Sunday, July 09, 2006
Forgotten people
Dearest blog.
I'd rather die instead of going into a care home when I'm old. I went to see an elderly relative who's recently been put in one on Saturday, and I wanted to kill myself within 5 minutes... my relative in question had already started to go insane (bit of a shock! But different story... :) ) and deeply paranoid, and it's not any wonder really, with the staff all in plastic disposable aprons incase any of the residents soil them, the awful carpets, the hideous peeling wallpaper clashing violenty with everything, the faded tacky framed prints of OXO adverts, the airless atmosphere (not one window was open!), the stench of death and pee, the other residents who didn't seem to be people any more, the nauseating music they were playing for them (think the music that kills the martians in Mars Attacks), the opressive atmosphere... I'm used to care home environments as I regularly visited various relatives in homes before they passed over, but sometimes it's still a shock, and I haven't had to go in one for a couple of years. And the thing is, everything they seemed to put in to make the place more 'home-like' seemed to add to the opressive atmosphere. A cool, clean, fresh environment would surely be much more suited to a deaths waiting room. The poor people who have to endure these kind of hell holes... shut in and herded around like cattle, put in a chair for hours to get bum ache, loosing their sense of decency. Urgh there must be a better way to end your life. A lot of them have fought for our country, built what we have now, and they're shut away from the rest of us when they're unable to look after themselves. The elderly are treated abominably in this country, and it's not just about the care homes. There must be something we can do for them?
Love Rosie xxxx ¶ 10:05 pm
I'd rather die instead of going into a care home when I'm old. I went to see an elderly relative who's recently been put in one on Saturday, and I wanted to kill myself within 5 minutes... my relative in question had already started to go insane (bit of a shock! But different story... :) ) and deeply paranoid, and it's not any wonder really, with the staff all in plastic disposable aprons incase any of the residents soil them, the awful carpets, the hideous peeling wallpaper clashing violenty with everything, the faded tacky framed prints of OXO adverts, the airless atmosphere (not one window was open!), the stench of death and pee, the other residents who didn't seem to be people any more, the nauseating music they were playing for them (think the music that kills the martians in Mars Attacks), the opressive atmosphere... I'm used to care home environments as I regularly visited various relatives in homes before they passed over, but sometimes it's still a shock, and I haven't had to go in one for a couple of years. And the thing is, everything they seemed to put in to make the place more 'home-like' seemed to add to the opressive atmosphere. A cool, clean, fresh environment would surely be much more suited to a deaths waiting room. The poor people who have to endure these kind of hell holes... shut in and herded around like cattle, put in a chair for hours to get bum ache, loosing their sense of decency. Urgh there must be a better way to end your life. A lot of them have fought for our country, built what we have now, and they're shut away from the rest of us when they're unable to look after themselves. The elderly are treated abominably in this country, and it's not just about the care homes. There must be something we can do for them?
Love Rosie xxxx ¶ 10:05 pm
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It's odd isn't it, in a society when there are more older people than ever before, the complete lack of respect people seem to have to the old now.
I don't like it :( I used to volunteer in my local old peoples centre, we'd do music stuff. Now all I can donate is money and it feels a bit empty :((
I don't like it :( I used to volunteer in my local old peoples centre, we'd do music stuff. Now all I can donate is money and it feels a bit empty :((
# posted by 
: 2:09 pm
: 2:09 pm
It does... :( My mum does loads of amazing voluntary work with the elderly, which I really look up to... she adopts old people to look after, particularly ones with crap relatives, at the alms houses and other places, and does voluntary hair cuts etc at the local old people's hospital which often makes their week... I'd like to start up something when I'm more settled, as I'd hate to start something and then suddenly have to leave. But it feels like i'm just making excuses... That's really cool what you used to do! xxx
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