Aging

Date Night Ideas for Older Couples in San Francisco, from the Adventurous Foodies to the Casual Diners

What does the concept of “date night” really come down to? It’s about interrupting your usual routines, so you and your partner can be together in a new way, in a new environment, and reconnect with renewed perspective. For a long time, my spouse and I would go out to dinner and a movie, and it really felt like “going out”—especially when we would hire a babysitter and take an evening away from the kids. Now, with the kids long out of the house, we still do this every few weeks, but it no longer feels special; it has become part of our regular fun routine. What we really need once in awhile is a change of pace and a fresh way of experiencing each other.

Talking to Your Aging Parents’ Doctor: How to Respectfully Advocate for an Older Adult

My mom has always been one to look out for others first. She makes sure that the little kids have plenty of things to do at family gatherings. Since I’m a vegetarian, she acts as my advocate in restaurants—without being asked—making sure I’ll have enough options. It’s not in her nature to focus her attention unconditionally on herself. Just as my mom is a champion for our happiness and well-being, she needs that same kind of faithful advocacy for her own wellness—especially within the medical field where professionals are often making decisions for patients, but perhaps not with the patient’s holistic interests at heart.

The Physical—and Psychological—Effects of Urinary Incontinence on Older Adults

Toward the end of his life, I was talking to my dad about his friend Bob. The two of them had been friends for nearly 70 years and saw each other frequently, but I hadn’t heard about him coming around very much lately. I couldn’t imagine they’d had a falling out, so I asked why we never saw him anymore. My dad explained that although Bob was “pretty healthy for a guy his age” (as if they hadn’t been born a week apart), Bob had issues with his bladder. He had urinary incontinence, and frequently wet himself.

Mourning on Social Media: Living Far Away from Family After a Tragedy

To be able to see someone’s face from across the world is still truly remarkable, and nowhere is this more true than in a state of mourning. It wasn’t very long ago that the idea of video calls in a time of grief was impossible. I think back to when my dad was in the Navy in the early 50s, stationed in Okinawa. One day, he got a letter from home informing him that his oldest sister had died suddenly. She had a heart condition, and because of that she never wed. She was in her early 40s, and had moved past the years of her silent sadness to become a pillar of strength for her family, raising nieces and nephews—and her youngest, rowdiest brother—like her own. But then, her heart quit on her.

A New Kind of Heroism: Join IOA and Dr. Jessica Zitter as We Reimagine Our Approach to End-of-Life Care

Institute on Aging has been looking forward to partnering with Dr. Jessica Zitter to bring into the community her stirring insights and ideas about saving lives and dealing with death. Since we began communicating about the possibilities with her over a year ago, Dr. Zitter’s nationwide influence has greatly amplified as she’s become the trusted voice for the end-of-life-care movement.

Never Too Old to Party: Birthday Girl Maintains Her Zest for Life at 101

Explore Meditation Techniques Offering San Francisco’s Older Adults Opportunities for Renewal This Spring

The experience of rebirth doesn’t come with an age limit. The earth is four and a half billion years old, but every spring it still bursts forth with fresh growth and new life after winter’s challenges and burdens. Your life isn’t simply a straight line that gets longer with each new year; it’s a fascinating collection of cycles. This is evident in the different phases and rites of passage throughout your life—and encapsulated within each new day.

How an End of Life Care Plan Invites Open-Hearted Communication, Honoring Your Loved One and Yourself

“The tide in advance care planning has been moving away from forms and toward discussions,” reflects Dr. Rebecca Sudore, a geriatric specialist at UC San Francisco. After all, it’s impossible to narrow one’s life down to a set of questions on a form.

Caregiver, Care for Thyself: The Physical and Mental Health Effects of Family Caregiving on Older Adults

There is both beauty and tragedy in the fact that, for the most part, we tend to fall in love with people our own age. We have the same social memories, the same cultural touchstones, and often the same general values. And there is something sweet about growing old together, seeing the power of aging in each other’s eyes. The tragedy comes, though, that when one partner most needs help, the other might be suffering as well.

The Last “-Ism”: Author Activist Ashton Applewhite Offers a Radical New Take on Aging and Discrimination

Think of how many movies and TV shows have a joke, or a series of jokes, where an older adult wants to have fun, or swears, or goes out on a date. It’s usually met with a wisecrack putting them back in their place, or even general shock. It’s almost always played for laughs. The implication, of course, is that once you’re older, you should no longer want to have a life the way you once did. That your life, essentially, is closed to new experiences.