One of the biggest issues facing baby boomers today is caring for their elderly parents. One in four boomers has quit their job or reduced hours to accommodate caring for their parents. Countless others worry and attempt to manage support without jeopardizing their current employment.

Due to longevity, this issue will continue, as the over 85?s continue to be the fastest growing population. Unfortunately, there is no quick fix for this complex situation. Here are some not so obvious suggestions, learned through years of experience as an occupational therapist working with the elderly.

1.Communicate, communicate, and communicate! Make a point to have regular conversations that allow you to keep a finger on the pulse. Ask open ended questions and listen. Listen ?for? what is happening and how they see their world.

2.Acknowledge strengths vs. weaknesses. Don?t necessarily look for what they are unable to do but see the strengths that allow them to adapt.

3.Understand perception is everything! How your parents ?see? their situation is the starting point. People act on their beliefs. If they believe they are unsafe, then address how to help them. If you feel they are unrealistic, be patient in your approach.

4.Encourage safe physical activity. Walking is great but only with good footwear and path that is free from uneven surfaces and other hazards.

5.Discourage watching too much TV. Studies show that engaging in activities that called for thinking was linked to a reduction in dementia. Cross word puzzles, board games, and dancing are ways to use it or lose it.

6.Encourage social involvement. Studies show that social activities are linked to longevity and health in elders. In fact, socialization is more important than exercise and diet in terms of our living longer.

7.Look at lighting in the home and entry ways. Glare as well as well as too little lighting is precursors to falls. Talk to your parents about this issue as many are concerned about lighting costs of hi-wattage bulbs. Bed side touch lighting is great for getting up in the night.

8.Have a disaster plan. Walk through various situations of safety that ?might? happen and work through a plan of dealing with it. Studies show that knowing what do to empowers elders to feel they can handle a situation instead of living in fear. ?What would you do if you fell and could not get up?, for example.

9.Provide for help in areas that your parent feels willing to accept. For some, cooking their own meals is far more important than cleaning their house and for others; frozen meals are okay if they can wash their own laundry.

10.Don?t do it alone, if you can. Engage the help of siblings, healthcare professionals, and neighbors if at all possible. Know that you must care for yourself first before you can care for others.

Jennifer Wright, ?Mid-Life Spirit of Adventure Guide for Women? coaches women globally in over-40 transitions of mid-crisis, pre-retirement, empty nest, career change, and workplace adaptations to find adventure in life overwhelm. Trained as an occupational therapist and later as a life coach, Jenn combines the physical, emotional and spiritual elements in her coaching for women.

Her own journey to recreate her life in NZ at the age of 47 has led her to create a 10 Step Become the Heroine of your own life adventure process that she uses in her coaching, her CD series and in her real life 6 day/5 night adventures in New Zealand. This life-changing adventure was featured in TIME magazine cover story and on 60 Minutes Australia. Visit her website at http://www.midlifeadventure.com and sign up for a free monthly newsletter. Her book Getting off your fast moving train: Finding your true direction at midlife will be available in April 2007.