Parentcare: A Commonsense Guide for Adult Children

Abstract

In developed countries, the life cycle has come full circle: children often must assume responsibility for their aging parents. The over-65 segment of our population is growing disproportionately, and this demographic reality requires parentcare of many adult children. Drs Jarvik and Small provide a manual for persons who are helping their parents deal with aging, its illnesses, disruptions, and conflicts. The authors advocate use of their commonsense checklist, a five-step method for resolving problems in areas ranging from such basics as money and sex to the complex issues of housing and retirement. The checklist is a way of reading one's responses to an aging parent's crotchets, recalling what strategies have failed in the past and why, and negotiating successful compromise. Later sections of the book deal with specific matters of great importance. Especially strong is the discussion of ways to address physical and mental disabilities, as well as what should