Five Ideas for Managing Arthritis Pain

Posted in Caregiver in Elba AL, Elder Care in Elba AL |

June 18, 2020

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Arthritis pain is something that can come and go for your senior. When she’s in the midst of a flare, your senior’s joints may be hot, swollen, and red. She may find it difficult to move the affected joints at all, much less do any of her regular activities. That’s part of what can be so difficult about arthritis and never knowing when a flare is going to happen.

 

Elder Care in Elba AL: Managing Arthritis Pain

Elder Care in Elba AL: Managing Arthritis Pain

 

Start with Your Senior’s Doctor

As with any medical issue, you want to start with your senior’s doctor. Your elderly family member’s doctor can give you detailed information about how arthritis affects her specifically. There may be medical therapies that your senior can use in addition to these ideas.

 

Alternate Heat and Ice

Ice and heat are both helpful for arthritis pain. Alternating those two methods is highly effective, but you need to make sure that you’re not using either for too long. For heat, make sure that the heating pad or hot pack is not too hot and put a towel or some type of cloth between the pack and your senior’s skin. Ice is cold, but it can also burn delicate skin. Make sure that there is some sort of fabric barrier with ice packs, too.
Consider Massage

Massage helps to move fluid through your senior’s joints and tissues, which can help to warm up the joints and keep them limber. Your senior may also learn some specific stretches and movements that help her to experience less pain. Massage can be a way to ease your senior into becoming more active.

 

Exercise Does Help

Moving, much less exercising, may feel to your senior like the last thing she wants to do when her arthritis is flaring up. But it really can be helpful. Exercise helps to strengthen the muscles around the joints, which supports them when they’re feeling weak and painful.

 

Get Some Extra Help

When your elderly family member is experiencing more pain than usual, she may find it difficult to handle some of the tasks that aren’t a problem when she’s not in the middle of an arthritis flare. Senior care providers can make a huge difference for your elderly family member on those days.

Finding the right combination of treatments for your senior’s arthritis pain is really important. There may be solutions that work better at certain times of the year, so you may need to adjust periodically to account for other contributing factors.

If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Elder Care in Elba, AL, please contact the caring staff at Wiregrass HomeCare today. Call us at 334-539-5900.

Helping Your Senior to Accept Help

Posted in Elder Care in Enterprise AL, Home Care in Enterprise AL |

June 12, 2020

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Part of growing older is that unfortunately, your senior is going to need some help. That can be a tough truth to swallow, though. In fact, your elderly family member may be very against having help from outside sources at all.

 

Home Care in Enterprise AL: Senior Accepting Help

Home Care in Enterprise AL: Senior Accepting Help

 

Pay Attention to How You’re Phrasing Things

Sometimes it’s all in how you say something that makes the biggest difference. For your senior, hearing that she should accept more help or that she has to let someone come in and help her can feel as if she’s losing control over parts of her life. Or it can feel as if you no longer trust her to take care of herself. When you’re careful with your phrasing, you can help to alleviate some of those concerns.

 

Listen to Your Senior’s Thoughts and Opinions

It’s crucial for you to listen to your senior’s thoughts and feelings on this topic. If she feels like you’re ignoring her or glossing over what she’s telling you, that’s going to compound the problems. You’re going to need to really listen and show her that you understand. That’s going to go a lot farther.

 

Make This an Easy Transition

When you bring elder care providers in to help, do what you can to make that a slow and easy transition. Stay there while elder care providers are there. Start out with visits every couple of weeks at first. Maybe keep the visits themselves short as well.

 

Put a Time Limit on Things

Something else that you can do is to set a time limit for the entire experience. For example, at the front end, you might tell your elderly family member that this is something you’ll both can try out for the next six months. That helps her to see that there is an end date, and if she wants to stick with that, you can when that time comes.

 

Keep the Conversation Positive

When you do talk about how elder care services are going for your senior, do what you can to remain positive about the situation. She may still have some negative feelings about the experience, but if you follow that mood you may not be able to win her over even if she does need the help.

