For Many People Senior Retirement Living Will Be A Nightmare

Is their dream of senior retirement living becoming a pipe dream for many people? Are many of the elderly becoming a "forgotten generation"?

Increasingly living out your senior years is taking on some very disturbing aspects. As children relocate to new cities, countries and continents they are leaving behind their elderly parents. Traditionally parents have been revered and cared for. But shifts in populations and breakdowns in traditional family life, compounded by longer life spans have caused a severe dislocation in traditional family life.

In many third world communities, where children have met an early death, often through AIDS, the elderly parents are forced to become the mainstay of society supporting their grandchildren and other orphans. However the world focus is heavily biased towards the plight of children with very little focus on the dire hardships faced by the grandparents.

Families who have emigrated, or moved away looking for better opportunities have in many cases left their parents in old age homes. The stoic nature of this generation of elderly people makes them reluctant to admit that they are depressed and lonely. They are a generation that believes "it's all in your mind" and "you must pull yourself together" and so they try to survive the best way they can. But deep down they feel abandoned.

Their generation would rather keep family matters private. You do not "hang out your dirty washing in public"... so they suffer in silence. Thinking that to publicly discuss these issues would be disloyal and letting the family down. But it is very difficult to accept as without their family they don't have a lot to live for. They miss having their lives being enriched by the emotional support, and experiencing the ups and downs of life, of the younger generation.

Many families are moving because of the opportunities and quality of life offered in other countries. However the relocation of an aged parent is often a major problem as many countries won't easily accept them. They are potentially a financial drain on already limited resources. Countries may require sponsors to have a large financial backing which for families relocating is often not easy. Also there are often minimum residency periods before sponsorship is allowed.

This is a very sad, neglected generation because not only have they lost their family support system and contact they are also battling financially. Many have had their retirement funds trashed by poor money management, stock market crashes and lay-offs. This is now compounded by lower interest rates and rising medical costs and food inflation.

Emigration for job opportunities is a growing trend throughout the world. Taking its toll mainly on parents or grandparents who are left behind. In the worst cases the parents are left without any contact. In other cases the children provide financial support and in others the children provide both financial and moral support.

The older generation is finding it difficult to understand that their place in society is not recognised and that their contribution is not acknowledged. Their old age expectations are not being met.

So for many it will be a case of "grin and bear it" and do whatever you can to lessen the impact of the separation. New technologies, like Skype, are making it possible to maintain cheap contact with families spread out throughout the world. Being able to see and speak to your children and grandchildren can make a big impact.

Senior retirement living is moving into the new age where retirees may have to live out their lives on their own without the day-to-day support of their family. It is up to them to find ways to make the best of a challenging situation.