Easing into Home Care Services with an Aging Loved One- Start Slow and Add More Hours Gradually

Home Care in Salisbury, NC

Many people don’t like change that involves interacting with unfamiliar people. This can be especially true for seniors who have been receiving care from a loved one. If your senior loved one has never needed assistance before, the path you follow will be a little different from the path you would follow if you have been providing assistance for a long time.

How to Ease into a Home Care Service for a Loved One Who has Never Needed Assistance

If your loved one has never needed any assistance the hardest part of the transition will be getting them to accept the fact that they need some help. Seniors can get very defensive about protecting their independence. The fact that they have to start relying on a stranger to give them some help can be scary. The first step is to convince them that they need some help.

A conversation where input from the loved one is asked for, is the best way to get started. The conversation should be as two adults and you should never speak down as if addressing a child. If they resist, then you have to convince them with examples of injuries they may have received and/or bills they have forgotten to pay.

Since they have never needed home care assistance they are probably still mobile and should be involved in the selection process. Make sure they are present to interview potential home care agencies, so they can ask their own questions. By letting them participate they will feel that they are the ones making the key decisions about how much help they need. Initially the assistance may only be for a few hours per week. This will probably grow as your loved one continues to age and starts to enjoy the company of a home care companion.

How to Ease into a Home Care Service for a Loved One Who has Received Home Care Assistance From a Loved One

In this situation the senior loved one may have some feelings of abandonment and resentment toward whoever has been the primary family caregiver. They may begin to feel unappreciated and could sink into depression. Since you have already been providing some care, you might suggest that you would still be providing care on the weekends and/or a day or two during the week.

The key to making this transition is to make sure that the loved one understands that the demands of your own life have made it impossible to continue increasing the time you can devote to care. As long as the loved one doesn’t feel abandoned because of some resentment or other condition, they should be fine making the adjustment. As they continue to age and require more frequent care they will be able to adjust with spending more time with a familiar home care companion.

The key in both situations is to start the conversation and service when you can devote some time to the change. This will help alleviate some of the stress and anxiety a senior will feel during the transition. It is up to you to help them understand that they are still a loved and cherished member of the family.

If you or an aging loved one are considering home care in Salisbury NC, contact the caring professionals at TenderHearted Home Care today. Call us at (704) 612-4132.