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Articles by Beth Dow
Favorite Things for Seniors this Christmas Season
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care Every year, as the holidays roll around, I start thinking about all the wonderful people in my life who make the season special, especially the seniors who have shared their wisdom, humor and have entrusted us with their care over the years. And every year, I’m reminded that the best gifts aren’t always the fanciest ones. They’re the thoughtful ones, the ones that make life a little easier, warmer or more joyful.
‘Green Light A Vet’ is great way to Salute our Veterans
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care Each November, communities across the country take part in Green Light a Vet — a simple but powerful way to show gratitude to the men and women who have served our nation. The idea is easy: change just one light bulb to green as a symbol of appreciation and support for our veterans. This year, Home Helpers Home Care of Newnan is inviting everyone in Coweta County to join us in “Greening Newnan” for the month of November. Why green?
Senior Living Advice: Halloween can continue to be fun
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care Halloween has always been a time of anticipation, excitement, and maybe a little mischief. But as the decades have passed, the way we celebrate has changed in more ways than we could have imagined. For many seniors, looking back at the Halloweens of their youth is a delightful trip down memory lane – full of homemade costumes, neighborhood traditions and the thrill of a good ghost story.
Senior Living: Lessons From 23 Days, 5 Countries, and Countless Memories
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care We all have those “someday” trips in our heads —you know the ones we imagine saving for retirement, or when our calendars are clear and we can finally take our time. But after spending 23 days bouncing through five countries last month, here’s what I can tell you: someday isn’t promised. And if you wait too long, you might not have the health, the energy, or even the chance to make it happen.
Senior Living: Get Your Aging Groove on with Help from ’70s hits
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL Aging is a lot like a 1970s mixtape: it has high notes, low notes, and occasionally something weird you forgot you liked – looking at you, disco. But guess what? If you’re over 65, you’re not “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” you’re just getting to the good part of the song. So crank up the volume, pull on your bell bottoms (figuratively or literally), and let’s groove our way through aging…with a little help from the hits of the ‘70s.
Senior Living Advice: Short, day-trip options plentiful this summer
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care With the grandkids out of school, summer is a perfect time to get outside and make lifelong memories. It’s also a great excuse to shake off those winter blues and soak up a little vitamin D. We love short day trips that offer a bit of fun, a change of pace, and when it’s just the two of us, some quality time together.
Senior Living Advice: Summer is perfect time to enjoy outdoors, music
Pictured above: Air Supply performs in 2024 at The Fred Amphitheater in Peachtree City. By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care When summer rolls around in all its sunny glory, outdoor concerts pop up everywhere, bringing with them music, laughter, and a whole lot of good vibes. For older adults, these events aren’t just a fun way to spend an evening — they can actually stir up special memories and give the brain a healthy little boost.
Senior Living Advice: Making Memories with your Grandkids
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care I absolutely love spring! There’s just something magical about feeling the warm sunshine again, smelling the fresh blooms, and breathing in that crisp, clean air. The days are longer, my screened-in porch is finally back in use, and best of all – I get to spend more time outside with my grandboys! I have four grandsons — two close by and two in Baton Rouge — and my husband and I are always looking for fun ways to make memories with them.
March Madness: It’s Not Just About Basketball
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care I have to be honest – I’ve never been much of a basketball fan. I might be able to name five NBA teams (including the Atlanta Hawks), and I can probably rattle off even fewer player names. But if I were into basketball, I think I’d prefer college ball. And the one thing I do know about college basketball? March is when it all goes down! As March Madness takes over, fans everywhere are filling out brackets, cheering on their teams, and soaking up the excitement.
Senior Living Advice: Show your heart some love this February
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care February isn’t just about chocolates and roses — it’s also American Heart Month, a time to focus on caring for one of your most vital organs. For adults over 65, heart health becomes even more important as the risk of heart disease increases with age.
Senior Living Advice: Tips on Eliminating Holiday Stress
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care Holiday stress often sneaks up on us when we feel the pressure to live up to expectations — whether it’s from family, friends, or society. The push to create the “perfect” holiday can be overwhelming, especially when we’re hosting gatherings, buying gifts, or just trying to keep up with the festive season. For older adults, this pressure can feel even heavier due to physical limitations, financial concerns, or shifts in family dynamics.
Senior Living Advice: Spotlight on Home Care and its role in senior’s lives
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care Every November, we take a moment to celebrate National Home Care and Hospice Month. It’s a special time to recognize the incredible work of home care and hospice professionals who make a huge difference in people’s lives. This month, I want to shine a spotlight on home care and why it’s so important. Home care is all about bringing health and support services right to a person’s doorstep.
