The responsibility of caring for an aging loved one can weigh heavily on a family member. Often times, these caregivers hold full-time jobs on top of the full-time obligation that comes with providing support to those who can no longer care for themselves. And as many know, this type of situation can produce a large amount of stress. No matter the factors, stress is a powerful force that can wreak havoc on the body and mind if not tended to properly. Although it may sound implausible, taking a break from caregiving is essential to alleviate growing strains on a person’s
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Archives for Home Care
Early warning signs that your aging loved one needs help at home
As the people important to us most begin to grow older, we witness many changes in their appearance, behavior and health. Some of these changes are the natural signs of aging while others should be considered signals that help might be needed in the home. But if our loved ones don’t ask for help directly, how will we know if living alone is no longer an option for them? Encouraging open conversations should always be the first step. Talking with family members, friends and doctors will begin to open doors of understanding for all involved. However, to ensure the safety
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Determining the level of care your aging loved one needs
When the people closest to us in life begin to show signs of aging, it’s natural to question what that means for their current and future well-being. And when those questions arise, open lines of communication should quickly be established. In an earlier Freedom Home Care blog post, we looked at PBS’s Caring for your Parents web page, which said that “ideally these conversations should happen before there is a crisis.” If an elder's ability to do certain things begins to diminish, it’s important to talk openly and soon, keeping in mind that often, they will be relieved to talk
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How to be at ease with a new in-home caregiver
Family members will often take on the added responsibility of taking care of an aging loved so as to not bring a caregiver into the home. Often the burden can be too great, but because of apprehension surrounding potential in-home care candidates, family members feel that they do not have any other choice. essay writing By understanding the demographics of the caregiver community, however, and by knowing the high level of standards placed on Freedom Home Care during the hiring process, we hope to diminish some of those uncertainties. As we here at Freedom Home Care have explained in past
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Sharing stories of caregiving excellence
We here at Freedom Home Care frequent the AARP website on a regular basis. We’ve found that it’s a great resource for anyone over the age of 50. Whether it be for health-related concerns, retirement questions or even travel recommendations, the folks at AARP have us covered. Today, while we were perusing the site, we stumbled on a call-to-action that piqued our attention. AARP places a lot of importance on the caregivers in our aging loved ones’ lives and have asked that visitors to the site share their personal stories about those integral people. “If you have a story that you
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Asking the right questions regarding in-home care
Communication is truly the key to a successful in-home-care environment. As we mentioned in yesterday’s post, developing a plan before the need arises can ease the stress involved with transitioning into one’s twilight years. Therefore, creating an open forum for discussion within the family is essential when it comes to the specifics of everyday care. According to the Family Caregiver Alliance, the first step in exploring care options is identifying what is most important to your aging loved one. “Projecting into the future is difficult, but it is important to educate yourself about choices and communicate how you feel about
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The NCOA debunks the myths of older adult falls
The National Council on Aging is a great resource for older individuals as well as for the people who take care of them. Therefore, we here at Freedom Home Care tend to visit the NCOA’s website with a fair amount of frequency. When we stumbled on the article, “Debunking the Myths of Older Adult Falls,” we knew we had to share it with the regular visitors of our blogs. We hope you find it to be as enlightening as we did: Myth 1: Falling happens to other people, not to me. Reality: Many people think, “It won't happen to me.” But
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Feel comfortable and confident with your loved one's caregiver
When your loved one opens his or her home to a new caregiver, the No. 1 hope is for that individual to become not only an aid but a friend, as well. A recent study, however, revealed that hiring a caregiver can open up the unfortunate opportunity to a host of concerns. The study, recently published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society and funded by the National Institute on Aging, revealed poor hiring and screening practices by home-care agencies around the nation. According to an article published by NextAvenue.com, which summarized the study’s findings, including the responses of 180
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The joy of knitting
In this video, Jane Pauley introduces viewers to Betsy Lee McCarthy, knitting extraordinaire. McCarthy was such an avid knitter, in fact, that she left her high-paying day job at age 57 in order to launch a new career – and one that she considered her life-long passion. Making the transition wasn’t easy, but McCarthy was finally able to make financial sense out of her life-changing decision. She wrote the book Knit Socks, and it sold an astounding 65,000 copies. And although McCarthy hasn’t officially retired, she is teac buy cheap levitra online hing the craft to many who are. Take
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10 facts about the nation's aging population
In a report published by the National Institute on Aging, it was said that we as a planet are living longer and healthier lives. And although this is a testament to better diets, better living conditions and an overall better understanding of the human body and what it needs to live to its fullest, an older population also carries significant challenges with it. “Longer lives must be planned for,” the report reminds us. “Societal aging may affect economic growth and many other issues, including the sustainability of families, the ability of states and communities to provide resources for older citizens,
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