Take My Hand At Home

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The holidays are coming ―  Here’s how to include your elderly loved ones.

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The holiday season ― that wonderful time of fun, friendship and family ― is fast approaching. For the elderly loved ones in your life, the holidays can be special treats, times when they can feel particularly close to family as they reminisce about holidays gone by.

To help ensure that they ― and you ― fully enjoy the holidays, here are a few things you can do to keep your elderly loved ones involved this Thanksgiving and Christmas season.

Set aside tasks that they can help with. During the holidays, make a special point of creating and reserving tasks that your elderly loved ones can take part in. Baking and decorating, for example, can get them involved while helping them feel useful.

Visit them, wherever they are. The elderly who have trouble getting around or who live in nursing homes often are at the mercy of others during the holidays. Make a special point of visiting with grandpa and spending some time together. Bring some fresh-baked gingerbread cookies and a board game, or just sit and chat, bringing him up to speed on the days since you’ve last connected. More tips for combating elder loneliness during the holidays.

Help them use technology to connect.

Oftentimes there are family members who live too far away to visit in person during the holidays. Set up an elderly loved one with a simple tablet computer and access to the Internet so they can use email and interact with family via video chats. Technology can be overwhelming for the elderly, so keep it simple. Start with one app for email and one app for video messaging.

Pool resources for extra assistance. Another great help for the elderly (and for the rest of the family) during the holiday season is the extra assistance provided by part-time caregivers. If you know you’re going to be busier than usual during the holidays (and who isn’t!), consider pooling resources with siblings to provide additional caregiving for mom or dad. This can free up your time to accomplish additional tasks while ensuring that your loved ones are properly cared for. Take My Hand At-Home Care offers a wide variety of eldercare services.

Take My Hand At-Home Care has been offering top-notch care services for the elderly in Whatcom County for many years. From three-hour visits to 24-hour live-in assistance, our licensed, bonded and insured caregivers offer options to meet nearly every need. Contact us today to get started.

 

Hydration, monitoring can help prevent health issues

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Urinary tract infections. They’re surprisingly easy to get, and they can have surprisingly profound effects on the body.

Thankfully, they can be just as easy enough to prevent, as we’ll discuss in a bit.

But first:

What are UTIs, and how do they affect the elderly?

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) occur when bacteria gain a foothold somewhere in the urinary tract, which consists of the kidneys, ureters, bladder and urethra. The most likely culprit is Escherichia coli (E. coli), but a number of other bacteria can also cause a UTI.

The bacteria, having gained entrance to the urinary tract, overcome the body’s defenses and multiply — and a UTI is born.

Especially in the elderly, urinary tract infections can cause a number of problems, from painful urination and low-grade fever all the way up to kidney failure.

UTIs also can cause dizziness, confusion, falling and even hallucinations in the elderly; these symptoms often cause a UTI to be mistaken for the early stages of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. In fact, a UTI is usually one of the first things a doctor tests for in elderly patients who seem confused or disoriented.

How to prevent a UTI

The simplest and most effective way to prevent infections of the urinary tract is to drink lots of water. Especially during the summer, when it’s easier to become dehydrated, it’s important to drink water often — from a half-gallon to a gallon a day, unless a doctor says otherwise.

It can also be helpful to have the services of an at-home nursing assistant, someone who can look out for some of the symptoms of a UTI and get help before the infection worsens. An assistant in the home, such as a licensed caregiver from Take My Hand At-Home Care, can notice the signs of a UTI and get in touch with a doctor for a checkup.

Remember: Stay hydrated!

This summer, as temperatures heat up, it’s especially important that the elderly drink plenty of water. It’s good for the body and one of the most sure-fire ways to prevent a urinary tract infection.

if you can’t be around to check on elderly loved ones, consider hiring a licensed caregiver. With Take My Hand At-Home Care, family and friends of the elderly in Whatcom County can be confident that their loved ones are getting the best at-home care possible.

Top 3 caregiving tips for spouses

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Caring for a spouse can provide tender and enjoyable moments. It can also be an immense challenge.

Based on our experience as a licensed caregiving company in Whatcom County, here are three tips for making the best of caring for a loved one:

  1. Choose to see the situation for what it is. It can be easy for spousal caregivers to focus on negatives and play the “what if” game. Instead, choose to be positive, to be realistic. Take a step back, assess the situation and find opportunities to be thankful. Getting to spend extra time with your spouse, for one thing, is a treasure ― even if you don’t always feel that way.

Tip: When you’re feeling less than positive, chatting with another person in your situation can sometimes make a difference. Northwest Adult Day Health, for example, offers a Caregiver Connection group in Lynden, and local senior centers often offer support groups for caregivers. A five-minute phone call to a friend or family member also can be an immense help.

