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Thu, 21 Aug 2003 13:49:59 -0700

HEALTH TIPS FROM REDFLAGSDAILY.COM, AUGUST 21, 2003

 

 

 

AUGUST 21, 2003

 

REDFLAGSDAILY.COM

 

HEALTH TIPS

 

The other day, I was mulling over one of the lessons that the Big Blackout

provided: that our state of health is increasingly related to the high-tech

world we have created.

 

The stress points in our culture are damaging, particularly to seniors who are

either frail or suffering from an ongoing illness.

 

I’m probably more personally aware of this reality these days because of the

many months I spent battling the medical system so that my ailing mother

received the best care possible.

 

(By the way, for those of you who have written and asked about her recovery from

the complications of heart surgery, she’s doing extremely well. Barbara and I

even took her shopping this week. She just turned 86 and we had a surprise party

for her.)

 

I’m particularly sensitive these days to the plight of elderly people who live

alone or who do not have many family members or friends to look in on them

regularly.

 

As for the effects of the Blackout, we’ll probably discover months from now just

how terrible the ordeal was for many seniors.

 

In today’s news from France, there was another message for us about the crisis

seniors are facing, and I suspect may be facing so much more in the future.

President Jacques Chirac told reporters that probably 10,000 people had died

from heat stroke, with temperatures in that country reaching 104F.

 

And here’s a line from the story that is very troubling:

 

HEALTH WORKERS SAID ONE OF THE REASONS WHY THE DEATH TOLL WAS SO HIGH WAS THAT

FAMILIES ABANDONED THEIR ELDERLY RELATIVES ALONE AT HOME WHILE THEY WENT AWAY

FOR AUGUST VACATIONS.

 

I suspect that many of those who left in search of cooler climes rationalized

that the seniors would be " okay, " not really understanding what additional forms

of support people need when they get into old age.

 

Chirac said the crisis had shed light " on the solitude of many of our aged or

handicapped citizens. " He vaguely promised measures to deal with the situation.

 

Yes, and what about the next " situation? " What will that be like?

 

In the end, all fingers point to friends and family. If they abandon someone or

provide lip service visits and occasional phone calls, then seniors who are ill

and trying to stay at home will have an increasingly difficult time.

 

I’m not about to give you a ten-point plan. You’re smart enough to figure it out

yourself, if you haven’t already. But here’s the really important health tip for

today, the starting point:

 

A LITTLE BIT OF THOUGHT AND THEN SOME ACTION CAN GO A LONG WAY IN HELPING

SOMEONE ALONG IF THEY ARE ILL, PARTICULARLY SOMEONE SENIOR YOU CLAIM TO LOVE.

 

-Nicholas Regush

 

***

 

Notice: Barbara Lewis, your LIFE JOURNEY columnist has recorded two powerful,

inspirational songs resulting from the aftermath of September 11, 2001. While

not exactly your traditional type of health tip, I suggest that listening to

these songs can certainly help bring light into peoples’ lives. They are

particularly helpful to those who find themselves at a " crossroads. " Frankly, I

wonder who doesn’t these days. Listening to these songs is FREE.

 

CROSSROADS