One of the saddest things about growing up is that we have to watch our parents age and get older.
They might not be quite as youthful and energetic as they were when you were a child, and might even start to suffer from a range of age-related health conditions and ailments.
Growing older can be tough for them, but they don’t have to go through it alone. After all, you will be there to help and care for them whenever they need any extra support.
Do you think it’s time that you started to do a bit more to help your ageing parents lead a comfortable life?
Taking Care Elderly Parents
Here is everything you can do to support your parents in their old age.
#TakingCareElderlyParents
1. Ask Them How They Are
It’s always nice to be asked how we are, no matter how old we might be. But this is an important question to ask your ageing parents as it can help to open up important conversations.
This is their chance to let you know if they have any worries or would like to ask you to help them in some way.
Some elderly people don’t open up about ageing and the problems they face, so asking them about it can give them the chance to let you know their thoughts.
2. Reduce Risks In The Home
Many old people become frail when on their feet and can easily lose their balance. So, it’s a good idea to go around your parents’ home and see if there are any risks or hazards that you can remove from their path.
Usually, this will just involve cleaning up any clutter.
It might also be necessary to add some home adaptations to help them get around, such as handrails and ramps.
If they’re really struggling at home, it might be worth considering home care assistance.
3. Consider Finding Them Dedicated Care
If your parents are particularly frail or ill, then they might need the dedicated care of professionals.
For instance, if your parents are still able to live in their home, then you might want to arrange nurses to go around and visit them a few times through the week. The nurses can help them with certain tasks and chores so that they can carry on with their independent lives.
However, your parents might need to move into a retirement home if they struggle at home even with nurses. That way, they can benefit from around-the-clock care.
4. Help Them Stay Active
We all need to exercise on a regular basis, even once we are in our senior years.
So, it’s a good idea to encourage your parents to try to be as active as possible. This will help them lead a healthy life.
You should also help them stay socially active as well. For instance, you might want to offer them a lift to a club meeting. This helps them stay in contact with people and then they won’t end up feeling isolated and lonely.
As you can see, there are many ways you can help your ageing parents.
Do you have any other great advice that could be useful to other readers?
Image Source: Pixabay
Taking care of our parents can be a full-time job, well at least in my current world. Thank you for identifying the important factors to simple steps that can make a huge difference when helping your elderly and ailing parents.
I have to agree, that keeping your parents in their own home as long as possible is so important for them, especially as their years are slowly declining to the “independence” we all favor.
As the years continue to pass, my time has increased in making sure they are both comfortable as possible and when injuries occur (which they will from time-to-time when they stay in their homes), you can identify the areas of the home not working to their benefit.
For instance, my Mother lost her footing a couple months back while using her walker inside her home and landed on her knee cap (the same leg she broke a couple years back) and it has set her back in many ways. Now, she is using a wheel chair to move around small areas so her kneecap will hopefully heel sooner than later.
If it wasn’t for the Home Health services provided to her by qualified nursing staff, she would most likely have to heal in a rehab center, which are not the best of places to be when you have pre-existing health problems.
Thank you for sharing this article, it confirmed for me, that I am helping my parents achieve the independence they deserve.
Hi Carrie
Wonderful to hear from you. Thank you so much for popping by to read my post and leave such a detailed comment.
I think it’s beautiful that you care so deeply about your parent’s independence.
I love that my Mom still has her independence but unfortunately for my Dad, it became fair near impossible to continue to care for him at home.
He is in the end stages of Lewy Body Disease, which is a form of Dementia closest to Parkinson’s and he can’t do much for himself anymore. We would have had to employ a day and night Nurse to keep him at home and they would have struggled on their own. Even though My Dad is very thin, it takes 2 nurses in Frail Care to get him up from his chair or bed and into a wheelchair.
I think it’s terribly sad that he can’t be home in the last few months of his life but most of the time he’s not aware of his surroundings anyway. For him, we had no alternative than full-time Frail Care. The good part is, my Mom lives literally a few steps away from the entrance to Frail Care.
I feel my parents were very wise to prepare for all this when they were younger. They were on a waiting list for this retirement village for years.
Your post was very helpful! As a sick and aging boomer, I value my freedom (yea, 60’s!) more than just about anything. Glad you are so kind and respectful. AJ