Top 7 signs your loved ones need assisted living
It is great when your parents are living and doing well. But when they cannot care for themselves or if your parent has a diagnosis with dementia. In such cases, many families may consider the option of moving their parents to an assisted living. If they are not able to handle the task of caregiving or living at home all by themselves. It can be difficult to attend to your loved one, but it’s not impossible. With the right knowledge, you can do this. Don’t forget about taking care of yourself and keeping your business going while you are caregiving. I’m here to assist you on this journey, schedule your planning session with me so we can look at how to keep your life and your business running smoothly.
Why consider assisted living?
Many of us might not always be very comfortable with the idea of sending or moving our parents to an assisted living facility. There are many questions that may keep haunting us day in and day out. This may make you feel guilt, and, may withdraw the idea of assisted living. But as selfish as this may sound, moving a loved one to an assisted living facility may not be a bad idea or a decision. If you are not quite ready to think about this, here are some resources to help you care for your loved one with ease.
Understanding the top 7 signs indicating the need for an assisted living facility
It may not always be easy to understand that your loved one needs to go to a facility where they would receive 24×7 medical care and support. So, how would you know that it’s time for your loved one to go to an assisted living facility? Here are the following signs, which can help you make this decision:
Caregiving becomes unsustainable
You find that caring for your loved one is becoming difficult with each passing day. This could be because of two reasons: you are becoming tired and unable to manage all things together or your loved one needs more care than before. This could be due to their illness and diminishing physical capabilities.
The frequency of medical care increases
Our loved ones can get sicker or weaker, about 80% of seniors, can come down with a chronic condition in their lifetime. Additionally, 68% would suffer from 2 or more chronic medical conditions. These statistics indicate a threat to their care. Any negligence on our part would mean unnecessary complications. When you notice that your loved ones are getting sicker, and need better medical care. You have to understand that it would be better if they are at an assisted living facility to get better care. So, there are certain conditions which would make your loved ones, good candidates for assisted living:
- They are unable to take their medications correctly and on time
- They are recovering from a major illness/accident
- Their existing medical condition is worsening and they need 24×7 medical care and attention
The frequency of accidents increases
As an individual age, there is a decrease in their physical capabilities as well as balance. As their sense of balance weakens, they are more prone to falls and accidents and the effects of which may go unnoticed for long periods. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 5 senior falls can cause head injury and trauma. With no help around and your loved one at home, managing frequent falls and accidents can get difficult. In such cases, it would always be a good idea to move them to an assisted living facility, so that they have support staff around them round the clock. With this, they would get proper care and any injury or accidents would also be immediately attended to.
Need help with their daily tasks
Many seniors can very well take care of their daily chores without any help. Whereas, there are many seniors who are unable to complete their activities for daily living. You may observe that your loved ones are not properly dressed, or their personal hygiene is also not properly taken care of. All these indicate that your parents are not able to appropriately take care of themselves independently. They need help. In such a scenario, think of shifting them to an assisted living facility, if you do not get proper help from other sources.
Unsafe driving behavior
This is probably one of the worst conditions, as it can seriously cause a major accident and immobility. If you notice that your loved one is becoming a worse driver and there are increased dents or scratches in the car. It indicates, that you really need to move them to an assisted living facility. Moving them to an assisted living facility, would certainly not make them any less independent. In fact, most facilities provide transportation services for your loved ones who wish to go out.
Trouble preparing healthy meals
Advancing age, demands proper nutrition, and lack of it can become a cause of worry for your aging loved one. The inability to cook proper basic healthy meals can make your loved ones malnourished, and can really make them sick. When you see your parents are having trouble preparing basic healthy meals for themselves. Then you need to understand, that they need help and keeping them at home alone, will no longer be a wise idea. Moving them to an assisted living facility will ensure that your loved ones get help with their daily activities. And also get proper healthy meals on time, so that their nutritional profile is not compromised.
Unpredictable mood
Cognitive impairment almost becomes a common problem with age. Forgetfulness, memory loss are all signs of cognitive impairment. Which may make your loved one angry or aggressive over trivial issues. Such unpredictable mood swings can cause your loved ones to unknowingly harm themselves. Which can be dangerous for the caregivers and your loved one as well. Furthermore, you are not always prepared to handle such mood swings, and would not be able to keep your loved ones safe. In such situations, it is always best to move your loved one to an assisted living facility. The staff at living facilities can handle such aggressive moods and behaviors and can keep them safe.
Conclusion
The above mentioned 7 signs can help you understand, whether your loved ones need to go to an assisted living facility. In case, you observe any of the above signs in your parents. But are still confused and not able to make any decision, then you can contact me here to help you out. Overseeing this can cause you to stress because you can not be in 2 places at one time: taking care of your business and taking care of your loved one. Look into hiring some help or consider an assisted living facility. This will give you the opportunity to get some rest and also make sure your loved one is properly cared for. Or maybe you want to spend more time with your loved one while taking a break from some of the redundant business tasks like sending out emails, returning calls, or organizing files. Let’s chat about how I can be of service to you so you can take care of your business and your loved one.
Tena,
These are quality ideas for people to transition to a care center.
Other Considerations:
a. Does the family LTC plans which for caregivers to come to the home?
b. If there is a spouse/partner are they responsible for personal caregiving?
c. Do people feel isolated because of their activities of daily living or the caregiver is absorbed with constant caregiving.
d. Are services available at the home as convenient as they may be in a care center?
e. Do the people have sufficient funds to transition to a quality care center which offers personal care services, activities, and access to medical care services.
f. Is it convenient for a spouse/partner to stay at the family overnight or to share meals?
Pleasant Thursday,
Raymond