Are the seniors over- sensitive to with the way youngsters treat them?

Question

I am getting that impression by reading many of the questions and answers in this section. I find we have an expectation that they should treat us well and generally not be disrespectful. Are we bogging them down ( specially our offsprings and grandchildren) by the weight of our expectations?

Sorry I didn't re-read the question. It should read - Are the seniors over-sensitive to the way youngsters treat them?

Answer 1

Well, since I don't really know any other Seniors other than myself, I really have no idea! I stay away from most people my age because they are such a pain to deal with! Many are still abusing drugs & alcohol & they seem to think that no one notices or no one will get in their faces about it! I'm almost 54 & I can't tell you the number of times that I have had to hand car keys & wallets (full of money) to the wack jobs who are ahead of me in the check-out lines at the grocery stores or 99 cent stores!!! I am patient & honest, yet it does wear on me because these people should not be left unattended. It does appear that the younger generation has even more distain for their older & aging family members & I think this is because they have never been exposed to this way of life (caretakers) . Most people from my own generation didn't have elders to care for because people died before we had to care for them! It is difficult for people who have no training or experience with the elderly to deal with them & their slowness. I am slowing down due to a disability, yet I still get impatient with others. That's when I have to take a deep breath & remind myself that there's really no need to hurry because I have nowhere that I HAVE to be at a certain time! However, the people behind me in the checkout line DO have somewhere to be & I am more sensitive to their anger than I am to the person who is in front of me! My own adult child sometimes gets annoyed at the way I handle situations & that's why I just prefer to shop alone & avoid the hassle of having to adhere to someone elses demands & schedules. I'd hate to think what my life would be like if I had to have my child care for me because I didn't raise a caretaker. I raised a "me first" child because I didn't want them to end up like me! Funny how that worked out...nothing like I ever had imagined it to be! Of course, as an old hippie type, I really never planned to live past 30 & having children certainly was not in my way of thinking. I doubt that I will ever be called "grandma" & I wonder what things would have been like if I had been a more family oriented person & encouraged my child to have their own children! I don't want my adult child to use me as an excuse for having to be alone & without a mate in this world, & I suspect there are others who are like me & have similar stories to tell. No one ever talks about things like this...great question!

Answer 2

I don't know if seniors are over sensitive. I do believe that many children in American culture do not have the respect for their elders as they should. By the way, I'm not a senior myself, only 32. But I do work in a field where I get to see alot of interaction in various cultures. Americans by far seem to not value those that age where as Asians show a great respect for their seniors. I adore my seniors and find that I learn a great deal from them, and always have. My children are being raised in that same mindset and so far are holding to it. On the flip side I have seen others my age treat their aging parents with great disdain at times because they are being bothered by whatever issue is going on.

I do not believe that seniors should lower their expectations what so ever. If you do, then it gives nothing for the youth of this country to rise to.

Answer 3

I don't think we're oversensitive but we do have memory of how we treated our elders and we expect to have a least a little part of the same respect. It's unbelievable that a carjacker can beat on a 90-year-old man and no one did a thing. (Also a good place to start arguing for the right to bear arms--what if the 90 year old or one of the spectators had had a gun?) When did it become acceptable to treat the elderly like they're a nuisance?

Answer 4

I don't think seniors are being overly sensitive much. There are a few exceptions (as there is in anything), but by and large, we all deal with the realities of life on here. And, unfortunately, the realities of life are that way too many younger people don't have any respect for older people.

When I was young (please don't groan so loudly--I have a splitting headache!) most of us would never dream of treating a senior (even those we didn't personally know) with anything but deference. It WAS how we were raised!

Nowadays you see seniors being beaten by groups of young people, just "because they can".

I was in my local Dollar Store yesterday, behind a woman that was 90 years old if she was a day. She was a tiny little thing that barely came to the height of the counter, but it was obvious her mind was all there, because she was having a fine time flirting with the cashier, who is an Indian gentleman in his 50s.

The woman was accompanied by her 50 something daughter, who was getting impatient at her Mom's antics. She finally spoke sharply (and in a denigrating tone of voice) about "not having the time for this sh*t" and grabbed her mother by the arm to force her on.

I glared at the woman quite fiercely I think, because when she noticed my stare, she dropped her mother's arm quickly.

Then I turned to the cashier and teased him about being such a handsome man that even 90 year old ladies find him fascinating. He blushed, but then looked very troubled, looking after both women. Then he said "She really doesn't treat her well, you know. She is always impatient with her, and treats her in a short manner." To which I made a small comment. And he went on to say "You know, in my culture we have a God in heaven who takes care of our spiritual lives, and then we have our parents, who are our Gods on earth, who are responsible for our earthly lives."

I kind of like that imagery. Very much, in fact.

Answer 5

Well I'm 21 and I think older adults should expect respect from young people. I feel like by that age they shouldn't take crap from anyone. I know when I get older I plan to say what I want when I want. I just think they've earned that right. And if we young people really listen older people have so much to share. I've never had a grandmother because she died before I was born, but I'm 100% sure that I would treat her with love and respect at all times. I may have gotten upset with her occasionally, but I would never have disrespected her. I can't stand when I see young people being rude to older people.

Answer 6

I think we should expect a little respect from younger people in general. I know I had to do it when I was a kid. We really were seen but not heard. The young now are mostly spoiled. Sometimes you run into some nice ones.

Answer 7

I don't think so. We expect (or at least, I expect) common courtesy, but it's often lacking. I don't expect special treatment, but truly, teens today are often crashingly rude for no particular reason. They aren't just rude to seniors, they are rude to everyone.

Answer 8

How well seniors are treated by juniors is a good measure of how those young folks will treat their neighbors when they grow up...

Ever wonder why there is soooo much crime these days...?

Answer 9

No -- I agree with Dr. K. Seniors deserve and are entitled to every bit of respect they get and if they don't get it, parents haven't done their job.

Answer 10

I don't think that respect and common courtesy should bog anybody down.