the bonds of friendship and take the time to spend time with the people you love. If you don’t have a circle of close friends nearby, then connect with like-minded people through church or civic groups, book clubs or cooking class. And don’t limit connections to the human variety. Animals offer unconditioned love, and an energy that can be contagious. So connect with others. It will protect against sickness and disease, lower stress and increase energy.

By Jonny Bowden, PhD, C.N.S., is the author of The 150 Most Effective Natural Cures on Earth, The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth: The surprising unbiased truth about what you should eat and why, and The 150 Healthiest Meals on Earth. This article is adapted from his latest book, The 150 Most Effective Ways to Boost Your Energy. For more information, visit www.jonnybowden.com

Courtesy: http://www.thirdage.com/mental-health/stay-connected?utm_medium=email&utm_source=nl_tatimes_20090201&utm_campaign=thirdage

106 years old and still in good health

She could be the oldest woman in Ankole region. Her grandchildren call her ‘Wacha Manene’. “The love of God has kept me alive all this time,” Juleina Kyetuuza Nyamushungwa who clocked 106 years says.

On December 28, 2008, a party was held in her honour but she was not able to attend due to her advanced age and she opted to stay at home. She couldn’t even attend the church service.

Born to Martha Bateta and Augustine Ishebakuru in Nyakahanga Village in 1902, Kyetuuza has lived to see her life change from primitive to modern living, from using traditional to modern medicine, from living in grass-thatched huts to storied houses. Her parents were among the first folks of Ankole to embrace the Anglican religion, something that shaped her early life. She lived honestly and eventually served as an evangelist along with her husband Anania Nyamushungwa, a catechist in the Anglican Church of Mujumo in Itojo Sub-county, Rwampara. They were married in 1929 and had eight children, four boys and four girls. Only two are still alive including her third born Jairesi Kitungwa who is 75 years old.

Despite her old age, she suffers no major diseases except loss of hearing. She is still able to see and recognise her relatives. To talk to her, one needs to shout in her right ear. Once she has identified the voice, then you can have a conversation with a lot of shouting though.

Asked how she has been able to live this long, she says she put her trust in God, has always lived positively and that longevity also runs in their family. “I have always been looking to achieving better things in life and I always put trust in God after learning how to read the Bible,” she says. Her name seems to suggest it all.

Her parents could have predicted that she would live this long. Kyetuuza means one that survives for long. It is not surprising that her two siblings, an 83-year-old brother, Misairi Barungira and her sister Elina Kembabi, aged 81 are alive and still strong. “We might have survived this long maybe because of the food we eat. Karo, unpeeled potatoes and beans have been our core foods. Besides, we rarely fall sick like our sister. We do not suffer from malaria and related illnesses,” Kembabi says.

Despite her age, she has not lost her sense of humour and love for her grandchildren. “Iwe Dan, okaburira nkahi, mbwenu wampikire kanyije nkushune rero omanye ngu mukaaka akihurire,” (Dan you have been lost for long. Now that you have come, let me pinch you and you feel me so that you know I am still alive and strong.) she said as she greeted her grandson. She teased and asked him to buy her glasses to regain her sight. “Dan buy me glasses so that I can identify your children properly,” she said with a chuckle at the time I was visiting.

Achievements
Nyamushungwa evangelised her community with her husband and they founded three churches in Rwampara County, including Kikunyu, Karambiro and Ijumo Church of Uganda and promoted education. Each of the churches has a primary school attached to it.

This has had an impact on the level of development in the region. Her siblings and grandchildren still go to the same churches and schools and all are doing well. One of her grandchildren, Daniel Babonereirwe is a banker and currently a senior commercial officer in the Trade and Industry ministry. She was also a traditional birth attendant and a herbalist and saved women’s lives in the years when modern medicine was still scarce with poor road networks in the region. Despite her limited education, she embraced adult literacy and was able to read and write, promoted knitting of sweaters and pottery which earned her some income.

What her family thinks of her

Daniel Babonereirwe Grandson:
She was a strict disciplinarian and did not believe in ‘Spare the rod and spoil the child’. She never pampered her grand and great grandchildren. Instead, she would make us work hard. Some of us are where we are because of her. For that, matter we nicknamed her ‘Wacha Maneno’ because she tolerated no nonsense. In her hey days, she was a dedicated woman with self-esteem, a high sense of morality and very hard working.


