Wisdom Wednesday: Aging Wisdom's Podcast
Welcome to Wisdom Wednesday, a short, bite-size podcast offering weekly wisdom and insights for aging well, caring well, and living well.
Picking Your Battles: We cannot wrap our parents or others we care about in bubble wrap to keep them perfectly safe nor can we sit by idly allowing dad to put others at risk by driving beyond the point of doing it safely. How can we best help them?
Caregiving is hard work. Managing it all can be challenging, on top of everything else: work, other family relationships, personal commitments, and finding time for yourself. In the midst of it all, we need to remind ourselves to take time to engage in a mood shifter that can become a mood lifter. These are the little things we can do throughout the course of a tough day to help put it all in perspective. Not burn out. Lift our mood.
It’s not uncommon for family caregivers to experience depression, isolation, and increased rates of chronic health conditions. This is why recognizing and addressing caregiver burnout and setting healthy boundaries are priorities. As a family care partner, it’s essential to recognize the warning signs of caregiver burnout, as well as healthy and effective strategies for managing caregiver stress before it turns into burnout.
Have you ever tried talking with your parent or partner about concerns you have regarding their health or memory? Were your concerns dismissed, minimized, or completely shut down? As Aging Life Care professionals, we address this issue frequently: the person you care about may be experiencing “lack of insight.”
Talking with our parent/s or others we care about regarding their health or other topics of concern can be difficult. And it can often be met with resistance or dismissal. But it’s necessary and important, especially if you are seeing worrisome signs of cognitive or physical change.
This is an evergreen topic. It’s not unusual for adult children to engage us for a consultation when they become aware of uncharacteristic changes in an older person they care about and/or are concerned about their safety.
Lack of insight is one reason an older adult may be resistant to accepting help and support. They simply don’t see the need. They are not aware of the changes that others are seeing nor how they could benefit from assistance. With anosognosia, or lack of insight, the frontal lobe of the brain is impaired. […]
Reluctance to spend money is often one of the top barriers to getting parents the help they need. Money discussions can be uncomfortable, especially with our parents.
The topic of moving may prompt your parent to bristle at the suggestion. They resist the idea for a myriad of reasons: Home is familiar. They’re overwhelmed by all their stuff. Change is hard. The uncertainty is scary.
Sometimes the resistance stems from an outdated perception of a retirement community. They envision the old hospital-model nursing home. “You won’t ship me off to a home,” is a common response. Don’t let an outdated view of senior housing keep the person in your care from exploring what could be a life changing and life enriching move.
It can also be anxiety-provoking to contemplate how you will help your parents organize their belongings and move from a single-family home or condo to an apartment or room at a retirement community. The challenge might even cause you to ignore or delay the issue all together. Planning ahead with a few simple steps can help you help your older loved ones make peace with their “stuff.”