Grandpa and grandaughter sharing a moment
By Boomeryearbook.com
Emotional outbursts occur in every family and not always at the most convenient time. When you have multiple generations living together, the atmosphere can be tense and difficult. Younger members of the family have their own pressures and worries that might take the form of school exams, coping with teenage hormones and the resulting embarrassments such as acne and social shyness. Baby boomer elders could be experiencing elderly problems. There is therefore a boiling pot of emotions to diffuse.
For youngsters, there is nearly always a thread of resentment that an elderly relative is living with the family. At the precise moment when young teenagers want the privacy of the sitting room or the TV room, baby boomer Grandpa shows up and switches channels to watch his baseball game! In tense family situations, small things suddenly become magnified out of proportion and poor Grandpa ends up being verbally abused!
Whenever the very young and the very old need to co-habit there is a clash of tastes and cultures. The older generation are understandably shocked at the kind of music listened to by younger members of the family and stunned by the volume it is played at to achieve a pleasurable listening experience! There is no common ground where such things are concerned and it is best for the generations to admit their differences and walk away. If your home is a cultural battleground, try advising all parties concerned to purchase a set of good quality earphones to live and let live!
The elderly have a different set of difficulties, not the least of which is the loss of independence that necessarily occurs when you move into someone else’s home. The transition from independent home owner to elderly guest can be fraught with emotion. Losing your independence is no fun and residing in a home that is full of the sounds of a boisterous family can be stressful.
For elderly people living with a younger generation, there are practical problems as well as emotional ones. Mobility is not always easy in older age and sometimes the stairs represent a challenge. For younger children, waiting at the top of the stairs for an elderly grandparent can seem like years. Impatience at these times can result in tragedy and it is important that younger people are informed clearly of how to behave with an aging baby boomer relative. Putting other people first can sometimes be novel for very young children but they can surprise you and respond better than older teenagers to baby boomer limitations.
For those who have a large home and the capability of separating the generations physically, life can be easier but for people who have to fit two or three generations into a small space, the difficulties of co-habitation might be a little more pressured. Whatever your situation, the harmony and affection that exists between elderly and younger members of the family are always improved by frequents rests and time spent apart – absence, in these cases, always makes the heart grow fonder!
Family Emotions Under One Roof is part of Boomer Yearbook’s continuing series of baby boomers psychological coaching tips and how to alleviate elderly problems. We believe knowledge is power. We’d love to hear what you think.
Boomer Yearbook is a Social Network and Psychological Articles for Baby Boomers. Connect with old and new friends, or expand your mind and ward off senior moments and elderly problems with dream analysis and online optical illusions and brain games provided by clinical psychologist Dr. Karen Turner. Join other Baby Boomers to stay informed, receive weekly Newsfeeds, and let your opinions be heard. Baby boomers changed the world. We’re not done yet!
Hi
I like your posts and think they are vey useful. Would you be interested in exploring working together. Link exchange? I’m the ceo of Famililink, (www.famililink.com) a company that empowers families to include their aging loved ones in their digital life by offering a friendly accessible website online.
Laura