How Can You Promote Greater Independence for Your Senior and Still Keep Her Safe?
October 26, 2022
Your elderly family member might be making some decisions that seem odd on the surface, but if you dig deeper, she might really be campaigning for more independence. There are some big things you can do as her family caregiver that ensure she’s as independent as possible for as long as she can be. Try some of these ideas.
Encourage Her to Use Assistive Devices
When your elderly family member wants to maintain independence, a key way to do that is to protect her ability to remain mobile. In a lot of cases, that means using assistive devices in order to safely remain mobile. Your elderly family member may not be excited about that idea, understandably, but when she does use a cane or walker, she’s boosting her own independence.
Resolve Safety Concerns in Her Home
Your elderly family member is going to lose her independence in a big way if she experiences a fall or some other injury at home. Keeping her safe means identifying and resolving as many of the safety concerns that might impact her as you can. Home care professionals can be a huge help with this, because they have a lot of experience recognizing situations that can impact your senior’s safety.
Protect Your Senior’s Mental and Emotional Health
Emotional and mental well-being are also incredibly important for your senior’s ability to remain independent. One of the ways that you can do this is by ensuring that she has the support that she needs from home care providers. They can offer hands-on help, which keeps your senior’s self-esteem high, and they can also offer encouragement and companionship. All of that is vital.
Encourage Her to Maintain Her Mobility
When your senior is protecting her mobility as much as possible, she is in a better position to remain independent. If your elderly family member spends most of her time sitting or in bed, she’s losing much more muscle tone than if she did more to be active during the day. Home care providers can help your elderly family member to be more active during the day, helping her to protect her mobility.
Give Her Options Whenever You Can
Another area to consider when you are thinking about keeping your senior independent is whether or not she has choices. When your senior feels as if everyone is telling her what to do instead of giving her options, she’s more likely to give up. There’s nothing independent about having everyone else decide what you’re going to do, wear, and eat. Ensure that your elderly family member has a lot of say in her own life. She’s going to have a better experience overall if you’re prioritizing her choices.
Aging is not easy and it’s definitely not easy to feel as if your own independence is slipping away. You can do a lot to protect your senior from that experience and ensure that she’s living the life that she wants to live, even if she does need some more help along the way.
If you or your loved one is looking for Home Care in Saratoga, CA, please call Familiar Surroundings Home Care.
Santa Clara County: (408) 979-9990
San Mateo County: (650) 353-9777
Santa Cruz County: (831) 480-3990