If you’re managing the majority of care for your aging parents while your siblings remain uninvolved, you’re not alone. Caregiving can be a lonely journey, and many family caregivers find themselves carrying the burden without much help from other family members. In fact, a recent AARP report revealed that 50 percent of family caregivers are providing care alone. Understanding why this is such a common occurrence—and how to protect your…
How Elder Mediation for Families Can Help Resolve Conflicts
When you’re working together to make sure the needs of your older parents are satisfied, even the closest siblings could find themselves in contradiction. Stress and emotions are, obviously, running high. Add to that your past family dynamics and history, which have a tendency to resurface in the midst of challenging times, and it’s easy to see how problematic this phase in life can be for each of you.
Mom’s Coming Home from the Hospital: Can We Handle Her Home Care Alone?
Your 90-year-old mother, who has been living independently, recently experienced a fall that resulted in a cracked pelvis. After spending time in the hospital, she is finally coming home from the hospital today. As you quickly go over her release paperwork, you begin to feel a wave of anxiety wash over you. The list of responsibilities is long and daunting: picking up prescriptions, arranging transportation for physical therapy sessions, scheduling…
What Is Vestibular Rehabilitation and How Does It Help?
Living with balance and dizziness issues can be incredibly unsettling. Imagine feeling unsteady on your feet, as if the ground might slip away at any moment, or experiencing sudden, disorienting spins that leave you dizzy and nauseous. These symptoms can severely impact daily life, making simple tasks like walking or turning your head feel challenging and risky. Vestibular rehabilitation offers a lifeline, helping to restore balance, confidence, and independence.
End-of-Life Nutrition Challenges and How to Shift the Focus to Comfort
As your loved one approaches the end of life, you may find that each moment spent with them takes on new significance. One of the more challenging changes you might witness is their declining interest in food and drink. It can be painful to watch someone you care about go through end-of-life nutrition challenges, especially when it feels like you’re unable to help. Understanding why these changes happen and focusing…
What to Expect and How to Help With Alzheimer’s End-of-Life Care
Though caring for a loved one near the end of life is always deeply personal, Alzheimer’s end-of-life introduces unique challenges that require a more nuanced approach. The unpredictable progression of dementia makes it essential to adapt your understanding and caregiving strategies, as the journey does not follow the typical patterns seen in other terminal illnesses.
How to Overcome the Stigma Surrounding Mental Health in Aging Parents
Mental health awareness is crucial at every stage of life, but it takes on added significance as our parents grow older. For many older adults, discussing mental health can be particularly challenging due to deep-seated stigmas and the values they were raised with. It’s important to understand why older loved ones are often reluctant to talk about mental health, and recognizing the signs that they might be struggling can help…
Older Adults and Substance Abuse: Could Your Parent Be at Risk?
Coming to a Place of Acceptance About a Chronic Health Condition
In Isaac Asimov’s opinion, “The easiest way to solve a problem is to deny it exists.” It’s a common sentiment for a number of family caregivers when their loved one is diagnosed with a chronic health condition, such as dementia. And even though this can generate some measure of comfort in thinking that life can go on as it always has if only we refuse to accept this new reality,…
How to Help an Older Loved One Living With Chronic Pain
Think about how it would be like to wake up each day, greeted by the relentless reminder of unyielding pain. From the moment you get out of bed to every step you take throughout the day, you experience discomfort. Even falling asleep is a challenge as the pain lingers. This is the stark reality for millions of people who are living with chronic pain. In the U.S. alone, as many…