Senior Care: Helpful Pointers on Starting the Conversation with Your Loved One in Montclair & Hasbrouck Heights, NJ

The conversation about senior care is mostly avoided by seniors and their family members as it's understandably difficult and often leads to needless confrontation. Seniors, in most cases, think that embracing senior care would mean that they will lose independence and control over their life. This makes it imperative to talk with them as early as possible that rather being an impediment to their independence, senior care will assist them to live independently for a longer period of time.

Some tips that can make senior care conversation a little bit easier are briefly discussed below.

Take Help of other Family Members

You can have a one-to-one talk with your mom or dad regarding care options and it could go just fine. However, if it doesn't, then taking assistance of other family members could help in making inroads into the conversation. It is important to understand that, senior care conversation is an on-going process that will require continuous work and you should not stop making the effort after just one or two attempts. When everyone contributes, more options can emerge and the most feasible/acceptable option can be chosen for a trial run. For example, everyone can agree on taking outside help for incidental transportation & housekeeping but not for activities of daily living (ADL).

Work with Examples

Rather than bluntly telling your loved one that he/she must take outside help, it's better to come up with some recent examples that have shown the need for help. Recent accident(s), poor health, social aloofness, lack of hygiene, problems with vision, etc. are some common indicators that necessitate a talk with your loved one.

Have Patience

It is quite natural that your loved one will resist the change and at times will be difficult to talk to. There is a need here to understand what seniors go through during such emotionally challenging times and how much they have to embrace. Put forward your concerns and let them react to it when they feel like doing. Forcing them to accept help will only make them more defensive and averse to the suggestions.

Research Well

There are several senior care options available and there are different ways in which they can be funded. For example, in-home senior care could also include certain medical services in addition to normal non-medical personal care services. Take help of various resources available on the internet, ask for references, check various senior housing options available, compare costs of medical/non-medical services, duration for which a service is provided, etc. If you have enough information available, you will be able to present different scenarios to your loved one and can sit together to choose the most feasible one.

At Comfort Keepers we understand that when it comes to people you care about, you will have numerous doubts to clear before you make a decision regarding the senior care. If you have any questions regarding in-home senior care services, please feel free to call us today Call us today at (973) 707-2310 .