It should be no surprise that on average women will out live men by 5 years. In my mother's case, she outlived by father by 17 years so she beat the odds. After being a full time caregiver for my dad the last two years of his life; though no doubt she missed him, she must have been relieved because the burden was huge. The good news was that we had moved my parents to a patio home in a 55 or older gated community years before. So though my father was gone, my mother was completely safe and secure at 75 years old, relatively healthy and with no dementia. She had managed their financial matters all their life so she did not skip a beat.
Matter of fact, within one week of my father being buried, she cleaned out his closet. She then immediately told me she wanted the house painted and new carpet and drapes. My mother was a very strong self-sufficient woman. We were lucky. It does not always happen that way.
My mother then became one of the Golden Girls often pairing up with other widows to go out to dinners, the movies and even travel a bit. My wife and I were there to give her any daily support she needed but otherwise, she took care of her own affairs until the falls came. Sadly, she fell three times, breaking her leg. There were two surgeries and grueling recoveries. The third fall was so severe that surgery was impossible. Just a soft cast and lots of pain. But she even recovered from that fall.
At 87 years old, it was time for independent living in a nice assisting living community. She actually lived there until she died at 94 years old. We had her home to refurbish and sell; but she moved out within 3 weeks of making the decision to go into assisted living. Once there, we downsized her three times to buy more services for her as she aged. My mother experienced independent living, home care, all the stages of assisted living, convalescent case, skilled nursing and finally hospice. There is no doubt, my mother was one of those Golden Girls we see on TV.
