How to age at home: Episode 34

Fritzi Gros-Daillon will talk about how we can age at home. One of the toughest things to decide about after retirement is where to stay.  You can listen to the show at: http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/how-to-age-at-home Age at Home: Fritzi Gros-Daillon knows how to do it.  She is a former senior move manager and has worked with 1000 families while being a long-distance caregiver for her parents in California. Fritzi founded Household Guardians in 2013 as an age at home consulting firm. Her passion for keeping family members safe in their own home environment for as long as possible has grown from years watching family's struggle to make the best decisions. Her environmental business background, certification as a Certified Aging in Place Specialist (CAPS), Certified Senior Advisor (CSA) and years of experience bring a combination of expertise and perspective to the current aging in place issues. Her book, “Grace and Grit: Insights to Real Life Challenges of Aging for Adult Children and their Parents,”, has won three national awards since publication in June 2014. Fritzi's interview on how to age at home was jam-packed full of information, so I was furiously writing it down. Some great information she gave us: * There are Toilet Paper Holders that can be used as balance bars. They can support 250 pounds of weight and look great. * Call them BALANCE bars, not grab bars. Our aging population doesn’t like these old sounding words. * Easy things to do related to lighting: * LED lighting on railings help. * Toe kicks can help. * Motion sensor lights help to raise our consciousness. * Motion sensor lights help us see where to put our feet and help reduce falls. * Add railings to hallways above the wainscoting. * Look ahead 6 months to see what needs to be done. * Smart soles are shoe inserts that work with an alert system. * Change lighting to reduce glare. * Cover or remove mirrors and reflective surfaces. * Remove family photos and replace them with pictures of flowers and landscaping. * Remove busy patterns on walls floors and furniture. * Use color to differentiate items such as plastic glasses and plates. * Be conscious of odors and sharp sounds. Use lavender, not rosemary. * Install soft background music. These are just a few items.  She has a 240 point assessment that she does to help you age at home. What do you think people should know BEFORE they retire?  An assessment of your home can give you ideas for now and the future; It can increase the “visibility” of your home for all family members. What if someone is “stuck in their retirement?   Stay engaged. Find a place to volunteer or learn a new skill. The experts are looking at this next generation of retirees to provide $2 Trillion of value in expertise to the national economy through volunteering and mentoring..it is a part of the national conversation. Contact information: 800-984-1186 [email protected] www.householdguardians.com To get today's freebie, go to http://RockYourRetirement.com/ALZ