Chapter 17

Summary

Chapter 17 is titled “Families in Later Life.” The life expectancy in America is very high, on average, people live to be 78 years old.  There is actually a growing older population and a shrinking younger population. Gerontologists or scientists, who study aging, say that there are now age groups titled the young old, the old old, and the oldest old. In America, women live longer than men, and the gap begins at about age 35 and gets wider the older they get. There are a variety of reasons as to why women live longer than men. Women are more likely to go to doctors, and men are more likely to smoke, drink, and use guns than women are. There are also differences in race when it comes to age in America. One major reason for this is birth rates are higher among minorities.

The term “old” has different meanings in difference societies, depending on the life expectancy in that country. It also depends on the individual’s age; younger people think young-old are old-old. Physical health plays a really important role in later years of life. 43% of those ages 65-74 are in very good or excellent health. Physical decline is normal but there are ways to live longer and keep healthy longer. One can engage in both physical and mental exercise, keep away from smoking, watch what you eat and keep your blood pressure under control, and finally engage in social outings as much as possible. Mental health and happiness are also very important parts of living a long, healthy life. Currently, America’s baby boomer generation are having problems with being happy because of the time they were born in. They have a very pessimistic outlook on life, which makes their lives less healthy. There are two very sad mental disorders that often affect older Americans – dementia and Alzheimer’s. They both affect the memory and mental abilities. A lot of Americans have a fear of aging and look down upon it because our culture is so youth-oriented.

Retirement is happening later in life for most Americans. There are a few different reasons for so, first of all most Americans are working until they die.  Social security and medicare are other reasons for working longer. There are differences in retirement income depending on gender, marital status, social class, and ethnicity. 

Grandparenting is something to look forward to with age. They are typically family mediators and somewhat of a rock for the family. Just as there are different parenting styles, there are also different grandparenting styles. They can be remote, compassionate, involved, authoritative, or cultural transmitters. Some times, when parents are absent, grandparents act as surrogate parents. Custodial grandparents are those who have legal power over their grandchildren. Divorce affects grandparents and their grandchildren when it is the children’s parents getting divorce and when it is the grandparents getting divorced. They have visitation rights, regardless of divorce.

The chapter then goes on to talk about dying and the actual happening of death. Unfortunately, it is an unavoidable part of life at any stage but the most occur among the old. Psychiatrist Elisabth Kubler-Ross said that when realizing death there are five stages; denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Hospice is a place for terminally ill people to go and live out the end of their life. They are taken care of daily by health care professionals. Coping with death is something very serious for the friends and family of the deceased.  The initial state is shock, then they move on to searching for them or feel guilt and other get angry, finally they recover but that can be a lengthy process. 

Caregivers are typically middle age and are taking care of their parents who are older and sick. The recipients of caregiving are typically older than 65 and have some physical, mental, emotional, or memory disorder. Most caregivers are the person’s daughter or daughter-in-law, followed closely by the spouse. There is personal satisfaction in caregiving but it can also at times be painful.

There is competition when it comes to receiving funds to pay for all of their medical expenses.

What I learned:

I thought the different categories for age were interesting. I guess I never thought of the “oldest-old” and the “old-old” as being different. But, I also learned from the chapter that that way of thinking has to do with my age. Younger people tend to think that not so old is really old.

Question for further discussion:

The chapter brought up the controversial topic of assisted suicide. What is your opinion on it? Would you rather be put in a nursing home or put an end to your life?