Page 16 - Growing Old Without a Plan for Long Term Care is not for Sissies_Neat

viii Growing Old Without a Plan for Long Term Care is not for Sissies the possibility doesn’t exist. We would prefer to believe we will be able to care for ourselves well into old age and die peacefully in our own beds when the time is just right. Modern medical science does a great job of providing us with the possibility of a longer life. But that also means that we are more likely to live to an age where our body and/or mind seem to betray us and make it impossible for us to care for ourselves. Ultimately we can’t control how the process of aging will affect us. However we can create a plan to make it easier on ourselves and those who love us should the time come that we can no longer take care of ourselves. When you’ve fnished this book, you will know how to reduce the emotional, physical and fnancial strain on those you love should you need extended care. You will also be able to take some of the “Will I have enough?” worry out of your retirement planning. So, where do you begin? First, you need to set aside some time to read the rest of this book, perhaps about an hour or two. Then, if you are married or have a partner, you need to convince him or her to read it. For some of you, that may be the toughest thing you will do in this process. If that’s the case, go ahead and pull out the bag of tricks you usually use to get them to do something they really don’t want to do. It’s that important. The next step is to fnd a qualifed Long Term Care Planning Advisor to help you develop your plan. Don’t worry, I’ll help you fnd one. Look for my recommendations later in the book. Finally, and most importantly, you need to create a plan for long term care that is right for you. This is both the most diffcult and the easiest step. It’s the most diffcult because this is a big decision and