From the recent article posted on the Pew Internet & American Life Study, older adults are especially enthusiastic using social media today. According to the Pew Internet, social networking use among users ages 50 and older nearly doubled from 22% in April 2009 to 42% in May 2010. Amazing!

“Young adults continue to be the heaviest users of social media, but their growth pales in comparison with recent gains made by older users,” explains Mary Madden, Senior Research Specialist and author of the report. “Email is still the primary way that older users maintain contact with friends, families and colleagues, but many older users now rely on social network platforms to help manage their daily communications.”

Here are two facts:
* One in five (20%) online adults ages 50-64 say they use social networking sites on a typical day, up from 10% one year ago.
* Among adults ages 65 and older, 13% log on to social networking sites on a typical day, compared with just 4% who did so in 2009.

About the Survey
This report is based on the findings of a daily tracking survey on Americans’ use of the Internet.

Read the complete article Older Adults and Social Media by Pew Internet.

Leakage of urine from the bladder, or urinary incontinence (UI), is a far more common condition than is generally realized. Many people suffer in silence, mistakenly thinking that UI is a normal and expected part of aging and that there is little or no treatment available to reduce the leakage. For women, this mistaken belief is often reinforced at the doctor’s office when a small amount of leakage is dismissed as a natural consequence of childbirth or menopause. Nothing could be further from the truth. With current technology and therapies, almost all UI can be effectively managed and even eliminated, regardless of age, menopause status or childbirth.

TIP: If you are not happy with the response you receive from your primary care provider, ask for a referral to a provider that specializes in the treatment of UI. Urologists are trained to manage UI in both men and women while a urogynecologist specializes in the most current treatments and therapies for women.

Read the full article on Incontinence.

We are performing a customer discovery and validation interview with C suite executives and upper management team members on the topic of caring for aging relatives. For the past 4 years, our primary clients have been the working family caregiver who work full time and oversee the care of an aging relative.

We are validating another target market: the C suite executives who may have similar needs but require distinctive services and products. We have some idea of what an executive may require but would like to hear from you directly. What we have learned about executives and their specific concerns when addressing loved ones and their own health concerns are:

1. For busy executives, balancing work with family, a hobby or even regular exercise is difficult at best.
2. When a family member falls ill, any delicate balance is destroyed with the addition of new daily responsibilities.
3. Many feel guilty that they couldn’t do more for their ailing relatives.

If you have an aging relative (i.e. grandparent, parent, etc.) who is experiencing a troubling decline, I would like to meet you personally for 15 minutes over a cup of coffee/glass of tea (or via phone, if we are not in same city) to do a discovery of your needs and validate the market. I know you are busy, so I promise to make it as brief as possible.

If you are not currently dealing with elder care, you may know an executive who is. We would appreciate referrals. Thank you very much.

Much attention via news and articles is given to family caregivers. To say the least, they are stressed for time and staying organized around chores and errands. All family caregivers and those who are working full time have a difficult time managing.

Caregiving takes an emotional and financial toll. According to the National Caregiving Survey, conducted by the National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP almost half of all caregivers have taken time off work. About 14% have taken a leave of absence, and just over 6% had to give up work entirely. Meanwhile, many of them felt guilty that they couldn’t do more for their ailing relatives.

Not to say that caring for relative affects us in a hard way, it’s the executives; CEOs, and upper management teams in the corporations, large and small, that appear to be ignored. Family caregivers and issues that effect us can be the same, but for someone who has the high level business responsibility, along with immediate family concerns can be distracting to the company’s growth and bottom line.

Busy executives, who are balancing work with family responsibilities, and caring for self is difficult, especially if they want to build it in their daily routine. If an aging parent or relative falls ill or requires the executive’s time, that can disrupt her work/life balance to an extreme.

It would be interesting to hear from busy executives how you find balance in busy lives and coordinating the care of an aging relatives. Or if you are not an executive of a company, maybe you know someone dealing with this issue. If so, what do see and can you give some tips or what they may need?

Being around other people, pursuing favorite hobbies or finding new interests are part of a meaningful life.  Our exclusive Celebration Dinner Parties encourage maintaining social ties with family and friends. Click here to read more on Celebration Dinners.

Celebration Dinner Parties give our clients an opportunity to invite friends and family for a delicious 3-course home-cooked meal prepared and served by a Home Care Assistance professional chef.

We do it all so that our clients can enjoy being with family and friends. All they need to do is make a few decisions:

• Select an occasion (birthday, holiday or no occasion)
• The date and time
• The menu (special diet and food restrictions observed)
• Their guest list (we provide invitations to mail)

Read more on helping Mom or Dad living in San Diego celebrate their special occasions -- Celebration Dinners.