The aging process can lead to substantial changes in seniors. Cognitive functions may dwindle, and physical limitations can start to emerge. Older people are likely to face cognitive and/or physical challenges every day. Here’s how caregivers and family members can ease seniors’ difficulties.
1. Cognitive Impairment
Cognitive impairments that affect the elderly include trouble thinking, remembering, and concentrating. Depending on the cause of the cognitive decline, the condition may be temporary or permanent. Some forms of cognitive decline are progressive and will only continue to worsen.
Losing some memory function is considered normal for older adults. Families, for example, may notice that elderly loved ones experience occasional forgetfulness. However, more severe cognitive decline, such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, is not a normal part of the aging process.
Dementia can range from mild to severe. Mild dementia includes memory loss and confusion. Seniors in this stage of dementia take longer to accomplish daily tasks. Mood and personality changes are common, and the senior may have trouble paying the household bills.
Inappropriate outbursts are symptoms of moderate dementia. The senior repeats sentences, becomes suspicious, experiences delusions or hallucinations, and is unable to carry out activities that require multiple steps. Severe dementia causes weight loss, difficulty swallowing, and a lack of bladder or bowel control.
Seniors affected by dementia of any severity benefit from extra support. Aging in place is the most preferred option for dementia patients, since they remain in a familiar home environment—and the comfort eases some dementia symptoms. Dementia home care is ideal for affected seniors.
Dementia caregivers are experienced in compassionately handling dementia symptoms. Seniors who wander, for instance, are gently guided to safety by caregivers. These professionals assist seniors with personal hygiene, meal preparation, and transportation and provide continual monitoring. Caregivers are skilled in calming aggressive dementia patients.
2. Unexpected Weight Loss
Frail seniors may no longer have the physical stamina necessary to stand over a stove and cook. Or, seniors affected by Alzheimer’s disease may forget to eat daily meals. As a result of either scenario, unhealthy and unintentional weight loss is likely to occur.
Families can help their aging loved ones by stocking the fridge with fresh produce and healthy foods. When relatives are too busy to ensure the senior has an ample food supply, they can trust professional caregivers to shop for groceries, prepare balanced meals, and assist the senior with eating.
3. Fall Hazards
Tripping over a rug or slipping on an icy sidewalk can lead to a fall and subsequent bone fractures. Falls are common in the elderly population, due to a gradual loss of muscle strength and flexibility, poorer eyesight, and general weakness.
Home modifications can reduce the risk of falls. Remove rugs, add ample lighting to hallways, and install support, like grab bars, inside the bathroom. Seniors who exercise strengthen their muscles and maintain balance. Professional caregivers are available to support seniors during physical activities.
4. Mental Health Disorders
Due to losing loved ones, experiencing chronic pain, suffering a physical disability, or having a physical ailment that affects emotion or memory, seniors can develop mental health problems. Depression and anxieties (such as hoarding syndrome or phobias) are not uncommon in the elderly.
Families who suspect their aging loved one is suffering from a mental health disorder are advised to seek medical advice from a physician with geriatric mental health training. Medications and cognitive behavioral therapy are available treatments for seniors with mental health issues.
Concerned family members who accompany the senior to doctors’ appointments learn about the illness and treatment options. Fill all prescriptions at one pharmacy to avoid drug interactions. Help the senior find social support, such as through companion care from a home care agency.
5. Incontinence
Bladder or bowel incontinence can be an outcome of weak or overactive bladder muscles or diseases, like Parkinson’s or diabetes, that damage the nerves that control the bladder. Arthritis, too, can make it difficult for seniors to reach the bathroom in time.
Remedies for incontinence include lifestyles changes and timed voiding. Families should encourage the senior to maintain a healthy weight, drink less caffeine, and limit beverages prior to bedtime. Caregivers are also supportive with positive lifestyle changes and discreetly assist seniors with incontinence issues.
6. Vision and Hearing Impairment
Cataracts, glaucoma, and a gradual loss of hearing affect individuals as they grow older. Adding smart lighting within the home makes it easier for seniors to maneuver from room to room. Schedule regular hearing tests for seniors, and, if recommended by an audiologist, purchase a hearing aid.
7. Lack of Transportation
Unless a senior drives or lives in a community with abundant public transportation, getting around the community will be difficult. Older adults, however, can rely on professional caregivers to safely drive them to doctors’ appointments, social events at senior centers, and the grocery store, for instance.
Call Assisting Hands Home Care
Fully supporting a senior who struggles with everyday tasks is a major endeavor for busy families who must also juggle their own household responsibilities. Assisting Hands Home Care is the ideal senior care option for families who seek reliable help at home for an elderly loved one.
Our licensed, bonded, and insured caregivers arrive at the senior’s home each day to provide help with personal hygiene tasks, cook nutritious meals, remove fall hazards, and perform light housekeeping. We also transport care recipients and serve as pleasant companions.
Home care services from Assisting Hands Home Care are flexible and varied. We are available for respite care, overnight care, live-in care, 24-hour care, post-operative care, and hospice care. Professional memory care providers support seniors with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
Sarasota, Florida, seniors receive comprehensive nonmedical support from the dedicated caregivers at Assisting Hands Home Care. When you are ready to hire quality home care, call us at (813) 868-6782 to schedule a free in-home consultation. Our care services reduce seniors’ daily struggles and increase quality of life.
