Health

Learn from the North Bay, CA home care experts how to avoid diabetes care burnout.

Diabetics know that living with diabetes is an ongoing struggle, and constant diabetes self-care can at times feel relentless and unending. To overcome the fatigue and avoid diabetes burnout, sometimes all it takes is a little helping hand.

For instance, partnering with Hired Hands Homecare, the home care company North Bay, CA families trust, helps diabetes patients with medication reminders, healthy meal planning and preparation, personal hygiene needs, and even housework and running errands. Additionally, implementing the following tips will go a long way towards improving your outlook and reducing the chance of diabetes burnout:

Exercise regularly. You’re better equipped to overcome stress when physically fit.
Stop smoking.
Reduce alcohol and caffeine intake.
Set reasonable goals and expectations.
Get sufficient sleep. Your body needs quality rest time … Read More »

Learn how to better manage the daily ups and downs of diabetes care in this article.

Checking glucose levels, monitoring blood pressure and monitoring food intake—these are just a few of the daily activities known all too well by diabetics.

Effective diabetes care requires consistent, ongoing care management—realizing that ignoring diabetes can result in serious health complications such as heart disease, high blood pressure and even diabetic coma. Thankfully, there are steps diabetics can take to alleviate the stress of diabetes care and remain hopeful and healthy.

 Most importantly, identify barriers to care. Barriers to diabetes care management can include:

Requiring additional information and education on proper diabetic care
Avoiding circumstances that might disrupt the diabetes care schedule
Overcoming excuses related to getting more exercise
Eating habits that could be driven by emotions instead of actual hunger
Depression or other emotional problems

 Accept … Read More »

Greetings! Join us today, Oct. 24 from 9am – 3pm at the Marin Senior Information Fair.  There’ll be tons of great information for and about Seniors.  Get your Flu vaccine, and make sure you stop by the Hired Hands Homecare booth to say hello to Blake and Kirsten.  We’d love to answer any questions you may have about how we can help families and their senior loved ones!

Hired Hands Homecare is proud to celebrate 25 years of participation in the Marin Senior Information Fair, and supporting the seniors and families of Marin County.

For more information about the Marin Senior Info Fair, please visit https://marinseniorfair.org.

Learn more about ALS caregiving

Being given a diagnosis of ALS (also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease) can bring up a lot of questions and concerns, for both the individual diagnosed and his/her family members. What causes ALS? What are the symptoms of ALS now, and how will they be changed in the years to come? Where can I go to find needed support?

More than 30,000 Americans are currently diagnosed with ALS , and nearly 5,600 new patients are diagnosed with the disease each year. And even though the actual cause is not clear, some scientific studies point to confusing risk factors, such as a doubled risk of ALS in veterans who served during the Gulf War.

Though each individual can be affected by ALS in different ways from others, the advancement of the disease does seem to follow certain … Read More »

Urinary incontinence can be an embarrassing subject for those who are affected by it. The preconception regarding the disorder commonly ends up with individuals having either insufficient facts or believing in some common misconceptions about incontinence. Following are some incontinence myths and the truths to go with them, courtesy of the Napa senior living experts at Hired Hands Homecare:

Myth: Urinary incontinence is unavoidable as we age.
Truth: Although the aging process does boost the risk for incontinence, many senior individuals retain normal bladder control, so it should not be considered a standard or inevitable part of the aging process.

Myth: Urinary incontinence cannot be remedied in older individuals.
Truth: Thankfully, this is not the truth in the majority of circumstances. There are ways that incontinence can be treated effectively.

Myth: Drinking as little water as possible will lower the risk of incontinence.
Truth: Often older … Read More »

Napa senior living experts discuss how to have a smooth transition home from the hospital

What a relief it is when the medical personnel informs you that your elderly loved one is ready to be discharged from the hospital after surgery. But as they hand you that stack of discharge papers and directions, a certain amount of anxiety may start to creep in. Will your family member be able to care for herself at home?

The Napa senior living team at Hired Hands Homecare wants to help you arrange for smooth discharge planning from hospital to home by outlining the questions you’ll need to get answered prior to surgery:

Who will pick up prescriptions? Do I need to depend on a family member for this job? Will he/she be readily available when a refill is needed?
Who will answer questions about the prescriptions? Should I … Read More »

The home care experts at Hired Hands outline simple exercises to improve senior safety.

The CDC reports that as many as one-third of all seniors fall each year, and surprisingly, less than half of those seniors talk to their doctors about it. When a senior experiences a fall, even if it does not cause serious injury, she can develop a heightened fear of falling, which may result in limited activities, reduced mobility, loss of physical fitness, and in turn, an increased risk of falling again.

In our last blog post, we discussed some home modifications you can make to improve senior safety and reduce the risk of falls. In addition, there are a number of exercises that seniors can do on a regular basis to increase muscle strength and improve balance, which will not only help reduce … Read More »

Hired Hands Homecare offers tips to prevent senior falls.

Falling is never fun, but for an older adult, a fall can result in devastating effects, like a fractured hip, which can escalate to a full range of additional health problems. A full 25% of seniors who fracture a hip end up dying within six months of the injury; a shocking, yet preventable statistic.

Taking time to make some simple modifications to the home can help create a safer environment for your senior loved ones and help prevent dangerous senior falls. Below are some easy home modification ideas from the home care Marin CA services team at Hired Hands Homecare that can be implemented to help lower the risk of falls for the elderly.

Lighting:

Replace light bulbs routinely to ensure there is sufficient illumination in … Read More »

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Learn tips to improve balance for seniors

mproving balance is one of the best ways to improve senior health, particularly when it comes to preventing falls. Once an older adult has experienced a fall, the initial impulse may be to decrease physical activity to lower the possibility of falling again, but it’s essential for older adults to optimize their overall muscle strength and balance and stay as active as possible.

These balance exercises, recommended by the National Institute on Aging, are a great place to start (after first receiving approval from the senior’s primary care physician):

One Foot Stand: Grasping a sturdy chair for balance, lift one leg just a bit and hold the position for 10 seconds. Repeat the exercise 10-15 times and then switch legs.

Heel to Toe Walk: Position the … Read More »