Dangers of "Elderspeak"
"The New Old Age" is the name = of a blog appearing in the New York Times written by Jane Gross. Topics covered have ranged from things to know about assisted living to caring for caregivers to geriatric care management.
One particularly interesting article addressed "Elderspeak" - the sometimes insulting & demeaning words used when talking to to or about seniors. Words like "Dear" and "Sweetie". Of course, even words such as Elder, Senior, etc. can inflict unintended wounds when we aren't sensitive to the people we are talking to.
Even "innocent" attempts at warmth might not be perceived that way. Instead, they might suggest that the speaker thinks the senior is incompetent.
Worse yet, was imagining the impact of = being on the receiving end of the question, "Who did you used to be?"I encourage readers to visit the blog at http://newoldage.blogs.nytimes.com/
Comments