As we age, it becomes more apparent that life is not primarily about quantity but quality too. The standard of life for many seniors often deteriorates with aging. Seeing that they meet their medical needs is not enough. We must see that their emotional and mental needs are met to help them gain a positive view of life.
A positive view in life can alleviate some medical issues like lack of appetite, and energy, stress, and cognitive decline faced by seniors. For many seniors, continuing to live in their home and its environs in the long term plays an integral role in their quality of life. This is why an assistive home service and access to health care is an important part of a senior’s life.
Seniors that can sustain a sense of purpose are less vulnerable to cognitive impairment, strokes, heart attacks, and are more likely to live a longer life. Most of the problems that are correlated with aging are accelerated by the lack of meaning and purpose in a senior’s life which unfortunately can cause an unnecessary yielding to age. So, how can we improve the quality of life for our elderly loved ones?
1. Creating a Sense of Purpose
As initially stated, irrespective of a person’s age, a sense of belonging, purpose, and being valued is integral to a great quality of life. Senior adults face the challenge of being dismissed based on not having as much to render as they could when in their younger years. Unfortunately, the seniors too also adopt the same attitude about themselves.
In reality, seniors have a lot to offer in terms of creativity, knowledge, and love. However, they need to feel involved and respected to share with others. Help the seniors feel useful, show them that they are needed. Even though our aging loved ones may not manage to do tasks perfectly or even efficiently, it’s okay. The most important thing is that they contribute.
Ask for help in tasks such as:
- Organizing drawers.
- Folding laundry
- Opening the mail.
- Clipping coupons.
- Writing grocery or household to-do lists.
- Preparing dinner
- Keeping you updated on current news.
- Accompanying you to run errands such as shopping for errands.
2. Monitor and Treat Them for Depression
About seven million American adults aged 65 and above suffer from depression. Depression can be caused by commonly stressful life events in old age such as losing a spouse or close friends, loss of independence, retirement, or moving from their home to a seniors retirement home. Other times depression develops as a result of a medical condition and its medication’s side effects.
To ensure a senior has a good quality of life, you must notify the earliest signs of unhappiness and seek help from a therapist, psychologist, counselor, or doctor to treat depression. There are many forms of depression, but the following are the most common symptoms:
- Feelings of hopelessness
- Persistent sadness
- Irritability
- Fatigue
- Lose of interest
- Aches and pains without any physical cause
- Difficulty concentrating and sleeping
Depression is a grave, debilitating disorder that can affect the life of an aging senior. If your senior loved one shows any of the above symptoms, encourage them to seek treatment. Our elders are in a vulnerable stage in their lives and sadness in their mental activity poses a threat to their emotional and physical health. Fortunately, depression can be treated and with the right attention, your loved one can welcome a new mindset that will make their life fulfilling again.
3. Helping the Seniors stay connected with Friends, Family Members, and the Community
Seniors that are lonely and isolated, often have shorter lifespans and face a greater risk of dementia. To prevent your loved ones from feeling lonely and isolated, encourage and help them remain connected with those around them. Some suggestions include:
- Arranging for friends and family to visit, have a meal with, or go out with the senior regularly.
- Arranging their transportation to go to senior centers.
- Getting them involved in a hobby.
- Encouraging them to participate and attend parties such as graduations, holidays, and birthdays, etc.
- Encourage your loved one to volunteer with charity organizations, community work, or church.
4. Encouraging Regular Physical Activity For Healthy Living
Regular exercise, irrespective of its intensity, enhances mental stimulation, gives them more energy, and leaves the body feeling positive and balanced. Physical activity and exercise promote healthy aging by boosting the immune system, improves the quality of sleep, improves heart health and lowers blood pressure, relieve anxiety, and improves stamina and strength.
A great way to get some physical activity in is getting them to start a new hobby like crossword puzzles that stimulate the mind and any form of extremely moderate exercise.
How In-Home Care Services Improve Quality of Life For Older Adults
A personalized home care service is a great way to improve the life of seniors and relieve stress from the minds of their relative’s minds. The following is a highlight of these benefits:
- Allows the senior to maintain their independence: While independence is an incredibly vital tool of freedom for a senior, age-related deterioration, and medical conditions are great independence inhibitors. Lack of independence due to matters such as limited mobility often requires families to either live with their aging loved ones or move them to a nursing home.
However, seniors desire to be independent community members for as long as they can. While our aging loved ones may need some assistance in their day-to-day life activities, continuing to actively live in their homes gives them a sense of fulfillment. The Caring for Portland allows a senior to enjoy all the independence that comes with living in their home while offering the same assistance offered in senior centers.
The ability to perform daily life tasks offers older adults an increased sense of satisfaction which in turn improves the quality of life for seniors. Caring for Portland is tuned to improve the lives of your senior loved ones.
- Offers Security & Comfort: Even without moving out, aging itself can be quite a scary ordeal to go through. Unfortunately, aging often comes with deterioration of the health of our aging loved ones. Living in their home surrounded by their community in the long term makes the senior feel a layer of comfort that improves the quality of life for seniors.
A home, for people of all ages, offers a level of comfort and relief to its dwellers. The Caring for Portland enhances the home environment for the elderly by providing support services such as running errands amongst other caregiver services. Additionally, many relatives are often worried about the well-being of their loved ones when they are moved into senior homes. More specifically, when their loved one is suffering from a form of cognitive impairment such as Alzheimer’s, cognitive decline such as dementia, health issues such as blood pressure which places the elderly at greater risk.
The Caring for Portland In-Home Care Service relieves stress from relatives by assuming the roles offered in a nursing home and conducting them in a comfort zone for the senior.
- Reduces loneliness: A care service at home ensures that a senior’s daily routine and medical needs are met. Due to the one-on-one connection with the caregiver, the senior gets to receive personalized care. Aside from helping your loved ones maintain their routine life, personalized care will also offer them daily company. Caring for Portland offers support to the elderly as they cope with their condition which prevents the deterioration of their quality of life due to loneliness.
Contact Caring For Portland In-Home Care Services
Family members are often worried about taking care of the well-being of their loved one. Especially when their immune system has grown weaker and is suffering diseases such as heart disease. Making regular family visits and offering enough company to your senior loved ones may not always be feasible. Unfortunately, your inability to be present may make your loved one feel isolated. Caring for Portland is here to bridge that gap of social interaction needed to improve the quality of life for your senior. Contact us to create a program to guide the in-home care services you need to be curated to specifically suit your loved one.
