Life of low-income seniors, Veterans, and disabled Americans living alone is challenging. We want to believe that there are ways to make it more manageable; the truth is, it takes work! Finding community and connection is essential, whether through joining a local senior center or connecting with other seniors online and finding bonafide support services donated or paid for by Medicare.
Seniors should not have to cut costs to pay for necessary and life-saving medications and quality nutritional supplements or resort to unhealthy cheap, processed foods. In today's world, low-income budgeting is nearly impossible across the board; how should seniors stretch their funds? Prioritizing self-care is crucial for maintaining physical and mental health. As a person ages, they become forgetful, anxious, and unsure how to prioritize their needs. There are bad people with worse intentions toward our seniors and disabled population, which adds to their daily strife.
Elder abuse happens in a myriad of ways, for example:
Robocalls to intimidate
Phone scams to gain personal information
Emails with fake accounts and links
In-person by false identities to enter their homes, steal, and hurt them
Unqualified caregivers who entice to have access to their bank accounts
This list is the tip of the sword of what seniors go through when not at least adequately supported by family and agencies they have paid into all their lives.
Who has decided that seniors have no place in this world? Why are they less important as they revert to needing care like a newborn or toddler? It goes full circle; if we care for our young to a certain age, why don't we do better for our seniors as their lives wind down to death? Our aging does not lessen our humanity. We are still worthwhile, needed, and sought for our experiences and family histories. Seniors are extraordinary and precious. Why do they suffer in our country, America?
Although there are resources, which are often buried under mounds of minutia, that convolute the process of finding what they need, seniors want to stay active online, and most still like to use email, even though many still use snail mail, which we find endearing.
Personal Care Calling Services is sharing a few resources for families and those seniors that use the internet to help themselves instead of relinquishing more control to aging.
Find Help Organization
Personal Care Calling Services (Daily reassurance and medication reminder calls, texts, and emails) is a nonprofit organization
Aging in Place Resources
National Council on Aging
AARP Foundation
PACE (Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly)
ElderCare Locator
The National Association of Area Agencies on Aging
The National Institute on Aging (A U.S. Government site)
Meals on Wheels
U.S. Veterans Geriatrics and Extended Care (U.S. Government site)
Home Modifications National Directory for Accessibility (Homemods.org)
Hunger for Seniors, Disabled and Veterans statistics:
Over 9 million seniors starve in the U.S. each day.
(Move for Hunger Senors)
Between 40 -57 million Americans are disabled and cannot afford to eat.
(Move for Hunger Disabled)
Veterans also experience food insecurities, and this should never happen!
(Move for Hunger Veterans)
With the right strategies in place, living comfortably and with peace of mind on a budget for senior living is also possible for our Veterans and disabled Americans. Still, it should be easier to define and bring to fruition.
Please make a difference by choosing a cause and fighting for that cause, sharing it, and holding others accountable to change for the betterment of our Seniors, Veterans, and Disabled Americans. DONATE Today!
Written by Patsy D. Henson - Founder | CEO of Personal Care Calling Services