Life Stages

Aging is very complex and highly individualized process which begins at conception and end with death. Variables such as physical or cognitive impairments, socioeconomic aspect, cultural values, and beliefs make an aging process unique to each individual. I interviewed an elderly woman using a set of guided questionnaires on the topic to further explore her aging experience. For the purpose of this assignment, I will refer to the client interviewed as a D.L., a changed name for a reason of privacy and confidentiality. During the interview, we explored a D.L. strategy to stay healthy, significant accomplishments of her life, hobbies and activities, retirement, and finally the goals for the future.

Gerontology as a field of scientific study can be traced back to the late 1800s; a time when research primarily focused on the negative attributes of aging, such as health decline. It wasn 't until the introduction of social gerontology in 1983 that researchers began to more rigorously study the psychological and social aspects of aging. In recognizing that “successful aging depends not just on the prevention of disease and disability, but also on the attainment of peak physical and psychological functioning,” (Quadagno,

When asked about challenges to getting older (2012) Mr. E felt that accepting the challenges and just living the best you can is all you can do. Try to live in peace and love what is on earth. When you think of death you have to accept it. Why fight it you are going in that direction. You have to make a decision.

Life exists in itself - there is no inherent meaning attached to life. However - as all human beings (and animals) wish for

The family developmental and life cycle theory is the studying of families, which include stages that the family move through based on life experiences, that are usually predictable depending on the stage they are in (Kaakinen, Coehlo, Steele, Tabacco, & Hanson, 2015). There are nine tasks that families must accomplish in order for the family to achieve well-being. In this discussion board post, I will be discussing task two, which is financing childbearing and child rearing.

After spending an afternoon interviewing my elderly father-in-law, I gained insight into how he perceives the aging process and the impact on the quality of his life. First, and foremost he viewed aging in a very positive and healthy manner. He believes that a positive attitude assists in accepting physical and psychosocial changes and enjoyed the fact that he and his wife are both physically fit and cognitively alert. He felt confident that advances made in health care and the quality of their lives would continue to be empowering. He enjoys the benefits of being a senior citizen including discounted travel, free education, and other incentives marketed towards seniors. He expressed a sense of well-being with respect to the numerous

But, as philosopher Tom Nagel has argued, this is not the sense of “the meaning of life” people are usually interested in. Suppose an alien species created human life in order to provide them with a future food supply. Then the purpose of human life is to be food for aliens. That would be the meaning of life, if we take

Worldwide, with increase in life expectancy more women and men are experiencing the role of grandparent and length of occupancy in the role is increasing (Armstrong, 2003). However in America, after age 75, about 9 percent have difficulty carrying out activities of daily living (Berk, 2010). When considering the cultural approach of aging in late adulthood, we see that aging adults are treated differently depending on what community or cultural background they originated from. With the increase in life expectancy, many opportunities had been provided to psychologists to conduct research and practice with aging adults (APA, 2003). This has enabled many researchers to study aging in the United States and other countries. With those

Reminiscing to 2010, when I was faced with my grandmother 's illness during the adolescent years in my life I knew that I had a passion to care for the elderly (aging) population. From this passion, it ignited a fire so strong that I pursue my certified nursing assistant certification to gain a better understanding of working with the elderly population. By doing so, it has been a great benefit to my life; aging is an inevitable experience that we all will go through during our life. It is important to ensure that our elderly individuals are still able to enjoy the best quality of life after retirement. However, as we age, there will be a lifestyle change that the aging population must encounter.

Later adulthood is the time in life when changes in marriage, families, and peer relationships are affected the most by the loss of someone close to that person. “Most people 70 years of age or older are widowed, divorced, or single” (Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman, 2010, p.619). Losing a spouse or close friend can create a sense of loneliness, which causes depression, anxiety and the emptiness feeling can become overwhelming. Depression also leads to psychological effects that will deteriorate a person’s health causing the chance for a terminal disease to become much higher. The weaker appearance of older adults causes family and remaining peers to step up in the role of making sure the person’s wellbeing is being met. (Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman, 2010). Living accommodations and healthcare needs

This week’s discussion board focuses on the video, “Living Old”. It reviews the relationships of parents and children as the aging process occurs. The topics discussed were deciding when to stop treatment and end-of-life decision making. These are often difficult conversations to have with our family members. However, I believe it is a conversation that needs to take place before it is too late. (Navasky & O’Conner, 2006)

Getting old and aging are things that have become difficult points for many and despite

When I think of aging if often brings about negative thoughts. Often aging brings about unpleasant health issues such as chronic health issues and mobility issues. It

Due to my four years’ experience working as a Nursing Assistant in a nursing home, inpatient rehabilitation facility and acute care facility, I considered myself to be well knowledgeable about the geriatric population. I was in for quite a surprise, the Older Adult Review allowed me to apply my learning from the textbooks and understand aging from a personal perspective. I have always feared to get older and ultimately dying but Mary helped ease my worries by commenting that although aging is hard and unexpected, one must always remain positive and ultimately thank God for all he has given us (Mary, personal communication, December 2, 2017). Being that Mary was a frequent patient under my care, I also assumed I knew very much about her, however, it was interesting to

Life is actually mesmerizing adventure and actually have no general meaning. Each and every person has their own meaning of life and it is oneself who renders the meaning of one’s life. Life is an opinion. It’s an idea. It begins with the birth of an individual. One day that body will die, but that opinion or idea brought by that individual is immortal. It persists in this world for many years.