3 Successful Aging Tips Learned as a Geriatric Medicine Fellow–What the textbooks won’t teach you!
From the Vault of my Facebook Profile:
Damn. I wish I’d kept up with my successful aging tips. I’d have a book by now.
Author: Fat Geriatrician
Mr. Fat Geriatrician
My husband just read the blog for the first time. His feedback: “Sounds like you are a single mom. Why didn’t you mention me?”
So, this post is all about Mr. Fat Geriatrician.
For starters–he isn’t fat and he isn’t a geriatrician (or any other kind of doctor). We’ve been married for 5 years, and he is my favorite person in the entire world.
He is a big part of the reason that I could add the “happier” to my tagline. He has taught me so much about enjoying life.
He has never met a stranger, and his endearing and quirky style causes people to remember him wherever he goes. He doesn’t take himself seriously (or rather takes himself just seriously enough), and he proudly expresses that to the world by wearing Hawaiian shirts almost every day.
He is not only a fabulous partner, but also a wonderful dad. We really are 50/50 in this parenting thing. Watching him toss the kids in the air, make them giggle with delight, and tenderly tuck them into bed makes my heart full.
He is 100% supportive of my career, and I could not do what I do without his love and support at home. He truly is a Super Husband, Super Dad, and Super Man.
I love you, Mr. Fat Geriatrician!
(There, you got your shout-out post, honey!)
No Mommy Work
My heart it broken. This morning my little girl (just barely 2 years old), threw a tantrum. It wasn’t just any tantrum. It was a five minute fit about not wanting me to go to work. “No Mommy Work,” became her mantra. The more she said it, the more I wanted to cry too. I swear her eyes looked like this:
The Mom Guilt is real today.
Luckily, it is a Friday–and it will be a long weekend too. I’m looking forward to spending it all with her and her little brother.
Mornings like today’s leave me questioning life choices.
How do I let my little ones know that I go to work because my job lets me help others in a unique way, and that my job brings me a fulfilling sense of purpose that I wish for them to find one day?
How do I express to someone who still doesn’t quite have the concept of time down that I will be back this afternoon, and then we can play together for 3 days straight?
How do I let them know about the major time investment that I have made in my job? I went to school through the 26th grade (4 years of college, 4 years of medical school, 3 years of residency, 1 year of clinical fellowship, and 2 years of research fellowship) to get this job. And I still owe almost $200k on the student loans that financed that education. It would be a major waste of time, money, and effort for me to just “not work.”
And how do I let them know that despite loving my job, I LOVE them more? When they really need me, I will drop everything to be with them. (I’m grateful for a wonderful family-focused culture in my current job).
While writing this post, I found an children’s book called, “Mommy, Please don’t go to work!” I just ordered it–so I can’t review it here, yet. But I’m hoping it will help me start to explain.
To all of you working mommies out there–especially Dr. Mommies–I salute you!
GWEPs and GACAs are back!
To those of you in the geriatrics community, you are probably also thrilled to hear that GWEPs and GACAs are back!
Learn more here.
RBG Has Fallen
No, I don’t mean in battle; but that might have been poetic, as Kavanaugh’s welcome ceremony happened in her absence later in the day. She fell yesterday evening, and went to the hospital today for treatment of her 3 broken ribs.
As a geriatrician, I have taken care of many older adults who have fallen. I have also given many talks about falls in older adults. I like to start my talks with a list of “Famous Fallers” to show the audience that falls can happen to anyone. So this piece of news jumped out me. I did not want to add this vibrant 85 year old to my list.
Can we take a minute to talk about falls in older adults? They are the #1 leading cause of traumatic death and injury in people over the age of 65. Many fallers never regain their previous level of functioning. Oftentimes falls can be the beginning of a downward spiral of functional loss and dependence.
What is the #1 risk factor for falling? Previous falls.
The AP article I saw about RBG said that she had broken 2 ribs during a fall in 2012. Additionally it mentioned her 2 prior bouts with cancer, a stent placement in 2014, and a bad medication reaction in 2009.
I only hope that she has a good geriatrician looking out for her inside and outside of the hospital. We can’t prevent all falls, but we can help prevent some, and to minimize the functional loss that often accompanies injuries and hospitalizations in older adults.
What do we know about preventing falls in the older adult? Exercise helps. We know RBG does that.
Unfortunately we know that walking programs alone do not help prevent falls (you don’t shift your center of gravity while walking and this skill is needed to help prevent falls).
What else can prevent falls? Home safety checklists can help if they lead to changes in the home environment. Safe footwear can help (slippers tell you just what is going to happen when you wear them). Minimizing medications also helps–especially those that have been linked with falling. And good visual care, especially cataract surgery, can help prevent falls. To learn more see the CDC STEADI campaign.
RBG has taught us so much, including the art of aging well. Let’s hope that she can recover from this fall and get back in fighting form ASAP.
Fat Geriatrician 