Preventing Depression in the Elderly

Preventing depression in the elderly individual is closely connected to the symptoms of depression. Recognizing what depression is and what it looks like in an individual will help in preventing it from occurring.

Many symptoms of depression are also seen in disease such as Alzheimer's. What makes them stand out as possible depression symptoms are that they last for more than 2 weeks and are not associated with any other symptom of disease.

The symptoms of elderly depression are:

Irritable or depressed mood

Feeling unworthy or extremely sad

Loss of interest in activities that usually hold their interest

Agitation or expressions of temper

Appetite changes, typically a loss in appetite

Unintentional weight loss or weight gain

Daytime sleepiness

Difficulty falling or staying asleep at night involving multiple waking, or early morning awakenings and then not being able to go back to sleep

Fatigue not associated with a cause (medical, travel, disruptive noise etc.)

Difficulty concentrating on tasks or conversations

Memory loss not associated with disease

Excessive or inappropriate guilt

Unusual or obsessive thoughts of death

Thoughts or talk concerning suicide

Making plans to commit suicide (thoughts, actions or speech)

Recognizing the signs or symptoms of depression is just the first step to preventing depression in the elderly. Making sure that social support networking is in place before depression sets in as well as being a part of treatment for depression is the next step in preventing depression. Support groups can help individuals to deal with loss, life changes and loneliness when these things occur and also to prepare individuals for the likelihood that these events may occur and give them coping skills to learn before they are needed. There will be times though when recognizing the signs or networking for support cannot prevent depression from happening.

A key component to preventing depression in the elderly is to encourage the social support network. The network can consist of many activities such as family gatherings, neighborhood events, and senior activities within the neighborhood. Encourage those activities that are of interest to the person so as to make them feel alive and happy again with their lifestyle. Address each symptom in this manner so that a solution is found either by the person or by those who love and care for the person and can encourage them to do these activities.

Things the individual can do:

Volunteer as a way to meet others, and to give back to your community or to an organization that has perhaps been helpful to you in the past and also to do this to keep your mind sharp. Volunteering will give meaning to your life and a reason to get up and start your day.

If you have experienced a loss (spouse, adult child, and best friend) seek a support group for those with similar experiences for support.

Learn a new hobby or activity that will challenge you.

Take good care of yourself (meals, personal hygiene, and exercise).

Ease yourself into any major changes that you foresee happening in the future (prepare).

Things those who care about the elderly individual can do:

Invite them to social event, family dinners, church or other community event.

Ask to help with housework or to take them shopping and make an afternoon of it by going out to lunch before shopping.

Call them on a regular basis to find out about how their day is going or what they plan on doing over the weekend.

Help Your Parents Prepare for Retirement

Your parents are a couple that have always seemed to have their heads on straight when it comes to finances. When they first retired 7 years ago, everything seemed to be going fine, but lately, you have noticed that their spending habits have changed. They have not been going out to eat as much, they rarely travel anymore, and they seem to be constantly reminding you of the rising cost of gas. How can you help your parents prepare for the rest of their retirement? Let me give you an idea to begin.

Have you ever heard of a reverse mortgage? Well, it is a good possibility that your parents have. They are probably inundated with mailings telling them that they qualify for a reverse mortgage. The only problem - they may not know what that means. In the past, these types of loans have had a bad reputation because of the predatory lending practices of its early stages. Let me tell you a little about modern day reverse mortgages. You have to be 62 or over to qualify. The reverse mortgage takes the equity in the home and gives a portion of that money to the owner. It is much like a home equity loan except there are no payments for the life of the loan. That is correct, I said no payments for the life of the loan. The amount of the proceeds is dependent upon the age of the senior, the value of the home, as well as the location of the home. If there is still a mortgage left on the home, that must be paid from the proceeds of the loan, after which any funds are left for the homeowner. More often than not, paying off the mortgage itself is highly beneficial to the homeowner and can greatly increase their monthly cash income enough for them to live comfortably.

Before a senior can submit an application, they have to attend a counseling session on the ins and outs of the loan. This is completely free to the senior, and is paid for by the federal government. It is completely separate from the lending agency and the originator of the loan. There are no out of pocket costs such as closing costs or attorney fees involved. And because there are not payments to return, there are no credit requirements for reverse mortgages. Essentially, it is free money for your parents' retirement.

Disbursement of the funds can come in a number of ways. They can choose to take the funds in one lump sum of cash up front or they can set up a line of credit to be used as needed. They can also set up a guaranteed monthly tenure payment for life, or they can do a combination of the three. An example of this would be a lady in her eighties that refinanced with a reverse mortgage. She had been doing part time catering to make ends meet, but this opportunity came along and she decided to try it out. She was able to pay off her first mortgage, set up a credit line of $25,000 to draw from at any time, she took $25,000 at closing, and set up a guaranteed tenure payment of $1000 per month for the rest of her life. Of course this is someone with lots of equity in her home, but these numbers or some similar are possible for many seniors today.

If you are concerned about your parents and their financial stability, the reverse mortgage is one way to help your parents prepare for retirement.