It’s difficult for some people to accept that they need help now. If your elderly family member has always been fiercely independent, it’s going to take some time for her to adjust. Be there for her as she finally accepts and learns to enjoy having some extra assistance.

 

If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Home Care in Enterprise, AL, please contact the caring staff at Wiregrass HomeCare today. Call us at 334-539-5900.

What Does Vitamin D Have to Do with Kidney Health?

Posted in Caregiver in Elba AL, Home Care in Elba AL |

May 20, 2020

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More than 50 percent of people in the United States don’t get enough vitamin D. You may know that vitamin D has been linked to bone health since it helps the body to absorb calcium. However, what you may not know is that it is also important to kidney health.

 

Homecare in Elba AL: Vitamin D and Kidney Health

Homecare in Elba AL: Vitamin D and Kidney Health

 

The Link Between Vitamin D and Kidneys

People get vitamin D from three sources: the sun, food, or supplements. The kidneys help the body to turn the vitamin D it takes in from the sun or from supplements into its active form, a substance the body can use.

Often, people with chronic kidney disease are very deficient in vitamin D, sometimes severely so. The reason for this is that as kidneys become more and more damaged, they are not as effective in turning vitamin D into its active form. Elderly people with kidney disease seem to be among those especially susceptible to vitamin D deficiency.

Because vitamin D can be an issue for seniors with kidney disease, a doctor may suggest they take a supplement, even in the early stages. In addition, family caregivers can help older adults to support kidney health by serving foods that are rich in vitamin D. Some good sources are:

  • Cheese.
  • Beef liver.
  • Fatty fish, such as tuna, mackerel, and salmon.
  • Egg yolks.
  • Foods that have been fortified with vitamin D, like certain dairy products, orange juice, and cereal.

Other Ways to Support Kidney Health

In addition to eating foods that contain vitamin D, there are plenty of things seniors can do to improve their kidney health, such as:

-Exercise: Exercising regularly can support kidney health through weight loss and lowering blood pressure.

-Control Blood Sugar: Uncontrolled blood sugar can harm the tissues in the kidneys.

-Keep an Eye on Blood Pressure: Having blood pressure that is consistently higher than 140/90 can also damage the kidneys.

-Stay Hydrated: Drinking plenty of water helps the kidneys to flush toxins from the body.

If your older family member has chronic kidney disease, home care can help them to maintain, and perhaps improve, their kidney health. A home care provider can prepare meals that are balanced and healthy as well as including foods that contain vitamin D. Home care providers can also help your older family member to exercise by doing things like taking walks with them or driving them to an exercise class or facility. Home care providers can also remind the older adult to take medications or supplements suggested by the doctor for managing kidney problems.

 

If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Healthcare in Elba, AL, please contact the caring staff at Wiregrass HomeCare today. Call us at 334-539-5900.

 

Sources
https://www.kidney.org/news/
https://www.webmd.com/
https://www.healthline.com/

How to Clean Hands and Household Surfaces to Avoid COVID-19

Posted in Elder Care in Eufaula AL, Home Care in Eufaula AL |

May 8, 2020

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended several steps to protect people from contracting the COVID-19 virus. Two of those things are washing hands and disinfecting surfaces. These steps may not seem difficult, but many people don’t do them correctly so that they are effective in eliminating germs.

 

Elder Care in Eufaula AL: Proper Steps for Hand Washing

Elder Care in Eufaula AL: Proper Steps for Hand Washing

 

Proper Steps for Hand Washing

Hand washing is important in protecting seniors from the COVID-19 virus because germs can be transferred from hands into the body when the older adult touches their face. The CDC recommends washing hands at these times:

  • Before, during, and after cooking.
  • Before eating.
  • After using the bathroom.
  • After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.

 

There are five steps involved in thoroughly washing hands. They are:

  1. Wet hands with clean running water (the temperature doesn’t matter) and apply soap.
  2. Lather all parts of the hands, including the backs and between fingers.
  3. Scrub hands for at least 20 seconds. That’s about as long as it takes to sing “Happy Birthday” twice.
  4. Thoroughly rinse hands under running water.
  5. Dry hands using a clean towel or by air-drying them.

