Aging in place means your elderly family member stays in her own home for as long as possible. Often that means that she’s living completely alone, and for a time that might be the perfect situation for her. But as her needs change, your elderly family member may find that aging in place becomes more difficult. That’s when elder care services might be the perfect answer.
Social Isolation and Loneliness
Loneliness and social isolation can be a much bigger problem than your elderly family member anticipates. The problem can creep in slowly, as friends and family members move away and experience changes in their own lives. Your elderly family member may not notice that she’s becoming more socially isolated until the problem is relatively large and difficult to resolve on her own. One solution that can help immensely is to have caregivers stop by to offer assistance or just a kind conversation. This can do a lot more for your senior than you might realize.
Mobility Problems
There are various types of mobility problems that can affect your senior’s ability to age in place. Once she stops driving, she may find that to be a big barrier to living the life she wants to live as she remains in her home. Having elder care providers help with transportation is one option. Other types of mobility issues can relate to changes in how well your elderly family member can walk or get around on her own. These challenges can cause her to make some decisions that don’t support her health, like not walking as much because she’s afraid she’ll fall. That only worsens the problem.
Other Physical Limitations and Challenges
Beyond mobility problems, your elderly family member could face other physical limitations. Problems with lung diseases can leave her feeling consistently short of breath, for instance. That can lead to her having more difficulty performing routine daily tasks, which can cause those to fall by the wayside. Elder care providers can help with some of these issues.
Lack of Mental Stimulation
When your senior spends a lot of time alone, she may not get the mental stimulation she needs. Some activities she might engage in could keep her locked in a loop of unstimulating activities. If she’s experiencing cognitive changes that affect how her brain works, she’s even more likely to find that aging in place is not as easy as she had hoped. Having more help from home care providers could make a big difference, particularly in terms of keeping her brain active and engaged.
Just because aging in place is more difficult than your senior expects, that doesn’t mean she can’t do it. It might just mean she needs a little more help than she thought. Elder care providers can make aging in place the situation she hoped.
Aviva In-Home Care provides compassionate and skilled in-home care. We are the Bay Area’s premier provider of in-home care services.
If you or an aging loved one are considering hiring professional Elder Care in San Carlos Hills, CA, call the caring staff at Aviva In-Home Care. Call today: (415) 795-2203
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