I often have to ask myself who I should rely on for the best medical advice. If you ask enough people the same question, the only answer you will come up with will probably be more confusion.

It has been suggested to me that I follow what my body tells me, but unfortunately, the messages my body sends are invariably unclear, so I tend to turn to others for clarification.

I can call my pharmacist, whos response is that I worry too much and fixate all the time. Then there is my doctor's office that has a nurse's hot line, and every different nurse I speak with will probably have a somewhat different solution to my question.

As one ages, the issues you must deal with have a tendency to change. When you were younger, some physical problems were somewhat simpler to handle, but time has a tendency to effect the human body differently. 

Nonetheless, as I look at my children who are still relatively young in contrast to me, they too struggle with physical and emotional problems that they must deal with as well. 

From what I have discovered speaking with them, they also turn elsewhere for answers. One thing is certain, I can't be the source to which they should turn. I sincerely hope that they have more success than I in finding their own answers.

Just being a mother or father presents its own challenges, and I remember back when I was the mother of three young children, that I too struggled to find my way toward success as a parent. Unquestionably, that too was a time in my life when I had to do the best I could to choose the right course to follow. I know how hard parenting can be as well. That is one of the privileges of having shared that experience, and of growing older and understanding.  

Ironically, I currently live in a senior citizen residence, and on a daily basis am confronted with the problems of other seniors. I must admit that being witness to the changes that age has wrought on some of them, I go back to my apartment feeling sad and frightened, asking myself if I too may be in a similar position one day.

I have determined that my goal is to continue using the strengths that I have been given to keep my mind active and productive. As I sit here sharing my feelings with the person who may be reading what I have written, I am attempting to do just that.

If you are a senior like me, I am writing these words to give you a sense that if perhaps you are faced with sometimes difficult issues to cope with, you are not alone. There are others out there in the same boat trying to keep the heavy waves that life tends to bring make them feel unsteady, that the waters can remain calm and peaceful if you keep on paddling.