Seniors may also need to apply lotion often after washing hands since their skin dries out easily. Since they are likely washing hands more often during the pandemic, it might be a good idea to keep a bottle of hand lotion near the sink.

 

How to Disinfect Surfaces

To prevent germs from being transferred from frequently touched surfaces, the CDC suggest disinfecting them often.

Frequently touched surfaces include:

  • Tables
  • Hard-backed chairs
  • Doorknobs
  • Light switches
  • Phones
  • Tablets
  • Remote controls
  • Keyboards
  • Handles
  • Toilet
  • Sinks

If the surface is visibly dirty, it should be washed with detergent or soap before disinfecting it. Afterward, use an EPA registered cleaner for disinfecting and follow the instructions on the label. Bleach is also an effective disinfectant. It should first be diluted with water. To make a bleach solution, mix one-third cup of bleach with a gallon of water.

 

How Elderly Care Can Help

Elderly care can assist with both of these important steps for protecting your older family member from the COVID-19 virus. An elderly care provider can remind the elder adult to wash their hands often. They can also observe the senior while they wash to ensure they are doing a thorough job. In addition, elderly care can disinfect surfaces in your loved one’s house regularly, using whatever disinfectant cleaner the senior prefers or a bleach solution.

 

If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Elder Care in Eufaula, AL, please contact the caring staff at Wiregrass HomeCare today. Call us at 334-539-5900.

 

Sources
Cdc.gov
Cdc.gov

Simple Crafts That Keep Your Mom and Children Occupied

Posted in Home Care in Elba AL, Home Health Care in Elba AL |

April 24, 2020

| by

Maybe there’s a virus going around your house that has your family staying inside. Maybe the weather isn’t cooperating. For whatever reason, your children and mom are stuck inside and getting bored. It’s hard to get things done around the house when your family is bored.

 

Home Health Care in Elba AL: Senior Crafts

Home Health Care in Elba AL: Senior Crafts

 

Instead of letting the boredom continue, get them involved in simple crafts that all ages can do. These crafts are all easy for children and adults and keep people occupied for hours.

 

Melted Crayon Art

Sharpen a bunch of crayons using a hand-held sharpener. Set the crayon shavings aside on small sheets of wax paper. Set those wax paper squares on a table with some sheets of paper.

Have your mom and children place the crayon shavings on a sheet of paper in whatever design appeals to them. Cover the artwork with the second sheet of paper. Carefully carry the paper to an ironing board and iron the paper so that the crayon shavings melt. Pull off the top piece of paper to reveal the crayon art.

 

Origami

You don’t need much to get started with origami. Paper squares and instructions that you can print out online gets you started. From there, it’s all a matter of following the instructions when it comes to folding the paper into different animals or objects.

Origami paper is sold in packets at craft stores. You can also make squares from magazines, wrapping paper, and junk mail. You’ll need scissors to cut them into squares.

 

Painted Rocks

Gather rocks while you’re out walking. Bring them home and soak them in a bleach and water solution and scrub away any dirt. Once they’re clean, allow them to fully dry.

Cover a table in a newspaper or a vinyl tablecloth to protect the wood. A selection of paintbrushes and cotton swabs provide the tools needed to paint. Use a styrofoam egg tray or several small paper cups and fill them with different paint colors.

Your mom and kids can paint the rocks and transform them into little creatures, flowers, or other objects. Once dried, they can go into your gardens to add splashes of color.

 

Are you struggling to get everything done when you’re a family caregiver? Have you considered hiring caregivers to help your parents out? If you’re balancing the care of your children and your parents, which is common in the sandwich generation, caregivers are important. Call a home care agency to help your parents so that you can focus on family.

 

If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Home Health Care in Elba, AL, please contact the caring staff at Wiregrass HomeCare today. Call us at 334-539-5900.

What is “Do the Five?”