Jairesi Kitungwa, daughter:
My mother has lived positively, full of hope that everyday, something good will come out and when things fail to go her way, she does not lose hope. She used to walk me to school in those tough days when there were still wild animals. She would escort me to Bweranyangi Girls Secondary School about 80km from home on foot.

Misairi Barungira, brother:
She has been a generous lady to us, liked gardening and has always been a good preacher. She brought us up as her own children and has always been inspirational in church matters. I am proud of my sister and happy that she has lived this long.

Rev Canon Keith Katakanya:
She has been a committed lady, worked very hard to spread the gospel with her husband and they mentored me into joining the church service. She continued to preach the good news even after the death of her husband in the 90s. It is only age that has halted her from her work.


Source: http://www.monitor.co.ug/artman/publish/coffee-break/106_years_old_and_still_in_good_health_79157.shtml

First National Dementia Strategy - India meeting held in New Delhi

A National Consultative Meeting of experts to develop a National Dementia Strategy was held at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi on 30^th–31^st Jan. 2009. This meeting was organized by Alzheimer’s and Related Disorders Society of India (ARDSI) in association with the Centre for Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences, Jamia Milia Islamia. ARDSI is a national voluntary organization dedicated to the care, support, and research of dementia.

With world’s second largest elderly population, millions of people are affected by Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementias in India . This number shall go up with increasing life expectancy. With the vast changes taking place in our society, like nuclearisation of families, migration of younger people, globalization, changing values have all put tremendous pressure on the care of elderly especially those with chronic conditions such as dementia.

Alzheimer’s Disease is a chronic degenerative disease of the brain which manifests with loss of memory, intellectual decline and often behavioural problems. Despite the large number of affected people, there is gross ignorance and neglect of the disease. Most people with dementia go un-detected. Often there is stigma attached to this condition. In some cases they even undergo abuse. There are hardly any services available for the victims and their care givers.

This meeting was beginning of an exercise that will go on for the next one year to develop a strategy to transform the present situation of neglect and promote good dementia care over the next five years. This consultation shall draw evidence from wide range of reports and stakeholders. All those who are interested in improving the care of dementia victims are invited to give their inputs. Three key themes of this exercise area:

1. Improve awareness about dementia both among general public and health professionals.

2. Encourage early diagnosis for early intervention

3. Improve quality of care of those affected and their care-givers.

This meeting was attended by the Hon. Vice Chancellor, Jamia Millia Islamia, Prof. Mushirul Hasan (as guest of honour), officials from Ministry of Health, Social Justice and Empowerment, ICMR, WHO, Service organizations, professional bodies and chapters of ARDSI. Dr. Vijay Chandra, Mental Health Advisor, WHO SEARO, Dr. A.B. Dey, AIIMS, Dr. Vinod Kumar, Geriatrician, Dr. Bela Shah-DG, ICMR, Dr. Purnima Singh, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Dr. S.P. Agarwal, Secretary General, Indian Red Cross Society, Past Rotary National Director O.P. Vaish, Dr. Mathew Varghese, NIMHANS, Bangalore, Dr. Manoj Jacob ARDSI Cochin, Nilanjana Maulik ARDSI Kolkata chapter, Mr. Mathew Cherian and Mr. M.M. Sabharwal, HelpAge India, Ms. Avantika Gosh, Dr. Suvarna Alladi, NIMS, Hyderabad, Dr. K.S. Anand, are the main resource persons. Sailesh Mishra from Silver Inning Foundation and Mumbai ARDSI was also present for this historic meeting. Meetings is expected to draw experts from across the country, as told by Dr. K. Jacob Roy, National Chairman, ARDSI, Mrs. Nirmala Narula, Vice Chairperson ARDSI, Shri. S.N. Kuckreja, Vice President, New Delhi Chapter, Col. Khanna, Executive Director, Delhi Chapter.

How to Set Up a Caregiving Agreement

More than 50 million family members provide more than $300 billion a year in uncompensated care to family members. Now, with older populations growing rapidly, the need for caregiving is rising, just as a brutal economic downturn is making money increasingly tight. But some family caregivers are being paid for their work, usually by an aging parent. And while authoritative numbers aren't available, family-care attorneys and consultants say they're seeing more families creating such caregiver agreements.

