Family Caregivers
Katarina is So Sweet!
Please join us in congratulating Katarina as our most recent Caregiver of the Month!
We have had the distinct pleasure of working with Katarina for over three and a half years now. In that time, not only has she been amazing with a number of our Clients, but she has also enjoyed working here so much that she has referred multiple family to join our team! Nice! We consider it a HUGE compliment when our employees are so happy, that they refer us to their own friends and family!
Recently, Katarina was has been working with Pat, one of our long-time clients, and has been doing an outstanding job! Typically, Pat has chosen to keep to her room, and not leave for any reason. Within a week, Katarina was able to change that with her sweet and soft-spoken nature. Katarina is now … Read More »
Join Us at the Expo!
Join us today from 10 to 3 at the 2023 Senior Disability Tech Expo!
Proudly sponsored by Sonoma County Senior Advocacy Services and HICAP.
Sonoma County Fairgrounds
Grace Pavilion
1350 Bennet Valley RD
Santa Rosa, CA
More info: https://senioradvocacyservices.org/gva_event/2023-northern-california-tech-expo-outreach-event/
What NOT to Say to Aging Parents When It’s Time to Give Up Driving
Learn what not to say to aging parents regarding driving and giving up the car keys.
As our parents grow older, it’s not always easy to know what our role as adult children should be. We want what’s best for them, but if we’re not careful, we can overstep our boundaries and find ourselves trying to parent our parents. It’s important to choose our words carefully, and to take it a step further, to know what NOT to say to aging parents.
This is especially true when safety is a concern. There’s a fine line to walk between ensuring senior parents are safe, and promoting the independent lifestyle they need and deserve. After all, it wasn’t all that long ago when our parents were meeting not just all of their own needs, but ours as well. The transition … Read More »
Learn How to Ease Caregiver Stress by Trading Worries for Positive Action
“Worrying is using your imagination to create something you don’t want.” – Abraham Hicks
Discover how to ease caregiver stress in three simple steps.
Worrying can quickly become a way of life for family caregivers. Between age-related concerns, chronic health conditions, and trying to balance a plethora of other commitments, it’s no wonder that anxious thoughts tend to overtake positive, peace-inducing ones, making it difficult to know just how to ease caregiver stress.
How Can You Alleviate Caregiver Worries?
It is possible, however, to take the energy you’re exerting for worry and changing it into productivity. These three simple steps are a great place to start:
To start, write it all down. Worrisome, anxious thoughts have a tendency to swirl haphazardly through our minds. If you write down your thoughts, it corrals them into manageable chunks, while giving … Read More »
Rightfully Honoring All Women!
Today, we joyfully join the world as we honor and celebrate International Women’s Day!
From our humble beginnings Twenty-Nine years ago, Hired Hands Homecare has been owned, operated & staffed by some of the most compassionate and dedicated women imaginable. During this time, we have had the amazing opportunity to work alongside literally thousands of heroes who go above and beyond the call of duty, in service to seniors in our communities.
We could not be more proud to work with such an amazing and diverse group of women, and proudly celebrate them on this special day!
Sincerely,
The Hired Hands Homecare family
Learn About the Scam Targeting Lonely Seniors and How You Can Help
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:
What Can You Do When Family Members Refuse to Help With Senior Care?
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 »
Are You Being Followed? How to Overcome Dementia Shadowing
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 »
Helping Your Parents Downsize? Here’s What You Need to Know.
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 »
Understanding Parkinson’s Fatigue: It Feels Like “Walking Through Molasses”
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 »
