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Assisted Living Tips: Caregivers, Forgive Yourselves

Submitted by admin on Fri, 09/23/2011 - 2:45pm

Graceland Assisted Living Garden Ridge Texas.

Angela Lunde of Mayo Clinic writes a review/recommendation of Olivia Ames’s “Ten Thousand Joys and Ten Thousand Sorrows”. Ames writes about taking care of her husband, and the difficulties and joys surrounding it. Lunde references this author as she efficiently illustrates the importance of interpersonal emotional acceptance in the role of a caregiver’s life.

"The strain of helping Hob, (my husband), with his disease kept stretching me to the breaking point. My frustration and anger concealed the grief that lay at deeper levels ... The ravages of this illness spark powerful feelings in everyone ... We need to experience our humanness, including all the so-called dark emotions like anger and fear, because they are natural given the situation. It's natural to think you're losing it at times."

Read the article at the Mayo Clinic website.

Lunde emphasizes the importance of the acceptance of our more negative emotions. It seems that the harder feelings to accept are often the most important. A lot of times we feel bad when our actions and emotions don’t sync up. Or, when our wants and needs appear to be mismatched. Acceptance is the first step towards fixing a problem, and in preventing a problem from escalating.

Dealing with Caregiver Anger

Submitted by admin on Fri, 09/23/2011 - 2:43pm

Graceland Assisted Living San Antonio, Texas

so sadOne of the most difficult things for caregivers to accept is the wide range of emotions that come with their voluntary job. A lot of them deny the sadness and anger that comes with helping care for a loved person in a state of mental decline. It is very important for caregivers to validate themselves and their work, to not forget to remind themselves of the good, hard work that they do.

"Anger is an emotional response to a grievance, real or imaginary, in the past, present or future. The pain of anger is very real. If we don't know how to relieve it the right way, we will react to it in ways that make things worse instead of better. Acceptance isn't the same as liking it, and acceptance doesn't mean we aren't allowed to get angry. You, as caregivers, have every right to feel all of your emotions and to let them out. You're entitled to bad days--no judgment or apology necessary.”

Anger is said to be a “secondary emotion”, and stems from embarrassment, insecurity, fear, and emotional/physical pain. It is important for people giving so much of themselves not to lose themselves in their work. Caregivers have to take care of themselves, in order to provide good, loving care for the ones they love. Acceptance is healthy, denial is dangerous.

Report on Dementia and Driving

Submitted by admin on Fri, 09/23/2011 - 2:33pm

Assisted Living Cuero Texas.

When is it time to hand in the keys? Dementia, more often than not, severely impairs driving ability. There are multiple warning signs of a compromised ability to operate a vehicle safely. These include drastic and more subtle changes in a person’s normal driving patterns. Watch out for close calls, a slow response time, or a trend of getting lost. Also, keep an eye out for scratches or dents on your loved one’s vehicle.

“Both researchers and practitioners are seeking to better understand the link between dementia, driving performance, and eventual driving cessation.”

Read the article from the National Center on Senior Transportation.

Many caregivers may not be aware of the fact that there are professional tests to confirm a person’s ability to drive. While a single form of cognitive test can’t accurately assess a person’s driving ability, a series of cognitive and performance based tests can. It is not an easy thing to suggest, but there comes a time when caregivers must be assertive and help persuade those in their care to stop driving, and compromising their safety.

profile-150J Green
Trilogy Senior Living
Sodalis Elder Living Communities

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