Experts caution that agreements need to be extensively documented and must stand up as arm's length contracts. Furthermore, family members involved in the process need to be sensitive to how the arrangement might affect relationships among family members. Here are five tips from elder care attorney Kerry Peck of Peck Bloom Austriaco & Koenig in Chicago, and Linda Fodrini-Johnson, who provides geriatric-care consulting in the San Francisco Bay Area and is president-elect of the National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers:

Carefully define care needs. "Do a realistic assessment of your older adult," says Peck. "Find out the physician's opinion of whether [their] needs can realistically be met in a home-based setting. In most cases, the answer is a resounding yes." The family needs to lay out very clearly the duties and responsibilities the caregiver will be required to provide, he adds. Doing so solidifies the appropriateness of the agreement for tax and Medicaid-eligibility purposes, and it can also help families avoid communications problems later.

Fodrini-Johnson stresses that agreements need to anticipate future changes in caregiving duties related to the declining health of the person receiving care. No one knows the timing and degree of such declines, she says. Initial caregiving tasks can change drastically in six months or a year. "The older adult should personalize their caregiving agreement," Peck adds. "They should say, 'These are the things I would like for you to do for me; These are the things I would not like you to to do for me.' There should be a lot of detail here that personalizes the agreement beyond what would be involved in just providing care." Examples include hairdresser appointments, cultural activities, shopping trips, medical appointments and other activities.

It's a job; treat it like one. "The best way to do a caregiver agreement is to do a job description," says Fodrini-Johnson. "The new term for our age is transparency, so you want to have transparency" in determining a person's care needs and the specific tasks the caregiver needs to perform, she says. The caregiver's ability, willingness, and time availability for those tasks must be assessed as well. "Does the family member have the skills to do the tasks?" she asks. "Do they know how to give a body bath? To help people take a shower in a restricted space? To prepare food for a diabetic?"

Finally, Fodrini-Johnson says the caregiver needs to schedule time off and identify a qualified replacement that's acceptable to the family member receiving care. Caregiving can be physically and mentally draining, especially when the caregiver lives in the family member's home. "It's burn-out time," she notes, "but if you have a respite and time-out built into the agreement, you're less likely to reach that point."

Make a financial plan. "You want a financial assessment," Peck says. "How significant or modest are the resources of the loved one?...Many of these caregiving agreements are tied in to Medicaid planning...It could be a spend-down scenario [exhausting a person's assets until they qualify for Medicaid support] or could also be used for estate planning." Properly developed caregiving agreements enable compensation payments that do not adversely affect Medicaid eligibility. The payments can also reduce the assets subject to estate taxation of the person receiving care.

"You need to set a salary," Fodrini-Johnson says, and this process should include careful evaluation of prevailing wages for comparable work in the local community. The U.S. Administration on Aging has an elder care locator that can lead you to local agencies and answers to compensation questions. "Whether you use a lump sum or a periodic payment may have to do with the family's comfort level," Peck says. It's important that the money be viewed as compensation and not a gift. "It's more likely to be justifiable if it's a periodic payment than a lump sum," he says, "but a lump sum might more easily quality for Medicaid eligibility."

Put it in writing. "I strongly recommend the contract be in writing," Peck says. "There's no question [that] you need a medical report from the doctor about what needs and medical services need to be provided...This type of contract is typically executed for the lifetime of the adult, so the period of service is indeterminate." Peck and Fodrini-Johnson recommend using an attorney to help with the agreement. The National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys provides an elder law attorney locator. Ms. Fodrini-Johnson's group also has a locator; she says counseling rates are around $100 an hour and that she usually bills a couple hours each week for the period required to develop and implement successful agreements. More extensive involvement occurs in a crisis setting, especially when dealing with dementia. "When you're in the midst of the storm, it's really hard to see the right thing to do." Peck says people should not draft caregiver agreements on their own. "Usually, these agreements are part of estate planning or part of estate and Medicaid planning," he says, adding that flat-fee packages are available.

Talk it over with family members. Paid family caregiving situations can create tension among other family members, including disagreements over how an ailing parent's assets are being used. "I see a lot of children re-doing their homes to accommodate [an aging parent]," Peck says. "This can lead to family friction among children about paying for fixing up the home," as well as fights about the parent's estate when they pass on. Avoiding family friction can be another reason to involve an outside professional who can act as an insulator for family emotions. "The best-case scenarios have another sibling or fiduciary actually writing the checks" to the family caregiver, Fodrini-Johnson says. "Don't forget that when a family does business, things can head south," Peck says. "Everyone needs to know what the future may be like. It's important that everything be spelled out accurately and clearly...so that there isn't any bad blood later. You want to preserve family relationships, and money has a tendency to change those relationships."