Senior Living: It’s Time to think about Long-Term Care Planning
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care As October rolls in, it brings with it Long-Term Care Planning Month — an important period dedicated to raising awareness about the significance of preparing for future health and wellness needs. This observance serves as a reminder to individuals and families to think proactively about long-term care, which can often be overlooked in the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
Senior Living Advice: Preventing the Phone Call No One Wants to Answer
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care The call came in June. I hung up the phone in disbelief. Our friend was gone. This wasn’t someone who seemed depressed. On the contrary, they appeared to have everything: a wonderful spouse, a new home, a long-awaited retirement. Life was good. Life was just beginning. Or so we thought. I have personally known five people whose lives ended in suicide. I have struggled to understand why someone decides to end their own life.
Senior Living Advice: Caring for elderly parents, grandkids a huge challenge
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care The beginning of the school year is a busy time for any family. It becomes particularly complex if you are currently working, taking care of elderly parents and being expected to help with grandchildren’s school activities and schedules. Juggling multiple schedules and responsibilities can be overwhelming and without proper planning, it’s easy to feel stretched too thin.
Seniors and Retirement: Not everyone retires at 65
By BETH DOW, Senior Living Advice Considering retirement? You might want to think twice. While retirement can seem like a dream, for some seniors, it falls short of expectations. Not everyone is ready to retire at 65. A recent study revealed that 1 in 5 seniors plan to work past 70, and 12% say they never intend to stop working. The reasons for delaying retirement vary. Some need more time to save money, others want to keep their minds sharp, and many value the social interactions work provides.
Senior Living: Vital tips for a safe, enjoyable summer trip
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care As summer arrives, many of us are planning vacations or trips to visit family. Before you set off, it’s crucial to prepare for any unexpected events. Here’s a comprehensive guide to ensure your travel experience is smooth and safe. Always Have a Backup Plan I’m a firm believer in having contingency plans. My husband and I frequently travel to Baton Rouge to see our grandchildren, which involves extensive road time and numerous opportunities for mishaps.
Senior Living Advice: The love, sacrifices and strengths of Moms
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care This will be my fourth Mother’s Day without my mom. Actually a lot longer than that. Mom had Alzheimer’s for over 15 years. Truth be known, I have been mom-less for more like eight years. If you have had a parent or a loved one who has lived with this devastating disease, you understand. Momma was 18 years old when she had my sister. Six years later, I was born. In between momma had four miscarriages.
Senior Living Advice: Understanding signs of Parkinson’s Disease
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care April is Parkinson’s Awareness Month. Close to a million people in the U.S. are presently living with Parkinson’s disease, with the numbers expected to rise to 1.2 million by 2030.The cause is mostly unknown, with only about 10% to 15% being attributed to genetics.There is no cure.
Senior Living Advice: Preventing the dreaded downward spiral
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care We hear the same story often. It starts like this: everything was fine until … and then it just seemed like one thing after another – the downward spiral began. As we age, we all know someone that was doing just fine the last time we saw them, but now due to one event and a sequence of following events, their lives have changed drastically. But is there a way to stop a downward spiral?
National Caregivers Day headlines February calendar
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL The month of February begins with many special days. My favorite, of course, is Groundhog Day … aka my birthday.There are also other notable birthdays this month: Abraham Lincoln, Rosa Parks, Frederick Douglass, Thomas Edison and John Lewis to name a few. February is the month of love where we celebrate our Valentines.
Senior Living Advice: Start 2024 by decluttering your home
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers Home Care A report from 2021 stated that the average American has about 300,000 items in their home!While that is overwhelming, as I look around my home, I’m afraid that is on the low side. Today I sit in my home not only with the items I built a home around, but with items from my grandparents, my parents, my in-laws and my sister.All who passed and whose belongings made their way to my home.
Senior Living Advice: Remembering the best Christmas gifts ever
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL What is the best Christmas gift you have ever received? I remember two gifts from my childhood that stand out. The first was my Chatty Cathy doll. She could talk! (Fun Fact: The first talking doll was given to us by Thomas Edison way back in 1889.) Chatty Cathy was bigger than my other dolls. To a five-year-old girl, she made it so easy to pretend she was real. Even the doll that wet her own diaper could not hold a candle to my Chatty Cathy.
Senior Living Advice: Show Support for Veterans with a Green Light
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL I have mentioned many times that I am a proud Army brat.My daddy and my granddaddy both served in the Army. Fun fact, there was only a 12-year difference between my maternal granddaddy and my daddy. Here’s the backstory. My grandmomma had my mom when she was 15 years old.Granddaddy, who was one year younger than my grandmomma, met and married grandmomma four years later and adopted my mom.
Senior Living Advice: Falls are more commonplace than you think for seniors
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL September is National Fall Prevention Month. So why does the simple act of falling deserve an entire month of attention? Because falling when you are younger than 60 and falling after you are 60, can have two totally different results. Results that could be life altering. Statistics are always changing so I went to the CDC website to get the most up-to-date information to help explain the problem.