Posted in Caregiver in Headland AL, Home Care Services in Headland AL |

April 8, 2020

| by

Have you heard or seen Google’s “Do the Five” promotion. It’s a public awareness campaign the company has posted on its home page in cooperation with the World Health Organization. The goal is to make people aware that the best way to avoid spreading coronavirus is by practicing five important things.

 

Home Care Services in Headland AL: Do the Five

Home Care Services in Headland AL: Do the Five

 

 

#1 – Wash Your Hands Often

The most important thing is to wash your hands. Wash your hands for 20 seconds ensuring the soap gets between the fingers and under the fingernails. Scrub thoroughly for the full 20 seconds before rinsing in water that’s as hot as you can stand.

When it comes to how long COVID-19 lasts on surfaces, there is some uncertainty. The CDC says that the agency is learning new things about the disease regularly but to clean surfaces in your home each day. The U.S. Department of Health’s NIH says it can last on surfaces for several hours.

Keep washing hands or using hand sanitizer after you touch anything outside of your home, after you cough/sneeze or blow your nose, and constantly while preparing food. Moisturize if your skin’s getting dry.

 

#2 – Cough or Sneeze Into Your Elbow

If you have to cough or sneeze, turn your head and cough into your elbow. That helps keep the spray from a cough or sneeze from spreading. If you have a tissue nearby, use that and throw it out immediately after.

 

#3 – Don’t Touch Your Face

This one can be tough. If your nose is itching or you have dry skin or a skin condition like rosacea that makes your skin itchy, do not scratch or touch your face. If you absolutely cannot stand it and must, go wash your hands first and wash your hands after, too.

 

#4 – Keep Your Distance

While Google and WHO’s public health announcement says to stay more than three feet apart, the CDC recommends staying at least six feet apart. Keep your distance from others. If you’re taking a walk, cross the street if someone else is coming in your direction. In a store, keep that six-foot gap between you and other shoppers.

 

#5 – Stay Home if You Feel Sick

The symptoms of coronavirus are cough, fever, and shortness of breath. They can take anywhere from 2 to 14 days to appear after you’re exposed. If you have any of them or learn you were near someone who’s been diagnosed with COVID-19, stay at home. Do not go anywhere.

Call your doctor for advice. Seek medical treatment if your symptoms worsen to chest pain or pressure, a bluish tinge to the lips or face, confusion or difficulty staying awake, or difficulty breathing.

 

It’s important that your parents stay isolated at this time. That may mean staying away from them. If you can’t stop by, hire senior care services to check on them as often as is needed. Senior care aides can deliver groceries, pick up prescription refills, and make sure your parents are okay.

 

If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Home Care Services in Headland, AL, please contact the caring staff at Wiregrass HomeCare today. Call us at 334-539-5900.

 

Sources:
Nih.gov
Cdc.gov

How Do You Handle Mistakes When You’re a Caregiver?

Posted in Caregiver in Headland AL, Home Care in Headland AL |

March 17, 2020

| by

If you’re someone who gets upset at even the smallest mistakes, you might find it difficult to get used to being a caregiver. The truth is that caregivers, just like other people, are going to make mistakes. What you do about those mistakes is what might be an even bigger question, though.

 

Home Care in Headland AL: Handle Mistakes as a Caregiver

Home Care in Headland AL: Handle Mistakes as a Caregiver

 

It’s Unrealistic to Expect Yourself to Be Perfect

Lots of caregivers make the mistake of expecting themselves to be perfect. That’s unreasonable and it’s not going to happen. If you’re striving for perfection, that’s an admirable goal, but you’re going to frustrate yourself and your senior. Learn how to let go of that desire to do and to be perfect, because it’s just going to cause you to continue to feel bad about making mistakes. Mistakes are a normal part of being human.

 

Use Mistakes as a Learning Tool 

When you can let go of perfectionism it becomes a lot easier to see mistakes as the opportunity that they are. Mistakes can be a powerful learning tool that helps you to see where you need more information and guidance. There’s a lot about being a caregiver that involves consistently learning more about everything from your senior’s needs to her health issues. The more you learn, the better. 