Courtesy: http://www.usnews.com/blogs/the-best-life/2009/01/30/how-to-set-up-a-caregiving-agreement.html

Yes I Can! Yes We Can!

Yes We Can! is a wonderfully positive statement that is circling the globe. I've heard it said in Africa, Europe and the U.S. by people from around the world. It brings renewed hope and knowledge that our personal power intensifies multifold when it becomes collective power with others.

As representatives of the older generations of our world, this affirmation is important to each of us. If you fall into thinking that because you are older you have less to give, you are mistaken. On the contrary, we have much more to contribute to our world, based on experience that we have personally and collectively lived.

Individually we have years of growth, development, knowledge, understanding, giving, receiving, learning, interacting, communicating, participating, teaching, sharing, and wisdom. We are influential and powerful role models.

Collectively we represent an unleashed power bringing all of our expertise, talents, experience and knowledge together.

Think about it. We have been the archetects of recent history. It is our history that has brought us to where we are today, both locally and globally. This is true no matter where we live.

And we have not finished. Each day becomes history as it ends and a new day begins. History is constantly in the making and we, the masters, continue to play a significant role.

Our role will become even stronger as the next generations join us at this « master » level. A larger population of people who have lived our history are becoming new masters each day, bringing their unique combination of experience to our pool of wisdom. Society will look to us to guide more and more as ever greater numbers of us remain active and vital to the home, community, nation and world.

This is why the affirmation, Yes We Can, must first become Yes I Can. Each of us must nourish a positive attitude as we move forward into today's history. Let's use our advantage of age!

Yes I Can furthers a personal positive attitude toward age and aging.

When great enough numbers of us embrace this personal positive attitude, it will become the powerful collective attitude of Yes We Can.

Age is no barrier. It is an advantage.

Make your Yes I Can statements powerful.

Nourish your own positive attitude with the exercise below, because
Yes, You Can.

Exercise:

1. Read the following collective positive affirmations out loud.

• Yes I Can contribute my talents in the areas of humanitities, literature, art, politics, music, technologies, sports,
  
• Yes I Can be a potent role model for others of all ages.
  
• Yes I Can leave a significant legacy for generations not yet born.
  
• Yes I Can share wisdom gained from living.
  
• Yes I Can embrace my age and live it fully.
  
• Yes I Can build new meaningful relationships.
  
• Yes I Can stretch my talents to the wider community and the greater world.
  
• Yes I Can be courageous and outrageous.
  
• Yes I Can be an active player in the economy, politics and social platforms of society.
  
• Yes I Can help form the future.
  
• Yes I Can laugh and love with a positive attitude.
  
• Yes I Can influence the history of today.
  
• Yes I Can accept new challenges.
  
• Yes I Can invent new technologies.
  
• Yes I Can create new businesses.
  
• Yes I Can mentor, guide and advise others.
  
• Yes I Can realize new dreams
  
• Yes I Can pave new paths
  
• Yes I can bring perspective and understanding to new situations.
  
• Yes I can keep a positive attitude of gratitude
  

2. Make this list your own. Any statements on the list that you consider to be collective statements, change to Yes We Can.

3. Add your own Yes I Can positive statements. These should be meaningful to you and spark action.

4. Choose the affirmations that seem right for you; not comfortable, but right. They should be statements that make you stretch and grow and that lead to action.

5. Ask yourself how you can begin to act on the affirmation. Just define a first step and the process begins.

6. Repeat these statements to yourself often, because together Yes We Can.

By Bonnie Lou Fatio of Age Esteem

www.ageesteem.com

The Graying of the Great Powers: Demography and Geopolitics in the 21st Century

This book is a publication of the CSIS Global Aging Initiative, explores how population aging and population decline will constrain the ability of the United States and other developed countries to maintain national and global security over the next few decades. It also examines the security implications of emerging demographic trends in different regions of the developing world. While some political scientists and security experts argue that the forces of demography are pushing the world toward greater peace and stability, this study concludes that they pose growing security threats—and that the period of greatest danger lies just over the horizon in the 2020s.

