What Can You Do for a Senior Who Has Anxiety?
May 30, 2018
Anxiety is not just something that younger people experience. Aging adults experience anxiety, too, and it can be just as damaging to their daily lives as it is for people in other age groups. Helping your elderly family member to manage her anxiety might mean that you come up with a customized plan of attack that you stick with as closely as possible.
Elder Care in Los Gatos CA: Helping a Senior Cope with Anxiety
Listen When She Shares What Causes Her Anxiety.
Anxiety doesn't always make sense, either to you or to the person who is experiencing it. That doesn't mean that it affects your aging adult any less, however. So when she is sharing her anxiety with you, listen to what she's telling you without offering any judgments. Minimizing the experience or dismissing it as unimportant is going to ensure that your senior doesn't share this information in the future.
Make Social Activities Available.
Socializing with others, whether that's with family members or friends and acquaintances, can be helpful for some people who experience anxiety. Forcing those experiences isn't a good idea, however. If your elderly family member needs help with transportation, make sure that elder care providers are available to assist. They can also make excellent companions when your elderly family member doesn't want to go anywhere.
Talk about What's Going on With Her.
Don't be afraid to talk to your aging family member about what she's experiencing. Ask her how she's doing and let her know that you're genuinely interested in her answers. Avoiding the topic might make your elderly family member feel as if there's something wrong with how she's feeling and she might be more reluctant to share.
Encourage Her to Keep up with Self-care Habits.
Self-care can be extremely important for people who have anxiety issues. Make sure that your elderly family member is sleeping well, eating healthy foods, and getting enough exercise. These simple habits can help her to get through those times when her anxiety is at its worst. If these types of activities are difficult for her to manage on her own, elder care providers can help. They can keep up with how well she's managing and offer gentle nudges in the right direction.
Make sure that you talk with your senior's doctor about the anxiety she's experiencing. There may be something that can be done about it from a medical perspective. Sometimes anxiety is a side effect of medications or other treatments, so her doctor needs to know what she's experiencing.