Stephen Stegall Sr. is our May Employee of the Month. We appreciate Stephen’s dedication and work ethic. We want to thank him for taking good care of his client’s needs. We’re grateful to have him with us. Congratulations Stephen! Keep up the good work!
How often your senior washes her hair, showers, and even how she dresses can be a big clue about some of the issues she might be facing. It’s important to look at those tiny details so that you can help her to find solutions when she comes up against a problem.
Changes to Your Senior’s Routine Can Indicate Problems
The biggest thing to know about your elderly family member’s personal hygiene is that when changes happen, it’s usually a result of other changes behind the scenes. Your elderly family member could be having physical issues, such as mobility problems, that restrict what she’s able to do. She could also be experiencing cognitive issues that convince her that she doesn’t need to bathe. All of this is cause for concern.
Simplify Routines for Her
One solution that can help quite a bit is to simplify your senior’s routines. If you help her to lay out her clothing choices the night before, that can be a visual reminder to bathe. Instead of wearing a complicated hairstyle, she might enjoy trying a new one that is a little easier for her to do on her own. Even your senior’s current style of dressing might benefit from a little bit of simplification. All of this can help her to feel as independent as possible.
Add Some Tools to Her Routine
Another option is to add some tools to her routine to help your senior to deal with the changes she’s experiencing. For instance, a shower chair and a longer shower head hose can allow her to sit as she bathes, which can take a lot of stress and strain off her body. Talk to her doctor about any other sorts of tools that might be helpful for her.
Get Some Extra Help
At a certain point, your elderly family member may need even more help with personal hygiene tasks. Senior care providers can help immensely with this because they are thorough and they help to preserve your senior’s dignity at the same time. Although this can be incredibly embarrassing for your elderly family member, it really doesn’t have to be.
If you haven’t been noticing much about how often your senior showers or how well she’s taking care of herself, now is the time to start noticing those details. Even small changes could be an indication that something else is changing and needs to be addressed.
IF YOU ARE CONSIDERING SENIOR CARE IN AMES, IA, FOR AN ELDERLY LOVED ONE, CONTACT GOLDEN HEART SENIOR CARE OF DES MOINES, IA AT 515-631-5033. OUR CARING STAFF CAN ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS!
Letting your senior continue to drive without talking about driving, how she feels about driving, and her safety is not the best choice you could make. It’s really important to have open, honest conversations about driving so that you can help her to find alternatives when that time arrives.
Be on the Lookout for Vehicle Damage
If you’re not already familiar with whether your senior’s car has existing damage or not, you might want to take a quick walk around the car. Make note of where you already see damage, including scuffs and dings. Take the time to walk around the car every week or so as well, so you can compare. Marks that look as if they’re a result of parking lot damage might not be an issue, but other problems, like dents in the bumper, could mean that your senior is bumping into objects.
Check with the Department of Motor Vehicles
Check with your Department of Motor Vehicles about obtaining your senior’s driving record. In some states you may need to have a power of attorney in order to get this information. In others, it’s enough for you to be your senior’s caregiver. Her driving record can let you know if she’s been involved in accidents or if she’s been pulled over by law enforcement.
Talk to Your Senior about Driving
What you’ve done up to now involves gathering information. You need to do this before you try talking to your elderly family member about whether you feel she should give up driving or not. Keep in mind that driving might be a source of independence for your elderly family member. The idea of giving up that independence might not sit well with her at all.
Work out Some Alternatives
If you bring alternative transportation ideas to your elderly family member, she might be more amenable to the idea of sliding out of the driver’s seat. For instance, home care providers are an excellent choice for taking over the driving. They understand your senior’s needs and they can ensure that she’s safe and that she gets everywhere that she wants to go.
How you approach the issue of driving with your aging family member matters a lot. If you’re argumentative or saying things in a way that causes her to be defensive, you might not get as far as you hope. Tread carefully and make sure that you’re paying attention to what she’s saying and to what she’s leaving unsaid.
IF YOU ARE CONSIDERING IN-HOME CARE IN JOHNSTON, IA, FOR AN ELDERLY LOVED ONE, CONTACT GOLDEN HEART SENIOR CARE OF DES MOINES, IA AT 515-631-5033. OUR CARING STAFF CAN ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS!