Respite Care
Caregiving Tips to Ensure You’re Motivating Without Bullying
Make sure you’re not crossing the line from motivating to bullying with these caregiving tips.
As a family caregiver, you obviously encounter an array of feelings throughout the day: shared laughter over a joke with your senior loved one; worry due to a health concern; and certainly, from time to time, irritation. We want only the best for those we love, and if a senior loved one is resistant to doing an activity we realize is beneficial, it could be tough to identify the most appropriate response.
The key is to try to offer motivation and support, while remaining cautious not to ever cross the line into bullying your senior loved one. These caregiving tips are good to remember:
There’s no one-size-fits-all. An approach that has worked on a single occasion may perhaps be entirely ineffective in another. In … Read More »
One Simple Way to Replace Caregiver Stress with Joy
Rediscover joy and watch caregiver stress melt away with this one simple tip.
Our facial expressions divulge so much to those around us, and when you’re feeling an unusual level of caregiver stress, well-meaning family members will certainly recognize it, possibly encouraging you to essentially, “Cheer up, buttercup!” In reality, of course, it takes a whole lot more than a couple of words to turn our mood around.
Nonetheless, recent research does support the concept of positive thinking as a method to minimize levels of depression and anxiety which might develop when we’re bombarded with stress – something critical for busy family caregivers to take to heart to decrease the possibility for burnout.
Judith Moskowitz, head psychologist in the research project who consequently established a program to combat the downward spiral of emotions so typical in individuals providing … Read More »
5 Tips to Effectively Manage Paranoia in Seniors
Paranoia in seniors with dementia can be challenging, but these tips can help.
“I’m telling you, there’s a dog in my closet! I hear it growling all night long. We’ve got to track down its owner!”
Listening to a senior loved one express concerns like this that you know to be untrue is distressing – however, not unheard of. Your first instinct may well be to try and rationalize with the person with a response such as, “Nonsense! There is no way a dog could have gotten into the closet!” However, for various reasons, this could be the least effective technique to handle unreasonable thoughts and paranoia in seniors.
Instead, we at Hired Hands Homecare propose the following tactics which will help bring back a sense of calm and wellbeing:
First, schedule an appointment with the senior’s physician. It … Read More »
Are You Torn Between a Career and Caregiving?
Many family caregivers are faced with the difficult decision to choose between a career and caregiving responsibilities.
Not long ago, actor Rob Lowe brought caregiving into the spotlight by sharing his story of caring for his mother and the toll it took on his own life. He said, “When you’re caring for a loved one, there’s nothing you won’t do to give them as much comfort and peace of mind as you can possibly provide. Often that means you’ll skip your social obligations, wreck your diet, suffer sleep deprivation, and even risk your career.” So, does that mean you need to choose between a career and caregiving for an older loved one?
Obviously, this topic is not anything new to the 75% of the United States workforce who are concurrently providing care for a parent at home. Based … Read More »
Caring for Someone with Dementia? Here’s What You Need to Know.
Caring for someone with dementia is easier with help from our experts in elderly care in Pleasanton and nearby areas.
At times, the best lessons in life come through going through them firsthand; yet the wisdom we are able to glean from those who have walked an identical path before us is priceless. If you’re caring for someone with dementia and feeling a bit stressed in this uncharted territory, the guidelines below will help:
What to Do When You Notice Warning Signs of Aging Care Needs
Learn how to start the conversation when you notice warning signs of aging care needs.
The initial signs might be so subtle that many people wouldn’t even recognize that anything is amiss. Mom is outgoing, pleasant, and conversational while visiting loved ones and while running errands. But those closest to her have begun to detect concerns: being forgetful about the soup cooking on the stove, leading to a scorched pan. Putting her keys into the cookie jar. Failing to pay bills. What should you do when you begin to notice these kinds of warning signs of aging care needs?
As an adult child of a loved one in the early stages of compromised safety or the ability to make competent choices, it is normally incredibly difficult to transition to a higher degree of involvement and assistance – nonetheless … Read More »
For Better or Worse: Providing Care for an Aging Parent Without Sacrificing Your Marriage
Providing care for an aging parent can either strengthen or strain your marriage.
In marriage we agree to stick with each other for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness as well as in health – but what doesn’t come up through our vows to one another is how to deal with the mounting difficulties of providing care for an aging parent.
However, with our life span increasing, it is highly recommended to put together a strategy to meet both the requirements of our parents as they grow older, and also the multitude of day-to-day needs, all while honoring our cherished relationship with a spouse. It’s a struggle that’s creating stress and pressure for 80% of couples interviewed, resulting in detachment and much less quality time with each other. These particular areas in a married relationship … Read More »
Family Caregiver Tips: How to Overcome Resistance to Care
Overcome resistance to care with these family caregiver tips from the leader in Sonoma home care services.
For many seniors, admitting the need for help is likened to admitting defeat. After living in an era that emphasized the need to pull ourselves up by our bootstraps and stay strong and self-reliant in the face of adversity, it’s a difficult mindset to change. How can you help aging parents understand the benefits of home care assistance, without viewing it as a threat to their freedom and independence?
Communication Tips for Dementia: Try Nonverbal Techniques
Sometimes, the most effective way to communicate with someone with dementia is nonverbally.
Conversations with a senior battling with all the challenges of Alzheimer’s, especially in the middle and later stages, is often discouraging – both for you and also for the person with Alzheimer’s. Brain changes impede the ability to listen, process, and respond appropriately to conversations, and it is up to us to employ innovative approaches to communicating to more effectively connect with an individual with dementia.
It’s quite a bit easier than it might appear, however. We already communicate nonverbally in many ways:
Touch
Posture and body movement
Eye contact
Facial expressions
Gestures
Personal space
Consider these communication tips for dementia to include increased nonverbal communication into your interactions with a senior loved one:
Offer reassurance through gentle touch. If a senior loved one is comfortable with touch, hold and pat the … Read More »
Could You Be a Helicopter Child?
Hired Hands Homecare provides tips for determining if you’re a helicopter child.
We have all heard about helicopter parents, particularly when a daughter or son leaves for college, but what about a helicopter child? Truth be told, we may be guilty of hovering a bit too closely ourselves. Finding that optimal harmony between caring and overstepping our boundaries is not easy.
