2024 Resolutions: Positive Goals for Caregivers
“I’m going to force myself to run three miles every day.” “I’m going to clean the bathrooms more often.” “I’m going to eat more celery and less chocolate.” Do your New Year’s resolutions feel more like punishment than positivity? If that’s the case, resolve to make 2024 the year you set some goals you will […]
Celebrating Family Caregiving and Those Who Care
If you’ve ever felt unrecognized and underappreciated in your role as family caregiver, this month is for you! November is National Family Caregivers Month, an occasion to celebrate the tireless work and dedication you invest in making sure a loved one’s life is the best it can be. Family Caregiving Is Not Always Easy…But You […]
How to Overcome Common Caregiving Problems
Taking care of your aging parents is an extremely rewarding act of love. As you think about the care they provided to you when you were growing up, you now are able to do the same for them. It allows you to take your relationship with your parents to a whole new level. Having said […]
Strengthening Bonds: Strategies for Visiting a Person With Dementia
A diagnosis of Alzheimer’s may also mean a diagnosis for loneliness. Though socialization continues to be very necessary for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, various factors lead to an increase in isolation, including: Discomfort on the part of friends and family who are unsure what to say (or not to say) The need to discontinue driving […]
Navigating Criticism While Caregiving for a Loved One
“You always…” “You never…” “If I were you…” As a family caregiver, you work selflessly to provide care for someone you love. What happens when you are giving it all you have, but your all is not good enough? Criticism while caregiving is never easy to hear, and it can be quite hurtful when it […]
How to Continue to Build a Nest Egg as a Family Caregiver
Providing care for an aging parent is a time-intensive labor of love. It may also influence finances, as family caregivers may choose to take unpaid leave from work, reduce their hours, or stop working altogether. It’s not unusual for family caregivers to set aside their long-term financial plans in order to prioritize a loved one’s […]
Top Tips to Find a Work-Life Balance as a Family Caregiver
It is a delicate balancing act. On one hand, you have your career, which provides you purpose, fulfillment, and of course, a paycheck. On the other hand, you are taking care of someone you love. Trying to give 100% to both of these crucial roles can make you mentally and physically drained, with little if […]
The Emotional Journey of Taking Care of Elderly Parents
As a family caregiver, it often feels like you have to be the rock of the family: calm, composed, and in control. Whatever the situation, you retain the sense of peace and warmth your family member needs, always strong, supportive, and never wavering. Right? If this describes the image you have created for yourself, it […]
Aging Care Services Help Family Caregivers Recharge
What does a standard day look like for you as a family care provider? For many family caregivers, it begins before dawn, assisting an older relative who has trouble sleeping during the night and is in need of assistance, or at least a person to talk to. From there, the day may be a bustle […]
Steer Clear of Injury When Caring for Seniors with These 5 Tips
At the time you made the decision to offer care for an older loved one, you most likely did not think your role would be hazardous. Yet the challenges of caregiving aren’t anything to take lightly. Approximately 94% of care providers who participated in a recent survey noted physical pain in one or more parts […]
What to Expect as a Family Caregiver
It may well have started informally, with just a little help here and there. Picking up some things at the store for your aging parent. Dropping off the extra casserole you made while preparing your own family’s supper. Or simply spending more time visiting to make sure things are ok. Gradually, you may be starting […]
Taking Care of a Loved One in the Middle Stages of Parkinson’s: Part 2 of 3
A Parkinson’s disease diagnosis impacts loved ones as well as the person diagnosed. Understanding what to anticipate as the disease progresses is key to being prepared for the changes in the future and to making life the best it can be each day. During our three-part series, we’ll be sharing what to expect in each […]
How Home Care Can Help Following a Cancer Diagnosis
When a loved one receives a cancer diagnosis, it might feel as though your whole world has changed. That which was once a top priority pales compared to the need to do whatever you can to assist the individual you love through this unexpected experience. If you are uncertain where you should start in your […]
Why Healthy Eating for the Elderly Is Important
Remember family dinners at Grandma’s house? The tantalizing scents wafting out from the kitchen would draw everyone in to gather at the table to savor her home cooking. There was always an abundance of leftovers for future meals or late-night snacks. However, healthy eating for the elderly may be inconsistent. The day-to-day reality may be […]