 

Another Source of Information Is Having Some Expert Help

There’s a lot that you can learn on your own and that’s definitely important. But there’s also a lot you can learn from someone who has more experience than you have with caregiving. Hiring home care providers is a great way to give yourself and your senior a helping hand and a wellspring of knowledge. Home care providers can help you to figure out what you most need to know and to understand to be of the most help to your senior.

 

Don’t Say Mean Things to Yourself

One of the most important things to know about making mistakes is that if you beat yourself up or say mean things to yourself, that’s not going to help you at all. No one responds well to someone, even themselves, berating them for a simple error. Try to remember to be gentle with yourself and to allow yourself to be human.

If you can get past the fear you have around doing something wrong or incorrectly for your elderly family member you’re going to become a much more confident and effective caregiver for her.

 

If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Home Care in Headland, AL, please contact the caring staff at Wiregrass HomeCare today. Call us at 334-539-5900.

 

Four Places to Pay Extra Attention if Your Senior Has Memory Issues

Posted in Caregiver in Headland AL, Elder Care in Headland AL |

March 5, 2020

| by

Memory problems, particularly ones related to dementia or to Alzheimer’s disease, can rob your senior of so much that she’s used to handling on her own. At particular risk can be her safety because there’s so much that just might not seem dangerous to her anymore.

 

Elder Care in Headland AL: Places to Pay Extra Attention

Elder Care in Headland AL: Places to Pay Extra Attention

 

General Safety Around the House

Staying on top of general safety issues is paramount if your aging family member has memory issues. These may be things that she’s aware of on some level, but forgets to mention or forgets can be a problem. Check that her lights are functional. Make sure that handrails are secure. Take care of clutter whenever you can. Anything else that you can think of, add it to the list. If you’re doing regular safety sweeps, you should be able to stay on top of potential issues before there’s a true problem.

 

Take Stock of Any Household Chemicals

Another area you might want to pay very close attention to could be household chemicals. These are often chemicals that your senior may have been perfectly fine around for most of her life, but now it could be easy to forget what is safe to do with them and what isn’t. Even something as simple as window-cleaner can be distracting because of the unusual colors. It’s best to try to secure these if possible.

 

Your Senior’s Refrigerator May Need Some Help

Very often people with memory issues have difficulties with food. Your elderly family member may stop cleaning out her refrigerator, which can leave leftovers continuing to grow bacteria. Memory problems can also create a situation in which she starts to believe that those foods are perfectly fine for her to eat, which is not necessarily the case. She may forget to look at expiration dates, too. If you’re cleaning out her fridge regularly, that can solve the majority of that problem.

 

Doors, Drawers, and Cabinets Might Be an Issue

If your aging family member has extremely severe memory problems, then anything that can hold other things, like drawers and cabinets, might be something that can open doors to other issues for her. Using household safety locks can be an excellent solution. You may also want to reduce the likelihood that your senior might wander away. Putting special locks or alarms on exterior doors can be a good idea.

Keeping your senior safe can feel like a full-time job in itself as a caregiver. Having some extra help frees you up to handle other situations as they crop up. Elder care providers can also help your senior with other tasks, like personal care tasks and activities that help her to stay physically and mentally active.

 

If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Elder Care in Headland, AL, please contact the caring staff at Wiregrass HomeCare today. Call us at 334-539-5900.

Prescription Medications and the Harm to Elderly Adults

Posted in Homecare in Headland AL, Senior Care in Headland AL |

February 21, 2020

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When it comes to caring for an elderly adult, there are many things you should know about prescription medications, especially those that are used for pain. With elderly patients, there is much harm that can come from prescription medications. While some medications are necessary for their survival, there might be others prescribed that may not be needed.

 

Home Health Care in Headland AL: Senior Prescription Medications

Home Health Care in Headland AL: Senior Prescription Medications

 

Fixing Health Complaints

One of the main reasons why doctors will prescribe medications to the elderly is to fix their health complaints. For instance, if an elderly adult complains of back spasms or back pain, they might be prescribed muscle relaxers or prescription pain medications. While doctors generally only prescribe medications if they absolutely feel it is necessary, if the medications aren’t reviewed regularly, this could become a problem. There may be additional side effects that are going untreated, as well.