The Graying of the Great Powers offers the first comprehensive assessment of the geopolitical implications of "global aging"—the dramatic transformation in population age structures and growth rates being brought about by falling fertility and rising longevity worldwide. It describes how demographic trends in the developed world will constrain the ability of the United States and its traditional allies to maintain national and global security in the decades ahead. It also explains how dramatic demographic change in the developing world—from resurgent youth bulges in the Islamic world to premature aging in China and population implosion in Russia—will give rise to serious new security threats. While some argue that global aging is pushing the world toward greater peace and prosperity, The Graying of the Great Powers warns that a period of great geopolitical danger looms just over the horizon. Neither the triumph of multilateralism nor democratic capitalism is assured. The demographic trends of the twenty-first century will challenge the geopolitical assumptions of both the left and the right.

Author:Richard Jackson and Neil Howe

Contributors:Rebecca Strauss and Keisuke Nakashima

Publisher:Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)

ISBN Number:978-0-89206-532-5 (pb)

Purchase: http://www.csisbookstore.org/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=199

You know you’re getting older when.......

The perception of time is relative. Children view time in the context of a calendar that is divided into days and subdivided into hourly segments for study, play, meals and sleep.

Adults have complicated schedules that consist of appointments and long- term goals. Time to work and time to do everything else.

When we were kids, time seemed to pass so slowly. We counted the interminably long hours and days of school work between the much-awaited weekends. We looked forward to the summer vacations that seemed to be over as soon as they began.

Fun time was always a blur of images. In contrast, work time was deliberate and focused.

As we grew up and graduated from school, we became preoccupied with jobs, careers, and families. All of a sudden, there is never enough time to do everything. It is an endless race against the clock to meet deadlines.

The passing of time is part of the growing (and the aging process). A few fortunate individuals maintain a youthful attitude and manage to preserve their looks. Others welcome age with grace and look good despite the laugh lines and crow’s feet. Character lines, they say. Some people are in denial and reject any visible signs of ageing.

In the spirit of the lunar New Year, let us note some of the unmistakable signs of age. We assure the reader that, with a dose of humor, one does not get older but will definitely feel better.

You know you’re getting older when:

• You peer at the small print of the newspaper.
• Younger people address you with the respectful "po." Little kids ask you to bless them. People give you their seats in a bus or help you cross the street.
• You keep reminiscing about the "good old days." You enjoy living with your memories instead of planning for the future.
• You enjoy revival hits and bands from the 1950s, ’60s and wear fashions from that era.
• You get confused with the names of nephews, nieces, and grandkids.
• You sleep late and wake up very early (even before the cock crows).
• You cannot remember what you were about to say.
• You read the obit pages and you know people who passed away. You attend more wakes and funerals than baby showers, baptisms, and children’s parties.
• Your grandchild graduates from high school and college. You have a great grandchild.
• You believe all the tall tales and incredible sob stories of young damsels (or DIs) in distress.
• You need a hearing aid, walking stick, nurse.
• You try to recapture your lost youth through much younger partners.
• You pant after climbing a few steps or after dancing for five minutes.
• You become intolerant of many little things...noise, loud music, teenagers.
• You attend ruby and golden jubilee reunions.
• You are a wedding sponsor rather than baptismal godparent.
• You start dyeing your hair to cover the silver and gray strands.
• You switch from tennis to golf. You give up scuba diving.
• You start monitoring your blood pressure, sugar and cholesterol levels and compare these numbers with friends. You start having nips, tucks, and Botox shots.
• You give up the fun and wicked things and start acting conventional and mellow. No more adventures. Just safe activities.
• You start taking the blue diamond-shaped pill and brag about its effects.
• You can whistle and brush your teeth at the same time.
• You fall asleep at a party, at the dining table, or in front of the TV and it is not yet midnight.
• You start smelling like a camphor chest, Old Spice and pomade.
• You give up being a free spirit in favor of a sedate, predictable life. You are more conscious about what you wear, what you eat, and where you go.
• You start your stories with "When I was young.... When I was your age.... During my time...."

Age is really a state of mind. What matters is that the individual (of any age group) enjoys life with a positive vibrant attitude and a healthy lifestyle.

Source: http://www.bworldonline.com/BW012609/content.php?id=145