Avoiding “The Talk”
Experts Advise: Stop Putting Off “The Talk” with Aging Parents
Home Instead Senior Care of Sacramento Offers Free Resources to Bridge the Communication Gap between Adult Children and their Aging Parents
By Buck Shaw, franchise owner, Home Instead Senior Care
If you’ve avoided the end-of-life discussion with your aging parents, you’re not alone. Approximately 80 million Americans* express discomfort with the topics that arise in these conversations. In a recent survey, only 5 percent of Boomers felt comfortable discussing a wide range of aging topics with their parents. “Needing to leave home” ranked as the most difficult topic (42 percent of Boomers are uncomfortable discussing it with their parents), followed by “loss of driving privileges” (30 percent) and “money/finances” and “health” (11 percent each).
Though difficult, having these conversations in advance is essential – knowing your parents’ wishes ahead of time can save your family years of heartache, bickering, or even legal issues. A recent survey of senior care professionals shows that nearly 70 percent of family disputes over aging and end-of-life issues could have been avoided with prior discussions.** But for over half of Boomers, the path to clear communication with their aging parents is obstructed by issues like continuation of the parent/child role or a parent’s refusal to talk.
The Home Instead Senior Care office serving Sacramento, Auburn and the surrounding areas is committed changing this by helping to facilitate these conversations for area families through the creation of the “40-70 Rule®” program, which encourages adult children approaching 40 to engage in a series of aging and end-of-life discussions before their parents turn 70.
The 40-70 Rule® Program features an Action Plan for Successful Aging, which provides expert advice to help you and your loved ones start the necessary conversations about the future by providing a framework to guide open and honest family discussions about major aging topics like financial choices, health, dating, and end of life.
To learn more about the Action Plan for Successful Aging or The 40-70 Rule, please visit the free support resources available online at www.4070Talk.com for resources including conversation starters, communications tips, and how-to videos. Or, for more information, please call (916) 920-2273 or visit http://www.homeinstead.com/175.
Home Instead, Inc. completed 645 surveys with senior care professionals in North America. Full research executive summary available at 4070Talk.com.
1 Gauging Americans’ Overall Life Satisfaction; survey of 1,224 adults 18 and older by the Marist Institute for Public Opinion
2 Home Instead, Inc. completed 100 interviews with estate planning lawyers.
Category: Blog