Expected Treatment

Most elderly adults that go to the doctor’s office for a health issue expect to get medication. This is often true whether the medication is needed or not. While this might not be a problem for some medications, with others, the list of harm the medication can do to your loved one could go on and on.

Many Doctors

If your elderly loved one isn’t going to the doctor with you or a senior care provider, they may be attending many different doctors. Since elderly adults often forget all the medications they are already on, this can be a big problem. One doctor might prescribe them medications, while another may prescribe them another medication that may interact with the ones they are already on. In addition, your elderly loved one might be seeing specialist doctors that don’t keep in touch with one another. They may be prescribing treatments that don’t fit with one another. It is important that you or senior care providers take your elderly loved one to their appointments.

Increased Side Effects

As previously mentioned, the more medications that your loved one takes, the more side effects they might experience. The increased side effects can include confusion, low blood pressure, excessive bleeding, respiratory issues, falling, and more. It is important that you help to keep your loved one’s medications to a minimum. If you can’t, at least do your best to keep track of their side effects and let the doctors know about the side effects, too.

These are some of the problems that could come with prescription medications in elderly adults. If you are concerned about the medications that your elderly loved one is taking, be sure to talk to their doctor about it right away.

If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Home Health Care in Headland, AL, please contact the caring staff at Wiregrass HomeCare today. Call us at 334-539-5900.

Sources
Nia.nih.gov
Ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Valentine Activities Caregivers and Seniors Can Do Together

Posted in Elder Care in Daleville AL, Homecare in Daleville AL |

February 6, 2020

| by

One of the ways people in the United States mark the changes of seasons and passing of time is by celebrating holidays and traditions. People have been celebrating Valentine’s Day for centuries. In fact, the holiday dates back to around A.D. 270 and the legend of St. Valentine. 

 

Homecare in Daleville AL: Valentine Activities

Homecare in Daleville AL: Valentine Activities

 

As one story goes, Valentine was a priest during the time of Roman Emperor Claudius II.
The emperor made it illegal for young men to get married because he thought that single men made better soldiers. Valentine believed the new law was unjust, so he continued to marry young lovers in secret. When Claudius found out, he had Valentine put to death. People started sending written Valentine’s Day greetings around the 1400s. In the 1900s, printed cards replaced the once handwritten notes and tokens of affection as the Valentine of choice.

 

As a caregiver, you can help your older family members to follow their Valentine’s Day traditions or form new ones. In addition, caregivers and seniors can form new memories of their own by trying new Valentine’s-Day-themed activities.

Below are some ideas for seniors and caregivers to do together to celebrate the day.

 

Bake Heart-Shaped Cookies

Baking is an excellent activity for caregivers and seniors to do together. Even if baking isn’t a favorite activity of the older adult, they often enjoy the baked goods or sharing them with people they love, like grandchildren or a favorite neighbor. Bake a batch of rollout cookies cut into the shape of hearts. Then, sit with the senior and invite them to help you frost and decorate the cookies. If the cookies are to be delivered to someone else, take the senior with you to present them. The smile on the recipient’s face may make their day.

 

Create Homemade Valentines

As a child, your aging relative probably made Valentines for classmates and sweethearts. Help them return to this tradition by making Valentines with them. Purchase red, pink, and white construction paper to cut hearts from. Decorate them with glitter, stickers, ribbons, and lace.

 

Decorate the House

Decorating the house can make the holiday feel more special. It also helps to remind older adults with cognitive issues what time of the year it is. Seniors and caregivers can make their own decorations or purchase them from a store. If the older adult has dementia, be sure to keep decorations somewhat simple since making the environment too busy can be confusing for them. In addition, be sure that decorations are hung safely to prevent a fire or an injury caused by tripping over something.

 

If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Homecare in Daleville, AL, please contact the caring staff at Wiregrass HomeCare today. Call us at 334-539-5900.

Sources

https://www.history.com