Senior Approved Services welcomes Gail Goeller, author of 'Coming of Age with Aging Parents' to our Senior Entrepreneurial Group of creative, inventive seniors who have written, invented or started a service that improves the quality of life - of other seniors, their family members and the world in general.
Caring for an aging parent can be a journey of a thousand miles, each one sparking a breakthrough in personal growth and understanding. A navigator's manual for this new rite of passage, Coming of Age with Aging Parents: The Bungles, Battles, and Blessings presents with lightning quick speed and often outrageous candor the gamut of end-of-life issues.
Melding the academic with the "real-life" honesty of the trenches, the author tenders sixty colorful vignettes about aging and the eldercare experience including:
“Rub-a-Dub-Dub, Grandma’s Stuck in the Tub” Letting crisis trigger prevention strategies.
“What Is the IRS Going to Do with an Eighty-Eight-Year Old Man?” Noticing financial red flags
Throw Mama on the Plane Facing caregiver burnout
To Tube or Not to Tube, That Is the Question Making end-of-life decisions under duress
“He Gave Her Mom’s Pearl Pendant?” Coping with elder infatuation
From Civil Disobedience to Assisted Living Assisting in the transition to long-term care
Purging Purgatory Witnessing spiritual questions at the end of life
And regarding “family affairs”
The Birth Order Boogie Recognizing the unfinished business of childhood
Reorganizing the Family Skeleton Closet Exposing family secrets
Ashes to Ashes and Dust to . . . Dumpster Regretting giving up personal needs
“Mom Always Did Like You Best” Integrating favoritism into the mix
Introducing the ABCs of Mortality Detailing end-of-life requests to the next generation
Probing questions follow each story to assist readers reframe events in their own experiences as seniors or caregivers--offering fresh perspectives on this cycle of family life.
A primer and icebreaker for commencing/anticipating parent of spousal care;
A map and reality check for individuals, siblings, partners, and assorted relatives or friends;
A validation for those having completed a caregiving experience.
A bonus feature in the book is an “A+” 50-page Appendix containing a Parent Questionnaire, the basics for holding a Family Meeting, a comprehensive listing of Eldercare Tasks, how to assess Nursing Homes, and more. Also included is an Eldercare Glossary.
'If this book were purchased to simply provide facts and hints about dealing with failing health of parents and what to do, it would be well worth the small price. But the reader also gets a richly painted personal guide on a journey all adults with parents will face one day.
It may cause laughs of recognition and tears of commiseration . . . a great companion to other books that help make this difficult transition from a child to a full-fledged adult easier and less lonely.' Southwest BookViews by Leslie Doran, Spring 2005.
Goeller, age 63, gained her expertise while tending to her aging family of five in Spokane, Washington over the course of 12 years. During this period, she and her husband, John, co-founded the national and Washington state award-winning Directory for Seniors and Their Families, now in its thirteenth year and distributed in the Northwest.
With a Master’s Degree in Applied Behavioral Sciences, Goeller left a 16-year career as a management consultant and speaker to take on this publishing challenge, present seminars on eldercare, and author the book, Coming of Age with Aging Parents. In June 2005, her book was a finalist for the Book of the Year contest/Book Expo America sponsored by ForeWord Magazine and featured in New York City at the Jacob Javits Center.
As a volunteer, Gail has served as President of The Board of Trustees for Hospice of Spokane, board member for the Alzheimer’s Association/Inland Northwest Chapter, chair for Project Joy, a cultural senior outreach program, and writes a quarterly column on aging for the Spokane Journal of Business. Locally and nationally, she speaks and presents seminars on eldercare issues.
The Goellers have two married children (preparing for their own adventure of parent care!) and three grandchildren, living nearby.
Goeller, age 63, gained her expertise while tending to her aging family of five in Spokane, Washington over the course of 12 years. During this period, she and her husband, John, co-founded the national and Washington state award-winning Directory for Seniors and Their Families, now in its thirteenth year and distributed in the Northwest.
