Prepare for 90 at 20
There are very few things that humans cannot control, overcome, or at least influence. We can build dams on rivers, create lakes, control, and put out forest fires. We have even found ways of overcoming gravity. However, there is one thing we have not learned to control, and that is time. Even if we could somehow slow the planet’s rotation and add more days to the calendar, it would not change the time that we have to live.
Deny and fight it all you want, but there is no overcoming it, and we all know it’s there and will likely happen before we are ready for it. Preparing for old age before it’s too late strikes home for me. The longer you live, the more people you know who pass away, then before you know it, your parents have become old, and you realize it’s inevitable for you too. Many programs and books help you prepare financially and medically, which is excellent. Unfortunately, there’s not much help concerning the social and the hard decisions that accompany old age or weakness caused by age or disability.
My Experience
I was diagnosed with Duchenne muscular dystrophy when I was four, at which time the doctor informed my parents I might live to be 18. At the time of writing this article, I am four months away from 39. There was not much worry about me outliving my parents. They were in their 40s when I was born, so you can see that they are now what you would call elderly. I’ve been very fortunate to be abnormally healthy. When it began to look like I would outlive my parents, they created a trust to ensure I have their home and meager financial assets on their passing. I am on long-term care, which does not allow me to have more than $2000 in assets. So there are definite steps we had to take.
It sounds like it’s all taken care of, doesn’t it? When my parents created this trust with an attorney, there was no thought given to their eventual failing health. But too late, we recognized we had not prepared for their failing health. We were getting ready to take steps to be ready for the process of aging. In December 2020, both fell, each ending up in a nursing home for over two months. It was glaringly obvious we were not set up for this sudden development. I was taking steps to be in a position to support them and myself but needed another year. Almost four months later, we’re still struggling.
How I Will Help
After going through these difficulties, I realized that I don’t want anyone else to go through this. Having the experience of being unprepared for it to happen to my parents made me realize that I need to start working with people in this area. Not only have I seen it happen to the people I love most, but I have lived it. As a man with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, I understand what it is to lose physical abilities gradually. You may ask if there’s any way to prepare or if there’s any way you can make a plan for old age when you’re 40? The answer is yes, and I will help you at whatever age you are right now.
What I do as a life coach is regardless of what age you are, I help you make a plan to move into old age on your terms well prepared. If you drive, realize someday that old person who should not be driving because they almost ran into you will be you someday unless you plan now. If you start planning at 20 years old, or whatever age you are now, you will be able to quit driving on your terms; anyone who has had to make their parents stop driving those how heart-wrenching it can be. On the fourth Friday of each month at 130 Eastern, I will host a free webinar telling about my experiences and give a few ideas of what you can do to prepare. Should you want to work on it more or do more one-on-one with me as a life coach, you can buy a chosen package. Getting old or becoming feeble is inevitable; It will happen to each of us. But I will guide you in a positive direction to age with integrity and on your terms.
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