Learn About the Advantages of Home Care for a Senior Loved One
It was not long ago when there was a broad presumption that when we grow older, we’ll naturally need to relocate into a nursing home or assisted living facility. There’s now a better understanding that living at home throughout aging with in-home assistance is often a practical option. There is also additional knowledge since the […]
Best Ways for Family Caregivers and Seniors to Maintain Emotional and Physical Wellbeing During the Pandemic
While we can certainly start to see the light at the end of the tunnel, the COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on our emotional and physical wellbeing. Months of isolation and physical separation from people we love has taken a toll on many older adults and the ones they love. Now is the perfect time […]
The Benefits of Journaling for Family Caregivers
With the new year just around the corner, now is a great time to think about new strategies that will help you become a more effective family caregiver and also provide benefits to your senior loved one. Journaling for family caregivers is an effective way to minimize stress, and can be utilized as an outlet […]
Mental Health and the Elderly: A Growing Concern
They are called our “golden years” for good reason; growing older brings with it many advantages, including increased wisdom, the freedom to enjoy life minus the responsibilities of a career and young family to raise, as well as the ability to spend more time with loved ones and participating in pursuits we enjoy. But it […]
Pandemic Fatigue Coping Skills for Seniors
It has been more than six months since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The restrictions which have been set up to emphasize safety can begin to wear on us all, and while there is a natural longing to want to “go back to normal,” there is a new issue to deal with that’s specifically having an […]
Senior Drivers: Tips for Safety
Remember that feeling as a teenager the first time you climbed behind the steering wheel, experiencing the exhilaration of the opportunity to go anywhere you wanted? The freedom that the ability to drive grants us is beyond compare! Nonetheless, as we grow older, a number of factors will come into play that impact the safety […]
Staying Safe at Home: Modification Tips to Help Seniors Age in Place
With the great majority of older adults choosing to continue to live at home throughout aging, it’s important to carry out a thorough home assessment to search for and fix any dangers and ensure the older adults you love are staying safe at home. The most effective way to accomplish this is to begin outside […]
Improve Senior Safety in the Bathroom with These Tips
While you may consider your bathroom to be a safe sanctuary where you are able to relax and rest with a soothing bath or invigorating shower at the end of a hard day, for aging parents, the bathroom is undoubtedly the most dangerous room in the home. With slippery floors that are even slipperier when […]
New Year, New You: Meaningful and Realistic Resolutions for Caregivers
We either love them or avoid them, but whatever our stance on New Year’s resolutions, there’s something incredibly energizing about moving into a brand new year, providing us with a new slate and the opportunity to make any changes we desire to improve wellbeing or even accomplish a completely new goal or dream. For family […]
Increase Holiday Enjoyment for Seniors by Helping Those with Dementia Feel Safe
Coping with dementia is difficult on any given day, but add in the disruptions to routine, extra visitors, decorations, and noise, and you may have a recipe for increased agitation, anxiety, and discomfort. The key to increasing holiday enjoyment for seniors with dementia as well as you and your family lies in pre-planning, remaining flexible, […]
Fostering an Attitude of Gratefulness for Improved Senior Health
They say there’s always something to be grateful for, and this time of the year, much more than any other, drives home the need for us to express our gratitude. Nonetheless, for senior loved ones, having an attitude of gratefulness can be difficult to find and focus on in the course of the challenges of […]
Benefits of Continuing Education for Older Adults
Back-to-School season guarantees overwhelming displays and sale-priced items from school supply lists. Though we may associate the upcoming school year with children, it is beneficial to shift our line of thinking to include seniors who can gain from continuing education. Benefits of Continuing Education for Seniors Increased cognitive functioning. Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General […]
Keep Older Adults’ Joints Healthy With These Exercises
Did you know for every single pound of weight we lose, we alleviate four pounds of pressure from our knees, and as many as six pounds from our hips? This is great incentive for everybody to stay active, regardless of age! In particular for the elderly, however, who are predisposed to joint pain from arthritis […]