So here we are at the end of another busy week! In the UK the heatwave has finally broken this past couple of weeks, which is a relief to us all. August is flying by and I’m sure for some folks they can’t wait for the School Holidays to be over, to get some normality back into life! It can be tricky trying to balance childcare responsibilities, with caring for loved ones who are struggling physically or mentally.
What have you all been up to this week? If you have any news, good or not-so-good, do feel free to share with us.
A new member this week raised an important issue of loneliness among the elderly. They may be receiving all sorts of practical help, and generally be okay, but one thing that is endemic is that pervading sense of loneliness, once a life partner has died, or you’ve lost family members or friends and lose social connectedness. When health deteriorates and you find yourself housebound, it can be very difficult to cope with feeling cut off from humanity, alone with your thoughts, unable to get out to socialise, just needing to have someone to talk too.
Esther Rantzen CBE experienced this when her she lost her husband. Although still able to be active during the daytime and week, it was the evenings and weekends that emphasised her loneliness. Esther wrote about her experiences in the media and was inundated with letters from folks who were experiencing the loss and loneliness. This spurred her on to found, The Silver Line UK Charity: thesilverline.org.uk/who-we... providing a 24hr Freephone confidential helpline for older people to call and talk about anything, just to hear another voice, to have someone befriend them. I think whether you are an older person or not, loneliness resonates with all of us at some point in our lives.
As carers, hopefully, you find by engaging with this community that you are not walking the caring walk alone. As this quote says, “People don’t always need advice. Sometimes all they really need is a hand to hold, an ear to listen, and a heart to understand them.”(Unknown author). If your loved ones are struggling with feelings of loneliness, give them the helpline number above or see if there is a befriending service nearby. If you are not in the UK, see what is available locally or nationally to you.
Hope you have a good weekend!
Take care.
Best wishes,
MAS Nurse
Written by
MAS_Nurse
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Hello, had a good week although Petes in lots of pain with his back. We do what we can and just go out fairly locally at the moment. It’s hard seeing a loved one in pain especially one that feels there is little hope of ever feeling better.
I remember the post about loneliness and mentioned the silver line to that person. It seems like a really good place to start.
Have a great weekend everyone and hope its fine for those who have plans. Xxxxx
Hi Mas_Nurse,
A happy Friday and weekend to you, and thanks for raising the issue of loneliness which is one of the worst epidemics of our time. There is no longer the sort of extended family we used to have around us, and there's no doubt that loneliness is a killer. No-one deserves to spend the last of their days alone, scared and in silence. What Esther Rantzen has done, both for children and for the elderly, is wonderful and I hope that the funding issues Silver Line has been experiencing, have been overcome.
I had a most odd week. I spent some of it in a themed house in Brighton, which caters for fans of Alice in Wonderland. My granddaughter has been a lifelong fan of all things Alice and her mum, (my daughter), arranged a gathering for her to celebrate becoming 21.
So a large group of us found ourselves staying in rooms devoted to aspects of the Alice in Wonderland story; myself in the Mirror Mirror room which was great fun.
On day two we gathered together for a birthday tea with champagne and silly hats and costumes and had a lovely time. If someone had told me when I was 7 I'd be doing this when I was 70, I'd have laughed in disbelief.
What huge differences there are in life between my being 7 in the 1950s, and now. Austerity then, just after WW2 was real austerity. Some things I'd still like to escape back to, like family and friends being more connected, but for novelty and a more colourful sort of life, I'd probably choose here and now.
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Feel good Friday in the snow