Caregiver Support Tip

If you’re asking yourself, “How can I overcome caregiver dread?” we have the help you need.

What are your first thoughts as soon as you wake up each morning? Are you looking forward to what your day will bring, or would you rather crawl back underneath the covers and stay there? If you find yourself wondering, “How can I overcome caregiver dread?” you are not alone.

Distinctly different from depression, anxiety, and even burnout, caregiver dread is a heavy, exhausted sense of duty. It stems from feelings of overcommitment and the need to get away from responsibilities. While it is possible to push through and carry out needed tasks regardless of these feelings, there are methods to conquer them instead – and restore the joy that comes from making life better for someone you love. To begin with, … Read More »

Someone you love may experience a heightened sense of awareness in end-stage dementia, which can be both surprising and overwhelming.

Even as confusion and memory loss escalate during the advancement of dementia, there’s a fascinating and pleasant reprieve that often occurs. Formerly termed “terminal lucidity,” it is more commonly known as “paradoxical lucidity.” It signifies an unexpected, short-term regaining of clarity and awareness in end-stage dementia to a nearly pre-dementia frame of mind. During this time period, the effects can consist of nonverbal but emotional connections to a more drastic improvement in cognitive functioning.

For loved ones, it’s a special gift to be cherished. It offers an opportunity for meaningful conversations and reminiscing, and also the mutual sharing of feelings and thoughts, if only for a brief period of time. For medical researchers, it means much more.

Dr. … Read More »

Help someone you love discover the incredible benefits of gardening for older adults.

The cool dampness of rich soil. The warmth of the sun’s rays. The joyful trills of songbirds. Gardening has the capacity to engage so many of our senses, and offers a great deal of positive benefits to seniors. Regardless of ability level or any space restrictions, there is always a way to help those you love reap the many benefits of gardening for older adults through the joys of planting outdoors or indoors, watching new growth appear, and harvesting.

If you’re struggling to come up with engaging activities for someone with Alzheimer’s and vision problems, give these ideas a try!

Finding meaningful, engaging ways to spend each day for a senior loved one with Alzheimer’s can be a challenge. Add in vision impairment, and it might seem overwhelming. Even so, it’s vitally important to ensure every day holds opportunities for purpose and joy – minimizing the level of agitation, frustration, and other difficult emotions and behaviors in dementia. If you’re coming up blank when trying to come up with these kinds of activities for someone with Alzheimer’s and vision problems, we have some suggestions you can try.

If you haven’t heard yet about the new scam targeting lonely seniors, be sure to read on to learn how to protect those you love.

Sadly, loneliness in older adults is quite common, for a variety of reasons. Mobility issues, chronic health conditions, and the loss of family and friends are all contributing factors. Yet humans are social creatures, and this lack of socialization has many seniors turning to online sources for connection – such as dating websites. While this may seem harmless or even beneficial, there can be hidden dangers for seniors specifically, known as sweetheart scammers. Here’s what to watch for to help keep those you love safe from the scam targeting lonely seniors:

If your family members refuse to help with senior care for a loved one, there are effective ways to get the help you need!

If you find yourself handling all of the care responsibilities for an aging parent while your siblings distance themselves from offering help, you’re not alone. In fact, as many as one out of every two family caregivers are taking care of an aging loved one on their own, according to a recent report from AARP. What can you do when family members refuse to help with senior care?

There are several reasons why siblings may shy away from supporting you in the care you’re providing. We’ve compiled the most common, along with what you can do to remedy the situation.

They don’t realize there’s a need for help. It may very well be that from … Read More »

If you’re the primary caregiver for someone with dementia, you may be quite familiar with the challenges experienced in trying to find a quiet moment or two alone – to use the restroom, take a quick shower, or even simply walk into another room. Seniors with dementia can experience heightened anxiety and fear when a loved one is out of sight – a condition known as shadowing. And the behaviors that result can be extremely difficult to manage: anger, crying, or repeatedly asking where you are, to name a few. If you’re struggling with how to overcome dementia shadowing, our dementia care experts have a few tips for you to try.

What Causes Dementia Shadowing?

It helps to understand the reasoning behind shadowing. You are the person’s safe place, the one who helps them to make sense out of … Read More »

Learn from our home care experts when and if humidifiers for COPD should be used.

For seniors and anyone else with a lung condition like COPD, maintaining the best possible air quality within the home is vitally important. But are humidifiers for COPD the right solution? The answer isn’t a simple yes or no. If the air is too dry, for example, it can cause or exacerbate health problems including:

Chapped, dry, or itchy skin
Nose bleeds
Dry eyes
Sore throat
Aggravated allergy, asthma, and cold/flu symptoms like congestion
And more

However, air that is too humid can cause mold and mildew to grow, which can lead to a host of health problems along with potential damage to the home.

Humidifiers, when used properly, can help maintain the ideal level of moisture in the air (between 30 and 50%), and in particular for those … Read More »

Helping your parents downsize is a much smoother process with these tips!

Take a moment and look around your home and surroundings – the pictures on the walls, collectibles, furniture, books, and memorabilia that all are part of the story of your life and who you are as an individual. Now think about having to part with most of those items in order to move into a smaller home or a family member’s home. You can imagine how overwhelming it would feel. It’s important to keep this in mind if you’re helping your parents downsize.

How Can I Help Make Downsizing Easier?

If your parents are faced with the need to downsize, there are a number of steps you can take to simplify and ease the process. These guidelines from a professional organizer are a great place to … Read More »

Parkinson’s fatigue affects a person cognitively, physically, and emotionally.

Parkinson’s fatigue affects as many as one in two people with the disease, but until recently, we haven’t fully understood just how debilitating this condition actually is. A study is providing us with the insight we need to comprehend the impact of Parkinson’s fatigue, and what we can do to help someone experiencing it. Led by Duke University’s Sneha Mantri, MD, the goal of the research was to gain firsthand patient insights to know how to better address this challenging condition.

Three distinct areas of fatigue were investigated in the study: physical, emotional, and cognitive. Participants were asked to describe their level of fatigue, and the terms they used were quite revealing, including feeling unmotivated, overwhelmed, isolated, lacking energy, and as if they were “walking through molasses.”

Parkinson’s fatigue … Read More »