"Taking care of my dad in my home for the last years of his life was a blessing; giving back to him for taking care of me, if you will."
"I would not have traded those years for anything."
-Linda Z.
"One of the things which I have been most grateful for is the opportunity to care for my aging parents while they lived in their own home. It was difficult, at first, to see how that would be possible with their increased immobility and physical limitations. An extra pair of eyes to identify potential problem areas and the ability to remedy these areas was essential. Unease about the situation turned into peace and generated a confidence that this could be done, keeping intact my parents safety and happiness. My parents were very at peace in their final years, mostly because they did get to live out their days at home. Yes, there will be problems, but solutions can be found."
-Liz G.
“A Pew Research Center survey finds that nearly 79 million adults in the United States, or 31.9 percent of the adult population, live in a “shared household,” meaning one in which two or more adults not intimately attached live in the same home.”
“Older parents moving in with their adult children make up a much larger component of “shared living” than they did a generation ago.”
-American Association of Retired Persons
"Having some time in a rehab facility, all people talked about was going home. Some had been there for a few years, some a few weeks, but all the talk was about home."
“Living with grown children, if necessary, may seem a bit “old-fashioned" to some, but the best. Not that strange, taking care of parents, that once took care of you.”
"My husband and I cared for his mother right in our home when she had Alzheimer's Disease. She required a lot of care toward the end of her life so we were fortunate to have that option. However, it would have been helpful to have had an area to afford her more privacy and to be a little closer to everything she needed. But we were happy to help her in any way we could."
-Mary S.
"I am very glad to have my parents living right next door to me as they have gotten into their elderly years. The convenience of being able to run over so easily to help with whatever they need whenever has been great. My young daughters have also benefited from having that close connection with their grandparents and are learning the value of caring for the elderly."
"I think my father-in-law would have taken me up on my offer to have him live with us in his last years if we had an option of a room connected to our home. Being right inside of our house would have been uncomfortable to him but having a more private place where he would be able to make some of his more basic meals on his own but with the option of having a walkway to our home would have been ideal."
-Richard H.