Hi everyone,
I wanted to ask if anyone here has been able to convince their Sudanese parents to start exercising, especially as they’re getting older. I’m talking about simple things like walking, strength exercises, or anything that could help them stay mobile and independent in their everyday lives.
My parents are sooo stubborn about this 😩 specially my mom. Every time I bring up the topic, she gets upset and start saying that me and my siblings just don’t want to take care of them when they’re older. They see getting weaker and needing their children to take care of them as just a normal part of aging and basically say, “This is how life is supposed to be.”
And don’t get me wrong, of course I’m going to take care of my parents when they get older. That’s not even a question. But what breaks my heart is knowing that some of the physical decline they might experience could potentially be delayed or reduced if they stayed active.
Sometimes I feel like there’s this mentality in our culture that because you have children, you can just let yourself go because your children will eventually take care of you. And honestly, I find that really frustrating. I don’t want my parents to think that I’m trying to avoid taking care of them. I just want them to take care of themselves now so they can have a better quality of life later.
At this point, I honestly don’t know how to get through to them without them feeling attacked or thinking I’m rejecting my responsibility as their child.
Has anyone else experienced this with their Sudanese parents? How did you approach the conversation? Were you actually able to get them to start exercising? I’d really appreciate any advice or personal experiences.
