Yvonne Poulin - Aging Safely In Your Home

Aging wont happen to us; we will choose how to age.

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We were almost finished writing this book when Gord saw an elderly woman with an enormous smile. She was using a walker and seemed to be cruising along quite comfortably. She appeared to be aging well and contentedly. I had to laugh when I focused on her T-shirt and read the printed message that seemed a testament to her vibrant outlook on life: I got 99 problems but age aint one of them! At that moment Gord realized that how we age is a choice. We cant stop aging but we can always have a positive attitude about it.

Aging is a fact of life and the smiling lady brought me full circle to why we wanted to write this book. Were both aging and wed like to do it with grace and dignity. We both wish to choose how we age. As 50-somethings, we are considered seniors in many parts of the world. In fact, it was somewhat shocking four years ago when Gord received a seniors discount at a buffet in the state of Washington! Woo-hoo!

We wish to continue our positive approach to aging and we want to inspire other seniors to take an active role in their aging process, despite the fact you may have 99 problems to deal with. Lucky for you, this is a book of solutions. These solutions can help you with aging safely in your home and maybe even put a smile on your face.

From the moment we began this book, we envisioned each chapter as a piece of a puzzle. Some aspects of the puzzle are more important than others. Having the right attitude, keeping fit, and preventing falls are enormously important. Our puzzle has a person in the middle surrounded by his or her home that keeps him or her safe and secure. Anyone whos done a puzzle knows that the joy is in the journey, not the final destination. We hope that our readers will embrace the journey of aging safely because its an ongoing, an evolving, a dynamic, and an ever-changing adventure.

Your physical, social, emotional, mental, and spiritual reality today might not be the same tomorrow. Youll need to keep rearranging the pieces of your puzzle because youll change as you age. Certain pieces of your aging puzzle will need more attention than others, depending on your situation at the time. This book will help you be a person whos safe and secure in your own home.

Each chapter will contribute to helping you make smart and safe choices about how you live and where you live as you age. We have provided some solutions regarding what needs to be done and how to get things done. Were hopeful that the book helps everyone find or create the right environment and home for aging safely.

You will notice that the book is written in two parts: Part 1 discusses the human aspect, and Part 2 discusses the housing aspect. The two sections recommend adaptations that will greatly enhance your ability and suitability to age safely at home. We believe these parts are interconnected to such a degree that they are needed in equal measure for aging safely in your home. The two parts will read slightly differently because they were written by different authors. Aging Safely in Your Home is the combined perspective of an elder-care planner and an architectural technologist.

Yvonne Poulin, as a Registered Massage Therapist and Elder Planning Counsellor, has a wide-ranging, cross-disciplinary education and experience in the human aspect. Her 25 years of clinical experience is reflected in the recommendations she makes for health and wellness, and she refers to the insights gained from her patients and clients who have demonstrated the best ways to deal with aging and disability issues. She is the director of Vancouver Dementia Care Consulting, the company through which this project originated. Yvonne has a personal history of caring for her aging parents who were eventually affected by dementia. She also shares her experience in adapting environments and mind-sets to overcome physical challenges.

Yvonnes voice will guide you through Part 1: Human Aspect of Aging Safely in Your Home Personal Adaptations. Four broad categories will be discussed to enable you to age actively:

1. Physical: Be physically prepared to age safely in your home.

2. Social: Get support and maintain an active social network to help you age safely in your home.

3. Emotional: Plan to stay happily in your home.

4. Mental and spiritual: Keep mentally fit and nourish your spirit.

Gordon Morrison, as an architectural technologist and industrial technology educator, has a wide-ranging, cross-disciplinary education and experience in the housing aspect. He understands the value of a well thought out, well-designed, and well-built home environment. Hes helped many people make home adaptations and renovations for their specific needs, and has worked on many housing improvement projects for seniors so they can age safely and thrive in their homes.

Gordons voice will guide you through Part 2: Housing Aspect of Aging Safely in Your Home. Five broad categories will be discussed to make your home safe and suitable for you as you age:

1. Rate your home: Evaluate whether to stay or move.

2. Make your home comfortable: Create comfort and security.

3. Adapt your home: Make adaptations to simplify your life.

4. Renovate your home: Re-create your home as you age.

5. Prevent falls: Recognize problems and find solutions.

The two parts of this book have been written knowing that the overwhelming majority of seniors prefer to remain at home and in their familiar neighborhoods. Unfortunately, many seniors are forced to leave their homes prematurely due to falls and other factors. These unwanted situations could be either prevented or delayed through personal and home adaptations that would enable them to stay healthy and well in their current homes. The main intent of this book is to help people stay in their home as long as possible. A secondary intent is to help guide seniors, caregivers, friends, and family toward knowing when staying in the home is not the best or safest choice. Knowing when things are unmanageable is important and this book will help you assess that.

The World Health Organization defines good health as a state of complete physical, social and mental well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. Based on this definition of good health, we believe that a holistic approach is imperative. This book is more than a manual about home adaptations; its about informing seniors of the various factors that affect their ability to age safely at home. We directly address the barriers to aging well: Physical (including the dwelling), social, mental, emotional, and spiritual isolation.

We should point out that this book has been written for seniors who are experiencing normal aging. There are many complicating factors and situations that are caused by illness or disease. They bring into the picture some special considerations that must be addressed on a case-by-case basis, preferably under the care of medical experts and care-support experts.

We are trying to point you in the right direction to get the kinds of personal and housing adaptations that will empower you to age safely in your home. This book is not a construction manual for retro-fitting your home. We do not endorse any products or services. We are simply trying to help you put the pieces of the puzzle together and help you to understand the kinds of changes that will help you as you age.