Seniors and Medication

I was asked to think about issues that are important for seniors so over the last few days I have come up with a few that perhaps I have not talked about before. The first one is the overprescribing of Medication to seniors.  In many jurisdictions, there is work being done on the issue of medication for seniors in Long Term Care and that is important. There are, however, many seniors who are taking too many medications and they are not in Long Term Care, although if they continue to be overprescribed, they may end up in Long Term Care. In 2018, the Canadian Institute for Health Information found that 2 out of 3 Canadians (66%) over the age of 65 take at least 5 different prescription medications. 1 out of 4 Canadians (27%) over the age of 65 take at least 10 different prescription medications. 

In a report by the BC Care Providers Evidence from numerous studies also shows that many medications prescribed to elderly patients are inappropriate in that they introduce a significant risk for adverse drug events when there is evidence that alternative medicine may be equally or more effective. In primary care, for example, one study notes approximately 1 in 5 prescriptions issued for older adults is inappropriate. (Source: Deprescribing in Clinical Practice: Reducing Polypharmacy in Older Patients Linda Brookes. November 26, 2013. Accessed at: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/814861_2.)

This is important because if seniors are taking too many and inappropriate medications then they will become a burden on the health care system, so an examination of what steps are being taken to wean seniors off drugs would seem in order.

What dream lives on in me?

For as long as a dream lives inside of you, there's a plan for its time in space. A is a cherished hope; ambition; aspiration. A cherished hope of mine and many of you I think is to be able to contribute a sense of legacy including values, principles and ethics to my grandson so that the dignity of the family lives on in future generations.

Being appreciative of those who sought wisdom at the end of their life beyond the accumulation of material things gives me a sense of gratitude for lessons learned from my parents.

Here are five ways you can start living your dream life today so you can pass it on to your children and grandchildren.

·       Get honest about what you want from life.

·       Use the Internet to research your dream.

·       Put a plan together and take the first steps.

·       Ignore self-limiting beliefs and negative people.

·       Choose to live life every day.

Once you commit to living your dreams a new world will be opened to your view. I tell people that opportunity keeps knocking but we don’t hear her until we are ready. Once you commit to your dream you will notice opportunities that have been in your reach all along, ones your conscious mind simply didn’t pay attention to when you saw these opportunities. The fundamental change taking place is your self-identity. Your only limitations are your consciousness, which is quickly expanding. Whatever you want quickly becomes yours because you see what most people don’t.

 A quote by William Hutchison Murray makes a lot of sense for those who are hesitant.

“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation): that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favour all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.”

What is your story?

Stories help you make sense of your life -- but when these narratives are incomplete or misleading, they can keep you stuck instead of providing clarity. How do you break free from the stories you've been telling yourself by becoming your own editor and rewriting your narrative from a different point of view?

Research shows that when we fail to make sense of our past, we find ourselves reliving and recreating it, essentially having old hurts re-emerge over and over again. When we carry around deep wounds, behaviours and beliefs about ourselves from our earliest attachments these unconsciously direct our lives.

So, in approaching retirement you might want to do some self-examination. One approach to self-examination is the “life story” approach. This helps you look backward to learn how the sum total of your past shaped you. If each life event is a star, our life story is the constellation. And if we spent all of our time looking at individual stars through a telescope lens, we couldn’t appreciate the magnitude and beauty of the constellations that dot the sky. To that end, the process of becoming, biographers of our lives is a profoundly powerful approach to better understand who we are, who we are becoming, and who we could be.

Think about your life as if it were a book. Divide that book into chapters that represent the key phases of your life. Within those phases, think of 5–10 specific scenes in your story — high points, low points, turning points, early mem­ories, important childhood events, important adulthood events or any other event you find self-defining. For each, provide an account that is at least one paragraph long:

·       What happened and when? Who was involved?

·       What were you and others thinking and feeling, and why was this event especially important for you?

·       What does this event say about who you are, how you have developed over time or who you might be­come?

·       When you are finished writing your account, take a step back and look at your life story as a whole:

·       What major themes, feelings, or lessons do you see in your story?

·       What does the story of your life say about the kind of person you are and might become?

·       What does your story say about your values, passions, aspirations, fit, patterns, reactions and impact on others?

When you look at the last point, you may find that there is an overarching theme (s) running through them. Identifying such themes can help make sense of seemingly contradictory aspects of ourselves.

Research shows that self-aware people tend to knit more complex narratives of their key life events: they are more likely to describe each event from different perspectives, include multiple explanations, and explore complex and even con­tradictory emotions. In many ways, this complexity is the opposite of the need for absolute truth; instead of searching for simple, generalizable facts, self-aware people appreciate the complicated nature of their life stories. Perhaps, for this reason, complex life stories are associated with continued personal growth and maturity years into the future.

When we’re able to find consistent themes across multiple important events of our lives, we can glean surprising self-insights. Common themes include achievement (i.e., personal success), relationships (i.e., forming and keeping connections with others), and growth (i.e., see­ing life as an opportunity to develop and improve). As a life long learner, I find the theme of redemption interesting. Whereas some people see a pattern of good things turning to bad ones, other people believe that bad things can turn to good.

So, when the time is right for you to write your life story, don’t look at it as a neat, clean Hollywood narrative. Embracing the complexity, the nuances and the contradictions will help you appreciate your inner reality in all its beautiful messiness.

Time passages

In early October, my son had something completely unexpected that occurred to him. Something that shook him to the core.

I’m not going to describe or explain the situation - but I will tell you how I suggested we responded to it.

First, we talked about it and his mom and I did a fantastic job of saying everything he needed to hear at that moment. 

Next, he worked his way through a few cycles of anger, sadness, disbelief, and despair. Everyone grieves at their own time, and he is still going through the cycle and will for a few more days. But each day is getting better.

Then, I suggested he go for a nice long walk. I often find that walking helps to clear my head and refocus my perspective.  He said no, he had other ways of thinking about situations, He took the time to ask what he could learn from the situation I suggested my son find a way not to take it to bed as he would have sleepless nights, but he did not act on that suggestion for a few days, and then he was able to focus on other things and now he is getting a good night’s sleep.

It took a few days but he put together a plan, which he shared with his mom and I. His plan included:

·       What he was going to do to shake off the feeling left by the situation.

·       How he was going to incorporate the lessons that the situation had taught him - what changes was he going to make.

·       How he was going to be on alert over the coming days and weeks for signs of the negativity and doubt creeping back in and what he would do to guard against it.

My son called his trusted friends and told them about the situation and what my plan was to move forward.  His friends listened without judgement.  That’s what great friends are for! Time heals all wounds but when a person suffers a loss you just have to be there for them.