If you’ve ever felt invisible as a family caregiver, you’re not alone. Caring for someone you love takes center stage, and you may find that your own needs are put on the back burner. A recent listening session, however, allowed us to find out firsthand what family caregivers say they need – and their feedback may surprise you. Here are some of the key findings and insights gleaned from these sessions.
How much extra time do you have on your hands? If you are like many family caregivers, carving out sufficient time to fulfill each day’s basic requirements may be hard enough. The thought of having regular intervals of downtime might seem unattainable.
The fear and isolation brought on by COVID-19 wreaked havoc on the wellbeing of older adults, with nearly half of seniors surveyed in a Kaiser Family Foundation poll stating that their degree of stress and worry was negatively impacting their own health. It is crucial to remain in regular and frequent contact with senior loved ones, in order to watch for any signs or changes which might signify a mental health concern.
We all want to leave the world a little better than we found it. One significant way to accomplish this is by creating a legacy for the generations that follow. A person’s legacy becomes a timeless treasure, influencing the decisions of their children and grandchildren, who build onto that legacy and reach countless others in years to come.
COPD, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, is the term for two lung diseases: emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Basically, an individual’s breathing is severely affected by an obstruction to airflow. Prevailing symptoms include an excessively wet cough, wheezing, shortness of breath, and tightness in the chest. Managing COPD symptoms such as these can be extremely challenging.
Family caregiver stress is inescapable, and in reality, not necessarily always a bad thing. Basically, as they say, “A diamond is just a piece of charcoal that handled stress exceptionally well.” Yet especially for family caregivers, the level of stress can rapidly escalate and become overwhelming, and if not handled effectively, result in serious health concerns.
Incontinence, or decreased bladder control, is a distressing and delicate issue, particularly for older individuals. It can trigger a variety of problems from skin sores to social isolation for individuals who are afraid to leave home in case of an “accident.” Yet, while bladder leakage causes approximately 25 million people in the U.S. to struggle with complications, the affliction hardly ever gets the attention and conversation it needs. With the lack of communication and facts about senior incontinence, many seniors and those who provide their care feel as though there is nothing that can be done about it.
Family caregivers give a tremendous amount of themselves to take care of their loved ones, frequently giving up their own desires and needs along the way. It may seem normal, then, to presume that caregivers would feel great about themselves, with a high level of self-esteem and sense of purpose.
A lot of us are trying to juggle numerous assorted responsibilities, and for family caregivers, it can feel similar to juggling flaming swords and knives. It’s natural for family members to become overloaded and to experience feelings of caregiver guilt when wanting to provide the best care for a member of the family. Guilt … Read more
You’re beginning to become concerned that Dad may possibly be in need of some professional help at home, and so obviously, you know just where to go for assistance, right? No? Take heart – you aren’t alone. Millions of people in the U.S. are facing the same predicament, and most people don’t know a lot about home care services until the need for care arises.
Contact us online or call us at (512) 338-4533 for professional home care services.
The benefits of physical fitness for seniors do not decrease as we become older, and it’s extremely critical for older adults to retain as active a lifestyle as possible. Even individuals who are confined to a bed or who are wheelchair-bound have a variety of possibilities available to strengthen and improve resistance and flexibility.
Providing homecare assistance for your family member with dementia is very difficult under the best of conditions; mix in a worldwide pandemic, one that calls for social distancing, masks and gloves, and thorough sterilization of both ourselves and the environment, and the challenge of caring for someone with Alzheimer’s may seem insurmountable.
Most elderly want to remain home, to age in place. Now, amid Covid-19, staying home has become imperative. Untold seniors have survived this pandemic as a result of remaining sheltered in their own homes. The safest place. With the world highlighting the focus on safety for our most vulnerable population, it’s an ideal time … Read more
At this time of COVID-19, we find ourselves in a frantic search for PPE – personal protective equipment. While you take a breath, please let me share a brief history lesson. You may not believe the story, but it is the truth. It begins with my first day of nursing school, way back in 1975. … Read more
During the course of growing older, assisted living devices can make everyday life around the home simpler and less hazardous. There’s a wide selection of adaptive equipment solutions for home care on the market today that can improve senior safety and help older adults remain much more comfortable at home. At CareFor, the leaders in senior care in San Marcos and the surrounding areas, we want to provide you with some insider advice for buying and utilizing some of the most widely used types of home care equipment.
As Jane Austen once said, “There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort.” And for anyone with a chronic condition, like multiple sclerosis (MS), remaining as comfortable as possible and as safe as possible, is essential.
It’s clearly no secret that a healthy diet is essential for a healthy body. What many people misunderstand, however, is that the nutritional needs for adults adjust as we age. Nutritional professionals at Tufts University have introduced the MyPlate system, which is a more advanced version of the former food pyramid, providing up-to-date dietary guidelines for seniors in particular.
If you’re providing Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) care for someone you love, you know that outdoor air pollution can often make symptoms worse. But, did you know that reduced air quality in the home can also cause COPD symptoms to flare? Ensuring the air inside the home is clean can help those with COPD – and everyone else in the home – breathe easier.
With more than 10,000 prescription drugs available in the United States, it’s no wonder that so many older adults – about one in three – are taking a minimum of five of them every day. And family caregivers know firsthand the difficulty of handling these medications for seniors. The truth is, studies show that approximately 55% of prescription drugs are being taken incorrectly for a number of reasons, and the results can be extremely dangerous.
More common in men, and more frequently diagnosed than muscular dystrophy, ALS and MS combined, Parkinson’s disease is diagnosed in approximately 7 – 10 million people around the world, with an additional 600,000 people in America diagnosed each and every year. And while each person’s encounter with Parkinson’s differs in level of severity, there are five main stages of advancement that are routinely experienced by all.
Providing post traumatic brain injury care for a loved one who’s suffered from a traumatic brain injury can be more manageable when equipped with education and understanding. The methods below, courtesy of CareFor, can decrease stress and frustration for both family caregivers and survivors.