Many people opt to live with their elderly parents in order to help them with their daily lives. And this can be a tough thing to do as your parents grow older and weaker. You will not only have to help them walk around the home and get to the bathroom, but will also have to do all their laundry, clean their dishes, and so on.
Below, we highlight six tips that can help you take proper care of your elderly parents.
Modify The Home
Elderly people can have difficulty walking in the home. As such, it is recommended that you modify your house in a way that they find it easier to navigate around. If your home is too cluttered, the rearrange everything and ensure that there is a clear, unobstructed path in every room.
You can also set up rails on the side of walls so that the elderly can hold onto it for support while walking across a room. And be very careful with the wires and cables. Keep it hanging on the walls rather than lying on the floor to avoid possible accidents. And when laying down carpets, ensure that you only use those which do not skid.
Plus, install lights at all important parts of a room so that the elder has an easy time navigating the rooms in the night.
Hire A Caregiver
If you have a busy work schedule, then taking care of your elderly parents can become extremely stressful. In such situations, it is better to hire a dedicated caregiver for your parents. A caregiver is even more necessary if your parent is disabled in any way.
In such circumstances, you won’t be able to provide proper care for them while dealing with your work commitments. But by hiring a caregiver, you can focus on your work and ensure that your parents are well taken care of.
Contact a good elderly care consulting service like Life Changes Elder Care, and they will come up with a detailed plan of how to take good care of your disabled parents.
Medicines
Your parents will probably have to take a few medicines from time to time to deal with any health condition they have. But because of their old age, it is likely that they might forget taking the medications on time. As a result, their health might suffer and you may have to spend a lot of money on hospital bills.
To avoid this, you should prepare a schedule that lists out which medicine your parent should take and at what time. Once the schedule has been set, you just need to make sure that your parents take the right medicine at the right time.
The Cost Of Elderly Care
Taking care of the elderly parents is an expensive affair. You have to spend money on their medicines, special diet if any, hire caregivers, pay insurance, and so on. All these costs can turn out to eat up a large chunk of your monthly income.
As such, you must plan out the cost of elderly care well in advance so that you can keep such costs under control.
Regular Exercise
A big problem with old age is lack of energy. Unfortunately, this is something that one has to accept and live with. But this does not mean that you let your parents retire to an inactive, lethargic lifestyle. Instead, consult a physical trainer and come up with a simple workout for your parents and make them do the recommended exercises on a daily basis.
This will help to keep their muscles active and prevent them from becoming completely weak. However, do make sure that the exercises are simple and do not put too much physical stress on your parents. Keep in mind that their bodies are old and fragile. As such, intensive exercises can do more harm than good.
Spend Time With Them
As your parents grow older, they will probably start feeling lonely. And ensuring their mental and psychological well-being is also very important. Never make them feel too alone as this can push them into depression and extreme stress.
Spend some time with them every day and share interesting details of your daily life. This will make them feel wanted. You can also hook up a game console and play simple games with them. Watching comedy shows together is also a great idea.
As long as you provide love and compassion to your elderly parents, they will definitely live a happy life with you despite becoming physically weaker with every passing year.
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