  1. Find ways to enjoy the time together. What do you both love? Maybe it’s listening to music, going for walks, watching a baseball game or planting geraniums. Scheduling time each day for activities that you both enjoy can help remind both of you how much fun life can be with a partner.

Tip: Take time for yourself, too, to do what you love. Read a book, cook a special dinner, work on a crossword puzzle… Even if you feel you don’t have much time in your day to relax, a few minutes here and there can help.

  1. Take extended breaks. When a few minutes’ rest isn’t enough, schedule a longer break. Caring for a spouse can be a 24/7 job, but it doesn’t have to be. Find someone who can give you periodic breaks to rest, recharge and step out of the house.

Tip: Two eight-hour breaks each week can help. Regular, scheduled time off allows caregivers to rest from the pressure of caregiving and to get some other tasks done.

The licensed caregivers at Take My Hand At-Home Care offer a wide array of respite services for Whatcom County caregivers. Give us a call today to learn more about the benefits of hiring a caregiver for spousal respite. (And ask us what else we can do to help, such as make dinner or handle light housekeeping while you are taking a break.) Take My Hand also offers overnight care, for those times when you need to be away or just need a full night’s sleep.

We are here to help!

 

Rest up with overnight care!

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How much sleep do you need?

Odds are, it’s a little more than you think you need.

And it’s a lot more than you’re getting.

Recent research states that getting just six hours of sleep per night can, over time, be as bad as not getting any sleep at all.

So what’s a caregiver to do? When you’re responsible for another human life overnight, you can’t just decide to get more sleep. You’re stuck between a rock and a hard place, getting more desperate with every busy, sleepless night.

But there are solutions. If you’re struggling to get enough sleep every night, it’s time to re-evaluate your daily routines. Sleep is incredibly important for the human body. Here are a few things to try:

Daily exercise can help increase your ability to sleep. In addition, it’s great at reducing depression, which can sneak up on unsuspecting caregivers who are deprived of sleep and overburdened with work. Try not to work out too close to bedtime, as that can get your body too amped to sleep.

A regular bedtime routine can remind your body that it’s time to settle down for the night. Consistent, calming activities such as knitting, reading a book or taking a bath can — especially when done at the same time every night — be a massive help in preparing your body for downtime. Equally as important is getting up at a consistent time, too.

As much as possible, your room should be cool, dark and quiet. Not only will that help your body settle down for sleep, but it’ll prevent unnecessary waking during the night.

Cutting down on late-day meals or drinks laden with sugar or caffeine also can help. Ideally, you should be neither full nor hungry when you go to bed. And the less you drink right before bed, the less likely you’ll need to get up at night.

But sometimes there just isn’t time in the day to find exercise or consistent, quality downtime for your body. In situations like this, you have to be proactive and make time. This is where Take My Hand At Home Care can be a huge help. We offer eight-hour, overnight respite shifts so that you can sleep while we care for your loved one.

Does your mom wander at night? No problem, we can handle it. Does your spouse need frequent help at night going to the bathroom or taking medication? Don’t worry, we can take care of it.

Just give us a call, and we’ll chat about what you need and what Take My Hand can do to help you out. Hiring an overnight caregiver, even two or three times per week, can help you catch up on sleep so you’re rested and recharged for the day’s activities.

The talk: Hiring a caregiver for your parents

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So you’re worried about having “the talk” with your parents.

No, not that one. The other one.hands-578917_960_720

Maybe you’ve known for a while that your mom isn’t quite as independent as she used to be. Or maybe you drop by your dad’s place for a visit and discover that it’s not as clean as it usually is. Maybe it’s even a little dangerous, with various fall hazards strewn throughout the house. [Read more…]

6 tips for caregiving at home after a hospital stay.

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photo-1422190441165-ec2956dc9eccSo, your spouse needs to have surgery and you are ready, willing and eager to be their caregiver as they recover. That’s awesome—they are lucky you’re available to help!

You’ve taken a few days off of work, have a book to read or Netflix shows to catch up on while your partner is napping. The fridge has been stocked with groceries—you’re good to go, right?

Almost. There are some important things you should know as you take on the role of caregiver after a hospital discharge. [Read more…]

Help at home: An out-of-the-box gift idea that can make a difference

Approximately 85 percent of caregivers in the United States provide care for a family member or other loved one — mother, father, child, friend, grandparent — and spend, on average, between 24 and 40 hours per week at the task. And that’s often in addition to trying to hold down a job or take charge of other responsibilities. It’s a lot of work. Do you have a family caregiver? Or do you know … [Read More...]

ABOUT US

Sue Sorensen became involved with Whatcom County eldercare and aging-in-place services in 2009. She launched Take My Hand At-Home Care in January 2012 … Read More...

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