Preparing to Be – Or to Care For – a Special Needs Senior

A Parking Suns visitor, Elena McDermott, recently sent me a swell list of online resources for people who are senior and disabled – and for their care givers.  Let’s review them one-by-one:

• Transportation Options for Older Adults thoroughly reviews what possibilities are open to you when you can no longer drive a car – and what questions you should consider when seeking out these options.

• Home Modifications and Selling Your Home delves into the issue of making your current home more livable now that you have a disability.  It covers everything from adding grab bars in your bathroom to widening all doorways to accommodate wheelchairs.  Which home modifications increase the resale value, and which modifications hurt it?

• Fall Prevention – no, this is not about delaying autumn and living in an endless summer, although that is a lovely idea!  It’s a National Council on Aging webpage with links to videos and other resources that train senior citizens – and their caregivers – in how to avoid falls, how to get over your fear of falling, and how to build your strength and balance so you’re less likely to fall.

• Assistive Technology Buying Guide gives an extensive overview of products, equipment, and software programs that provide “someone with disabilities or physical limitations the ability to live independently, maintain functions or improve motor functions.”  It reviews everything from walkers and wheelchairs, to electronic devices and computer hardware/software.  And it explains how to save money when you buy these things.

• Home Organization for Newly Disabled Seniors covers all the ways seniors can become disabled (various physical disabilities, mental disabilities, vision loss, hearing loss, chronic pain…) and offers a slew of resources and tips for each category.

• Special Needs Seniors – Planning for Their Future looks at all the legal, medical and financial issues that special needs seniors – and their care givers – will face.  It provides links to government and service organizations that will help you understand and navigate private and public programs to make your life more manageable and less costly.

• Legal Guide for Newly Disabled Seniors:  The title says it all:  “Newly Disabled?  Know Your Rights!”  It covers everything from hooking into Medicaid and Social Security Disability income, to safeguarding your medical rights and finances.

Thank you, Elena, for sending these valuable resources!

From the Parking Suns archives, I’d also like to add the following:

• Button It – This company makes clothing that looks normal but uses cleverly-concealed magnets for buttons – allowing Parkies with shaking hands, as well as other folks who have problems with fine motor skills, to dress themselves in the morning.

• What’s It Like Having Parkinson’s Disease? – This series of simulation exercises, compiled by some of the Official Bloggers for last September’s World Parkinson Congress, will help care givers and family members understand what it’s like to have PD.