Buzz, Body, & Bites A newsletter for actively aging adults
November 2025 Newsletter Virginia Cooperative Extension Family &Consumer Sciences
Empowerment through Conversations: The Value of Making Wishes Known Withthe holidays just around the corner,you may find yourself spending more time with family and friends. While this time is typically about celebrating and festivities, it can also be an opportunity to talk to loved ones about “what if” situations. Advance Care Planning (ACP), a process that involves defining personal values and medical preferences, does not have to be daunting. Talking with those you love about your wishes should your health capacity change, is in many ways a huge gift. Creating an open dialogue with family and friends about your goals can ease your worries and the burden for others who find themselves navigating on your behalf. Here are four key points to keep in mind: Be Transparent When talking with loved ones about your preferences should your circumstances change, be open and honest. These conversations should be interactive to create deeper understanding of people who might need to be involved. Don’t Wait It is easy to put off the hard things. We tell ourselves another time, not today. However, prioritizing conversations about medical wishes, financial planning, and aging in general when there is not a crisis is truly the best time Know Your Options Speaking with an expert can help you navigate nuances and your peresonal situation. Your local Area Agency on Aging and elder law attorneys who specialize in estate planning are a great place to start. Put it in Writing The best way to ensure that your wishes are upheld is to document them. Conversations serve as a starting point to creating documents such as a written will and power of attorney. Contributors: Carlisle Shealy, Ph.D., MPH, Assistant Director and Extension Specialist, Center for Gerontology at Virginia Tech and Pamela B. Tester, Ph.D., M.A., M.S., NREMT, Professor and Director, Center for Gerontology
Buzz
Starting the Conversation While 82% of people say it’s important to put their wishes in writing, only 23% have done it. For help starting the conversation visit: https:// theconversationproject.org/ nhdd/ It’s Survey Time!!!! Please take a momentto fill out our survey to improve the newsletter content. Your opinion matters! We want to hear from you! https://vce.az1.qualtrics.com/ jfe/form/SV_3W1C8z4vlytsgN8
Virginia Cooperative Extension is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and local governments, and is an equal opportunity employer. For the full non-discrimination statement, please visit ext.vt.edu/accessibility. 25
OCI November 2025
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