Senior's long-term care plan starts with being an exemplary caregiver at home. Look for the best way to keep them safe and healthy without infantilizing or overbearing. Achieving this while balancing the responsibilities of motherhood can seem challenging, but it's manageable. Assessing your seniors' needs will help you come up with a plan that gives both of you an easy time. Here are five tips on how to have an easy time offering care while juggling a mom's busy lifestyle.
Make the Home Safe and Accessible
Any kind of fall or bodily harm can be dangerous to the senior, making it paramount to focus on the safety levels of your home. Consider common hazards like slippery floors and low-light areas and make the necessary adjustments. Install grab bars and anti-slip rugs throughout the home.
You can hire a contractor to make structural changes to the home to make it more accessible. This can include widening the doorways to make wheelchair access easy. Investing in a stair lift may also be a good investment to enhance accessibility within floors, ensuring independence and safety for seniors or those with disabilities.
Establish Open Communication Channels
Create a regular communication routine with your ageing parents to understand their changing needs and preferences. Practise active listening and open dialogue so everyone feels respected and part of the care.
Schedule regular check-ins and encourage your parents to contact you whenever they need assistance. Constantly communicate with professional caregivers and family members to ensure everyone is in the loop, reducing the chances of misunderstandings.
Invest in Private Audiology Services
As years pass, it's natural for age-related hearing loss to kick in and can worsen in the prime golden years. As a family, the right thing to do is to arrange for regular tests where the seniors' hearing capacity will be evaluated to determine the extent of the loss and to allow timely interventions.
Some audiology service providers offer home visits to cater to older adults' welfare who have fewer transportation options and limited mobility. A private audiologist will go through the medical history and lifestyle to see whether there are other contributing factors to the hearing loss. They will then suggest suitable types of invisible hearing aids, depending on your needs.
Prioritise Self-Care
Despite the demands of daily life, it's essential not to neglect your wellness. You need to be in the best shape to offer the proper assistance. Look for anything that makes you self-reflect and loosen up. Your physical wellness must also be good, so committing to workouts is essential.
Be consistent, and complement your workouts with recreational, low-impact activities like swimming and cycling. Delegate tasks to other family members or consider hiring a respite caregiver to provide temporary relief.
Take Care of Legal and Financial Matters
Work closely with your parents to develop and adjust financial documents. Do this while familiarising yourself with the financial requirements of the parent's care and developing solid management plans for the finances. Seek advice from a financial advisor who will share valuable insights, particularly on the senior's benefit programs to enrol in.
Help them organise important documents and stay vigilant for signs of financial exploitation or cognitive decline. Establish a system for managing their finances if they become unable to do so themselves.
As a busy mum, it may seem hectic to juggle between the daily roles and caring for ageing parents, but with the right balance, you can succeed in both. It will give you an opportunity to demonstrate love, compassion, and dedication to your family. What you need is the dedication to provide the best living conditions so that they lead a comfortable life. Remember to seek assistance when needed and to prioritise your own well-being to maintain a healthy balance in your caregiving journey.