Senior Living Advice: Learning lessons from my grandson’s perspective
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL The older I get, the more I let things irritate me. I seem to – more often than not – lose perspective and allow a small thing mess up my entire day … or week. If you watch the news or just scroll through Facebook, I think you will agree that many of us have lost perspective. We let small things and/or maybe not-so-small things, dictate too much of our life, our thoughts and our enjoyment. I recently got a lesson on perspective from my five-year-old grandson.
Senior Living Advice: Caregiving is a challenge but you can successfully do it
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL Most often the role of caregiving is not something that comes to us slowly. It hits us abruptly, after a loved one’s illness, fall or hospital stay. One day your life is full and you have plans for the future and the next day, BAM! Life has taken an unexpected turn. If you have just begun this caregiver journey, you may not know how you are going to do this, especially since your plate is already full.
Senior Living Advice: Understanding, Controlling Elder Financial Abuse
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL Since 2006, June has been recognized as Elder Abuse Awareness Month. One of the most common forms of Elder Abuse is financial abuse.Unfortunately, it is most often committed by people who are the closest to the senior.Family, extended family or a close caretaker commit 62 percent of financial abuse. The people the senior trusts the most – the people no one would expect would harm the senior – are exactly the people doing the harm.
Senior Living Advice: Free Home Care available for Veterans
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL May is Military Appreciation Month. Introduced in May 1999 by Sen. John McCain, this month is set aside to reflect on the sacrifices current and former military personnel have made for each of us. If you are presently in the military, have previously served, or a member of the family of someone serving, I want to say “thank you.” I do know that the freedom I have today is because of you. I am a proud Army Brat. Both my daddy and my granddaddy served in the Army.
Senior Living Advice: Getting older has many little daily surprises
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL I’m getting older… and as they say “that’s better than the alternative.” But I have a little beef with all of those who aged before me. There are a few things that you failed to tell me about that would have been very helpful. Now I knew some things were coming. I saw my grandmamma’s breasts taking up her lap space when she sat down.
Senior Living Advice: An ’80s song that will ‘totally change your life’
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL Written in 1981, a popular song by an English punk rock band The Clash hit the charts a year later. The song was titled “Should I Stay or Should I Go.” It can still be heard today on TV in Levi’s commercials and in the 1980s-themed NETFLIX series Stranger Things. Initially, the song was used in the second episode of Stranger Things in 2016 where the character Jonathan introduces it to his younger brother Will.
Senior Living Advice: Lessons can be learned from Groundhog Day
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL For some of you February means Valentine’s Day. A day of love, chocolate and flowers. But for me, February is all about the Groundhog. I love Groundhog Day. Full disclosure, it is my birthday….but it really is a cool tradition. The first Groundhog Day was in 1887 and has its roots in ancient Christian and German traditions as a way of predicting weather. In Germany, the rodent predictor of choice was a hedgehog.
Senior Living: Jump start 2023 by getting organized
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL January is National Get Organized Month. Getting organized for a single person or a couple in their 70s is different from how a younger person or someone with a family at home gets organized. Not only should you be looking at organization, but you should look at how to organize with safety in mind. Now that all the decorations are up, take a few minutes to get organized for a safer new year.
Senior Living Advice: Getting through the holidays missing loved ones
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL This is not how my December/Christmas column began, but I truly feel that if something is weighing heavily on my heart there is a good chance that someone else is feeling the same weight. So, this holiday season – to everyone who is going through this Christmas without someone they love – I understand. I know how hard it is. I, too, see all the Facebook pictures of the joyous families celebrating.
Senior Living Advice: Holiday trips home can uncover plenty
By BETH DOW, Home Helpers of GA & AL For many of you, this holiday season will mean trips back home to see your aging parents and loved ones. This may be the first “face to face” meeting you have had in a while. While you are there, you may notice changes in them or changes in their living conditions. This may be a good chance to determine if they may need additional help in the home or even if it is safe for them to be living alone at all.
In the garden: The tranquility of solitude
With the COVID-19 lockdown and stay at home orders through most of the Spring, Summer has arrived and it finds America outward bound on footpaths of parks, arboretums and public gardens. Many have even broken ground and started flower and vegetable gardens. Beth Dow’s photo gallery is sympathetic with the urge to get out into a green world and public landscapes. It’s ironic how even the sculptures seem to practice social distancing and how inviting and safe an empty landscape can be.
Chasing Light Through Color: A Conversation with Liz Nielsen
By layering exposures and filtrations of light onto photo paper in the darkroom, artist Liz Nielsen creates innovative dimensions, landscapes and objects seemingly out of thin air. This photogram process – an historical photographic method championed by seminal figures like Anna Atkins and Man Ray – takes on a crucially contemporary perspective in Nielsen’s work. Instead of static scientific documentation, she’s interested in exploring intangible theories of quantum physics and alternative worlds.
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