reversed roles
Open Communication
How many times have your
grown children offered unsolicited
advice, even with the best of intentions? How did it make you feel?
How did you respond? Open communication with grown children
is essential to building relationships of trust and support, but
sometimes it is hard to hear their
opinions, especially when they are
not in agreement with your own
feelings. Older parents who are
independent and strong-willed in
their golden years may be set in
their own ways and won’t appreciate being told by their children
what to do or what not to do, how
to spend their money, or how to
plan for future living arrangements and end of life issues. However, there comes a time when both
groups must sit down and listen
to each other. If you are the grown
child, perhaps you are wondering if it is time to have “The Talk”
with your aging parents. If you are
the aging parent, maybe it is time
to approach “The Talk” with your
grown children.
Most of the time, intentions
between parent and child are instinctively protective, and motives
are loving and caring. It is worth
remembering that when children
are growing up, it is their parent’s
job to protect them and do what is
in their best interest. Mature aging
changes the dynamics of that relationship with children. As parents
age, it is important that their concerns and desires be heard while
also listening to their children’s
ideas about what can make lifestyles easier or more enjoyable. After all, grown children ultimately
want what is best for their parents,
right? If the lines of communication are kept open, aging parents
can benefit from information being
shared and use it to strengthen
their mutua