Social ties may be severed as people grow older. Spouses and loved ones pass on and age-related immobility makes staying active in the community a challenge. When social isolation and loneliness impact seniors, it can lead to poorer health outcomes.
What are loneliness and social isolation?
Loneliness is defined as feeling distressed upon being alone or separated; it is a subjective emotion, as seniors can feel lonely even while being in the company of others. Social isolation is objective and can be defined as being physically alone, such as when a senior lives alone.
What are the benefits of social engagement?
Opportunities for high-quality social interactions contribute significantly to an elderly person’s emotional and physical well-being. Socialization encourages healthier habits, such as when friends and family motivate their aging loved ones to exercise regularly or eat balanced meals to fuel their bodies.
Community involvement, such as through volunteering or joining a local senior center, gives older adults an important sense of belonging. Volunteering itself instills purpose and meaning into seniors’ lives; it also offers them a chance to make new friends with likeminded people.
A strong support system ensures older adults have access to help when they need it. A neighbor who takes out the senior’s trash or an adult child who manages their aging parent’s finances provide invaluable help. Having a social support system reduces the senior’s stress.
Enjoying close relationships with friends, family or even companion caregivers ward off ills, like loneliness and isolation that can trigger depression. Since human beings are naturally social, engaging with others is advantageous to an older adult’s emotional, mental, and physical health.
Does being alone cause loneliness?
While the benefits of staying social are evident, not all seniors who live alone are lonely. Slightly less than one-third of older Americans live alone, according to the Administration for Community Living’s Administration on Aging. Yet, these individuals report that they do not feel lonely or socially isolated.
Conversely, it is not uncommon for older people to be surrounded by gregarious friends and family yet experience despairing feelings of loneliness. Scientists are still determining the effects of loneliness on health and whether it leads to the social isolation that has devastating impacts on health.
What health risks are associated with isolation and loneliness?
Loneliness and social isolation have detrimental effects on seniors’ general health. A range of physical and mental conditions can arise when aging adults suffer chronic loneliness; high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, and a weakened immune system are possible health outcomes.
Seniors who experience ongoing loneliness or social isolation can also develop mental conditions, such as anxiety and, as mentioned, depression. Cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease are linked with social isolation and loneliness. Death is even possible for those who live in social isolation.
Segments of the elderly population are particularly at risk for adverse health outcomes. These include individuals who have recently lost a spouse or partner and those separated from family or friends. Retirees, immobile seniors, and those without transportation are among those with the highest risk.
How does loneliness alter a senior’s biological makeup?
Loneliness affects older adults physiologically, too. Research finds that loneliness changes the immune system cells’ tendencies to promote inflammation. Although inflammation is critical in helping the aging body heal from injury, prolonged inflammation increases the senior’s risk for chronic ailments.
Plaque builds up in the senior’s arteries at an accelerated rate when they are overwhelmed with feelings of loneliness. Cancer cells grow and spread, too. The risk for Alzheimer’s disease grows higher as inflammation in the brain increases. Loneliness speeds up wear and tear on the aging body.
How do seniors avoid social isolation and loneliness?
Seniors can socialize in numerous ways. Local activities, like bingo night or field trips at the senior center, are accessible for many older adults. Avid readers might sign up for a book club to share their thoughts with other bookworms. Weekly outings to the movies give seniors events to anticipate.
Staying connected with people is even easier with today’s technology. Seniors can jump onto a chat with a friend in another town. Keep up with the grandkids via Zoom or Facetime. Senior-friendly phones with large buttons and louder speakers enhance older adults’ conversations.
Immobile aging people are urged to seek out reliable transportation services, like those from a professional caregiver, to get around town. These caregivers also join their care recipients at mealtimes, creating a convivial social atmosphere in which the elderly thrive.
Companion Care from Assisting Hands
Companion services are included in senior home care. Compassionate caregivers focus on improving the social life of their care recipients through a variety of means, from board games to puzzles and outings and leisure activities. Companion care reduces social isolation and loneliness in seniors.
Averting social isolation and loneliness in the elderly starts by incorporating support from Assisting Hands Home Care into the senior’s care plan. Our companionship services are designed to keep the elderly mentally stimulated and socially engaged, which improve their well-being.
The key to success is ensuring the companion caregiver is compatible. Our home care agency makes an effort to match caregivers who are likely to have a good rapport with care recipients. If the original caregiver is a poor fit, we dispatch a new one. We strive for genuine compatibility.
Furthermore, our caregivers are qualified and experienced in senior home care. Each of our professionals undergoes a background check and is licensed, bonded, and insured. Families and seniors enjoy peace of mind when they invite our caregivers into their home.
While companionship is vital, Assisting Hands Home Care professional provide additional senior home care services to support care recipients. Caregiver responsibilities include healthy meal preparation, medication reminders, transportation, light housekeeping and help with personal hygiene tasks, such as bathing, grooming and dressing.
When you seek quality senior companionship, choose Assisting Hands Home Care, serving the elderly in Palm Bay, Barefoot Bay, Melbourne, Rockledge, Viera and the surrounding areas. We are committed to providing exceptional care services to seniors, helping them live more independently at home. Call us at (321) 455-5778 to schedule a free in-home consult today to learn more.
