Staying Power: Age-Proof Your Home for Comfort, Safety and Style

This is a very valuable book for people like me, in my 70's and planning to continue to live at home. It's also valuable for the grown children of older people. It alerts them to signs that parents need help and tactfully suggests how to do some needed interventions. I like that each chapter discusses the impairments people may become subject to and then goes on to recommend ways to avoid or ameliorate problems. Since there are so many ideas (22 pages on falls alone) I appreciated that at the end of each chapter there are lists of things to do and resources, so one does not have to go back and skim through the chapter to get the desired information. In addition, there's a very fine list of resources such as government agencies, specialized books, and places to buy equipment at the end of the book The book has some of the information we've read about, but much much more. Who knew that fires are the second leading cause of injuries to older people? I've started to implement some of the suggestions for keeping to my medicine schedule, and will certainly implement other things as I go along. Definitely a book to buy and keep handy!!!!

This book was in my handbag on a cross country flight from San Francisco to New York--where I headed to visit my Dad, being treated for cancer and my Mom, who is caring for him.

Both of my parents are in their eighties and live independently in a two story colonial home--I am 55.

This book is written in a friendly, common sense tone. I knew that I had come to the right place when I read in the introduction that the book would focus on "things you can do relatively quickly without superior strength or elaborate tools."

And so it does. Upon arrival at my parent's home, I immediately took stock of Rachel's Top Tips for A Stable Home (page 65), investigating tripping hazards, talking to my folks about safer footwear, (I ordered socks with traction features on the bottom, a.k.a. hospital socks) and making sure that furniture that my Dad might hold on to for support on his way to the bathroom in the middle of the night was "strong and stable."

Mind you, not every suggestion that I made was met with delight, but author Adelson offers a list of books that can help adult kids communicate with their older parents who may be resistant to change.

The list of resources and recommended reading at the back of the book also helped to get me in touch with the National Association of Geriatric Care Managers--private health and human service specialists who help families care for older relatives.

The section, Bits and Pieces--Working Out Wherever--offered helpful exercise tips for the entire family.

I especially liked the encouraging tip, "if it is not possible to do what was done before, celebrate and develop what can be done now." That is a lesson for all of us over fifty!

You can read this book all at one time, as I did on my five hour flight. Or you can dip into it as needed for advice from Adelson, a journalist with graduate certificates in aging and public health, who offers personal anecdotes, as well.

Highly recommended--in print and Kindle editions--where you can adjust the type size for easier reading!

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This is a great book for anyone who is aging, has a loved one who is aging, or expects some day to be aging him/herself! It is full of practical tips to help people stay in their homes comfortably for as long as possible. While there are tips in areas you might expect, such as accessibility and safety, you will also find information on less expected topics, for example, how to promote good nutrition in spite of a declining sense of taste. Best of all, the book is readable and even amusing at times. It is an invaluable handbook in this era of aging boomers. Highly recommended.

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