I �d only like to add that many old people opt for retirement homes because - it�s nice to be with others that have lived through the same things as you and can relate to them. Family can�t. It�s as simple as this sometimes. We forget that our parents had a whole other life before us and we can�t relate to what they lived through - and - what they are living through at the moment.

 

Family is nice - but family can also be stifling and an old person often feels like their freedom has been taken away and now they are a) babysitters or house maids - or b) somebody that is now "useless" because everybody has a "life" and they are now depending on others to look after them. I am sure there are wonderful families out there but we often forget that our parents were once young, they experienced things that we will never experience and when they talk to us, it �s not the same as chatting with someone who has...

 

Think about our profession - isn�t it nice to talk to other teachers that understand us??? I often rant to my mom about my day and she listens and agrees, but my boyfriend is also a teacher and he totally gets why I am upset... it�s so different and nice. So I get why old people like these places, it�s full of people that have lived. People that understand them, people who have their same problems, people they can relate to...

 

People should be with people their own age... i.e. children need other children to play with to grow, teenagers the same... adults need to be with adults... and old people need to be with people "who get them"... or in other words, other "old" people (btw, my mom would kill me if she saw me calling her old  ) ....

 

Anyways, sorry for the long post but I just wanted to say that when a parent wants to go to a retirement home, it might possibly be for a good reason and we should respect them - they are adults too and have lived longer than we have...