Caring for an elderly loved one can take a toll on everyone involved. It can be stressful and even cause resentment to build up. Although it’s not an ideal situation, most people try to keep their loved ones out of assisted living communities for as long as possible. Although understandable, this isn’t necessary. Geriatric care has come a long way from what it used to be, but it still gets a bad wrap. Here are some of the things that most senior living options have to offer your loved one, should you decide to move them in.
An Abundance of Activities
Most facilities have a ton of things to offer the residents. Sit down activities like cards, bingo, arts and crafts and other things are readily available as well as higher activity level things like golf, tennis and walking or hiking trails can also be found at a lot of the assisted living facilities these days. They understand the importance of staying active even as you get older. If your loved one has a particular interest or hobby, you could probably talk to the facilities manager and see if there is something you can do to add that to the list so they can continue whatever their ‘thing’ is.
Healthy and Regular Meals
One of the main signs that your loved one needs to go into a nursing home is that they are not eating properly. You may notice that they are losing weight or that there is no food in the fridge. At a good geriatric care center, there will be established times designated for eating and the food will be nutritious, healthy and age appropriate. They are also usually willing to work with each individual to make sure that they are getting any nutrients that they are deficient in. For example, if your loved one is anemic, they will receive iron rich foods along with their supplements to make sure they get what they need.
Social Interaction
Staying social is important. A lot of times, the elderly prefer to be left alone but this is not good for them. This is when they get grouchy and irritable. Being surrounded by people and by opportunities to socialize is good for their mental health. It is also good for you because it means that you do not have the responsibility of being their sole entertainment 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Surely you have heard those cute stories of a man and a woman meeting in their geriatric care home and getting married; it really happens.
24 Hour Care
This is probably the most important part of geriatric care. They need to have someone available at all times to tend to them if necessary. If your loved one needs help showering, using the restroom even getting a glass of water plus other things that would require middle of the night assistance, there will be someone available to help them. The great thing about most facilities is that while they are there to help, they understand the importance of still allowing the residents to have a certain amount of independence. Balance is key.
The truth is, your parents dedicated their lives to raising you and helping you and teaching you for a good portion of your life. Now that you don’t need their help, they want to be able to enjoy a good relationship with you. It’s hard for them that the one they once taught, is now helping them with tasks like tying shoelaces and eating dinner. This can be especially hard on mothers, who still want to be the nurturer and the one taking care of you. Alleviate that stress, embarrassment or other negative feeling by allowing them to settle down in a nursing home. This will open the door to a great relationship between you and them again. It may have gotten strained while you were caring for them, but once they are living in an assisted living home, you won’t have to worry about that anymore. You can start fresh and take your time investing in good memories with the time you have left with them.
