About Us

Mike Gamble – Founder / CEO

Hello, I’m Mike Gamble.

Unfortunately, my story is not unique. Back in September of 2000, I was desperate for elder care information, just like you are now.

What was supposed to be a short visit with my folks suddenly turned into a crisis when I realized how desperately ill my mother had become — and how overwhelmed my dad was by her care.

At the time, my wife and kids and I were living in Chicago. My parents had retired to Florida in 1983. When I flew down to check on them, I was shocked to discover that my 83-year-old mother was virtually comatose from over-medication — and my 84-year-old father, increasingly frail himself, was overwhelmed by Mom’s decline and in denial about his own failing health.

My mother, who was suffering from mild depression and severe pain in her back and legs, spent hours staring blankly at the television. At night, Mom shuffled back and forth, lost in a medication fog. She rarely ate, or drank, or slept. And as a member of “the Greatest Generation,” Dad never questioned her doctor’s orders or the 11 medications she was taking (I later found out that Mom had been on 2 totally unnecessary heart drugs for years!)

At one point, Dad — a typical man’s man who hated to admit weakness — pulled me aside and haltingly confessed that he was completely overwhelmed by Mom’s care. I think he felt a little ashamed that he himself was so physically and emotionally drained.

Overnight, I had to become a long-distance caregiver for my frail, elderly parents. And I suddenly felt just as overwhelmed as my Dad.

Remember, this was the year 2000, and there just wasn’t a lot of easily accessible information for new caregivers on the Internet. The scant information I did find was written by academics or medical researchers. It was impossible to wade through. And the most useful information was often buried deep inside hard-to-find, arcane websites.

I cobbled together what information I could find, and I busied myself with the day-to-day struggles of caring for my folks.

In the year 2001, I spent 25 weeks in Florida. (In fact, I spent so much time flying back and forth between Chicago and Florida that the flight crews on Southwest Airlines knew me by name.) It was a huge drain on my own family, but I was self-employed, and I could set my own schedule. Most long-distance caregivers aren’t that lucky.

But all the while, I thought to myself, “There are so many people like me who need this information — there has to be a better way to get it to them.”

And now there is.

Since 2001 I’ve been collecting and organizing all the information I could find about taking care of elderly parents. And now all that data has a home: AsOurParentsGrowOlder.com.

Most of us become caregivers in crisis situations. We don’t have time to spend hours on the phone or surfing the Internet, digging for the information that can save our parents’ lives or protect their dignity.

à The 7 totally treatable (and reversible) disorders that are often mistaken for Alzheimers and other forms of dementia (this happened to my own mother!)

à How to choose from over 20 different forms of in-home care

à How to determine what level of care your loved one really needs

à What Medicare rules hospitals, doctors and nursing facilities must follow when they care for your elderly parent…and what you can do about it if they don’t.

à Exactly what to say to your loved ones to make them give up the car keys

à How to handle narcissistic, toxic, controlling, or rage-filled parents—without becoming just like them

à How to deal with parents (and other family members) in denial

à How to cope with parents’ increasing healthcare needs as they develop various forms of dementia

à How to stand up for your elderly parents against an uncaring health care system

à How to pro-actively involve other family members in your elderly loved ones’ care

As I said, I was very lucky. I had the means to travel and to care for my folks. Bless them, my parents—who grew up during the Depression—had accumulated a substantial nest egg to cover their retirement years.

Unfortunately, most of us in the “Sandwich Generation” find caregiving to be just as much a financial drain as an emotional drain. That’s why AsOurParentsGrowOlder.com includes resources that can help you care for your parents without sacrificing your own family’s financial well-being.

As a member of AsOurParentsGrowOlder.com, you’ll learn…

à How to manage the financial burdens of caring for your aging parent

à How to avoid being trapped into being responsible for paying for your parents’ care

à The hidden traps in filial responsibility laws and how they can impact your family and children

à How to uncover potential problems in assisted care facilities, rehabilitation facilities, nursing homes, and even hospice facilities to find the best one for your elderly loved ones

à The pitfalls in the Medicare laws that can impact your aging parent’s estate

à Where to find little-known sources of financial assistance for your elder (and yourself if necessary)

With my parents, I learned the hard way that knowledge is power. The exclusive audio podcasts you get as a member of AsOurParentsGrowOlder.com give you the knowledge I wish I had years ago when my parents needed it most.

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à Mom suffered for years because Dad didn’t realize her symptoms were caused by overmedication, not the natural aging process. Dad didn’t know that according to Consumer Reports on Health, “Any new health problem in an older person should be considered drug induced until proven otherwise.” (We eventually got Mom’s medications under control, but not before she started suffering from mild dementia.)

à After being hospitalized for breaking her hip, Mom was going to be forced from the hospital to the hospital’s own mediocre rehab facility, without the mandatory three-day notice from Medicare, and without the mandatory disclosure of the hospital’s ownership of the facility. Most caregivers wouldn’t have questioned the hospital’s actions. But as an insurance expert who had dealt with Medicare since 1968, I knew the hospital was breaking the law. Out of ignorance, most caregivers would have caved in to pressure from hospital administrators.

à And most tragically of all, Dad virtually died in my arms from a massive stroke—that was totally misdiagnosed by hospital staff. He went without care for nearly a whole day, and collapsed into a coma as I was helping him into a CAT scan machine. He lingered for days until Mom made the agonizing decision to take him off life support.

There’s an old saying: “what you don’t know can’t hurt you.” I couldn’t disagree more! What you don’t know can hurt you…in fact, it can kill or cripple your elderly parents. That’s why I think it’s so vitally important to have this critical information available in one place at AsOurParentsAge.com.

Our Mission

Vision: To be the most comprehensive “what to,” “why to,” and “how to” information resource anywhere that helps you care for your elderly parents – and still have a life of your own.

Mission: To help families overcome the many challenges of caring for elderly loved ones in a manner that helps their loved ones:

• maintain as much control over their lives as feasible;
• considers their desires as well as their needs;
• truly respects them; and
• allows them to live out their lives with dignity.

We encourage the development of balanced partnerships, so to speak, between elders and their caregivers – partnerships that also recognize the needs of the caregivers and their own families.