Why is discussing long-term care with my parent so hard?

Why is discussing long-term care with my parent so hard?

Karl Steinberg (Associate Medical Director, Sharp Mission Park Medical Group) gives expert video advice on: How can I plan for long-term care?; How do I prepare financially for long-term care?; How do I prepare legally for long-term care? and more...

It is very hard to discuss long-term care with parents, because, what it means is they are giving up some of their independence and they are going to be transitioning from an independent community setting, maybe a house where they have lived for the last forty years and moving to a place where they are going to be increasingly dependent on others. They may not be able to drive anymore and it is traumatic, it is traumatic for everybody but especially for them. It is just a tough conversation, it is the kind of conversation that at certain times, you will just get a "We're not talking about that, it is not happening, I flat out refuse", and yet sometimes their safety is at risk and so it is just the kind of thing that you need to insist upon.