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How to Care for Your Elderly Family Members (8 Tips to Consider)

Article Posted On: Mar 24, 2021 • Last updated on: May 3, 2021 at 10:26 am • Author: Logan Derrick
How to care for your elderly family members

Elderly family members are often in need of help with assorted aspects of their lives. As you begin to care for these individuals there are many considerations to think about and decisions you’ll need to make.

Taking care of senior loved ones can be a difficult process no matter what. But when you follow a clear process and find the right type of help, it can be a much easier situation to handle.

Whether you are caring for a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, or another relative, these tips will help you provide the best possible assistance.

1. Recognize the Level of Care that is Required

Seniors may need specific amounts of help depending on their age, living situation, and other factors. You’ll want to consider how much assistance your loved one will need on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis. The various levels of senior care include:

  • Independent Living: Seniors who can still live on their own and only need assistance on a rare or irregular basis.
  • Assisted Living: With many facilities offering this level of care, assisted living is for seniors who consistently need more help with their daily routines, shopping, and other tasks.
  • Memory Care: As people age, the possibility of cognitive decline becomes more common as seniors can struggle with issues like dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. When it becomes a bigger problem, this often requires professional monitoring and aid from a professional service.
  • Short-term Care: If an elderly individual ends up injuring themselves or requiring surgery, they may temporarily need help with some or all of their typical activities of daily living.

2. Do Your Research

Once you’ve determined how much (or how little) help your elderly family member needs, it’s time to find out more about what your responsibilities will include. This is a good time to ask others who have cared for seniors for advice and suggestions. You can also reach out to local professionals for resources, referrals, and places you can go for more information.

3. Promote Independence for Your Elderly Loved One

When your senior family member gets older, they will likely become more fragile and need assistance with more activities than before. But it is important to help them retain a certain level of independence and ability to care for themselves. Only provide assistance in the ways they require at the time and allow them to handle everyday tasks they can do on their own.

This is important for their mental health and maintaining respect for themselves. As an example, if they can still brush their own hair, let them take care of that portion of their morning routine. If they are still able to dress themselves, don’t feel like you need to do that for them either.

4. Entertain & Enjoy Your Time with Them

No one wants to stop having fun simply because they’re getting older. Make sure you keep your senior loved one involved in activities and think of ways to promote their physical and mental health. Playing games that promote cognitive function are a great way to have a good time together while also helping them stay sharp.

5. Watch for Mental Wellness Concerns

Senior citizen mental wellness

Stress, isolation, and other negative feelings can put elderly individuals on a fast track to depression and anxiety. But even the thought of getting older can be enough to have detrimental effects on your loved one’s mental health. Watch for these feelings and also keep an eye out for the signs of cognitive issues like dementia including:

  • Disruptive memory loss
  • Struggles with problem solving
  • Troubles with completing simple tasks
  • Confusion about where they are or what time it is
  • Problems with speaking or writing as they normally would

6. Take Breaks for Yourself

Among the most important aspects of caring for your elderly family member is also caring for yourself. You should never allow your health to waiver because of stress, exhaustion, or other ailments that often plague family caregivers. Watch for signs of caregiver burnout and take the necessary action to ensure you don’t overwhelm yourself from the responsibility.

7. Be Willing to Ask for Help

The easiest way to avoid burnout is by getting assistance from others and tag teaming the care of your elderly loved one. Reach out to other family members, friends, and acquaintances to see who is able and willing to lend a hand in the process. Making a contact list of individuals who can help out is a great way to prevent feeling like you are in this alone.

Whether there is an emergency or you have another personal matter to handle, you’ll have additional resources you can get in touch with as a quick caregiver substitute.

8. Team Up with a Professional Caregiver

Happy senior with home caregiver

There will come a time when no one else is able to take over and care for your senior family member when you need help. Having a caregiver who provides in-home senior care services is a perfect way to give yourself the assistance you need.

This could be on a full-time basis to handle various responsibilities such as personal home care, meal preparation, transportation, housekeeping, and companionship. Or you could simply get temporary assistance with respite care on an as-needed basis.

Get Assistance Caring for Your Elderly Family Member

Now that you know the best ways to care for your elderly family member, it’s a good time to think about the type of assistance that will be needed. That means help for you as well as for them.

If an in-home senior care provider would benefit your situation, trust the top-rated team at Pacific Angels Home Care to serve you! Give us a call today at (831) 708-2876 and let us show you what makes us the best option in the area!

Logan Derrick

After being told once that his content writing was like magic, Logan took on the title of Wordcraft Wizard. He is a professional content marketing strategist with a deep knowledge of SEO, digital marketing, web design, and more. He is dedicated to providing powerful, relevant, and engaging content without all the "fluff".


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