I will forever treasure my experience “walking in my grandfather’s body” at CES 2016.
I consider it a fantastic gift.
Understanding better how aging can impact the bodies of seniors has supercharged my desire to help them live with it — even better, to avoid it — through our support of family caregivers via Senior Care Corner®.
Now other family caregivers can experience this gift, which it is, for themselves.
Genworth Aging Experience
I was able to gain some understanding of the limitations seniors’ bodies impose on them with the help of the R70i exoskeleton I wore for a short time at Genworth R70i Aging Experience.
The vehicle for my journey was fantastic technology developed by Applied Minds to start the conversation about aging with those who don’t yet — and can’t — know what it means.
Just as important as the technology was my guide on the journey, Segun Oduolowu. He helped me understand what was happening to me, what I was feeling, seeing and hearing.
Segun’s guidance helped make my brief time at the Genworth Aging Experience by far the most beneficial I spent at CES. Ever.
My journey is captured in the video below.
Opportunity for More Family Caregivers
I realize my words and even the video can’t come close to the benefit other family caregivers would get from taking the same journey themselves. Fortunately, Genworth is taking the Aging Experience on the road.
We encourage others to jump to be a part of it should the opportunity come to a location nearby. Those who do, will get a better understanding of what
- gaining 40 pounds over the course of adulthood;
- losing muscle mass and strength;
- losing degrees of hearing and speech;
- developing vision impairments such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, floaters and cataracts; and
- impaired ability to get around, caused by arthritis and joint limitations
can mean to senior loved ones.
I hope you have an opportunity to receive the gift I was given by Segun and the Genworth Aging Experience!
They need to do this at high school assemblies with student volunteers. There needs to be AWARENESS so that there can be Understanding and Acceptance for our Seniors.
Maybe it can be used as a training tool for all those who work with seniors.
You are so right Martha and that is what they are doing at Genworth. They are trying to take this aging experience to younger people so that they can understand the effects on aging. If they can feel it for themselves they will hopefully be more understanding, tolerant and even creative in finding needed solutions! Wouldn’t it be great if homecare workers, nursing home staff and clinicians could experience this to have more empathy when treating aging adults? Thanks for your input Martha!