Common Caregiving Misconceptions in Sarasota, Florida

Common Caregiving Misconceptions

Dispelling Caregiving Myths

Caregiving is an emotional subject which is likely the reason so many myths surround it. This article focuses on dispelling some of these caregiving myths. It’s a must-read for anyone currently involved in caregiving including those who are considering hiring or perhaps even becoming a caregiver. Below are some common myths related to caregiving:

Continue reading HERE.  Visit us at www.sarasota.comfortkeepers.com for caregiving help for an aging loved one in the Sarasota FL area.

Daily Physical Activity Helps Seniors With Arthritis in Sarasota, Florida

(ARA) – More than 46 million people of all ages in the U.S. have arthritis. A recent study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that arthritis is the nation’s most common disability.

The same CDC study showed that the number of people who report arthritis as their primary cause of disability has grown by more than 3 million since 1999. What’s more alarming — with the aging of baby boomers, the prevalence of arthritis is expected to increase 40 percent by the year 2030.

Given the pervasiveness of arthritis, many Americans understand that it is a serious health problem. However, some are unaware that physical activity can actually help lessen the severity of arthritis. In fact, increased daily movement or exercise is one of the best approaches to helping reduce stiff, achy joints caused by arthritis.

“Physical activity, including stretching and strengthening, is crucial to improving joint pain and mobility and reducing fatigue often associated with arthritis,” says Dr. Patience White, chief public health officer for the Arthritis Foundation. “Moving just 30 minutes daily, even 10 to 15 minutes at a time, can reduce the impact of arthritis on a person’s daily activities and help to prevent developing more painful arthritis.”

The Arthritis Foundation has created a program, Let’s Move Together, which is designed to inspire people to move every day to prevent or treat arthritis. Its Web site offers helpful tips for increasing movement, including:

When Your Sarasota, California Loved One Resists Care

When Your Loved One Resists Care

Here is an article I found that is very helpful for caregivers who are struggling with the loved one they are trying so hard to care for.  It offers other ways to look at the behavior to try to understand what our loved ones are trying to communicate to us.  If you are a caregiver, and need help with an aging loved one, visit www.sarasota.comfortkeepers.com.

“How many times has your mother refused to change her clothes? Has your father resisted getting out of bed? Has your wife pushed you away when you tried to brush her teeth? Many times a caregiver will be particularly frustrated by her loved one’s refusal to help himself. At times she can’t help but think that the person she cares for “36 hours a day” is going out of his way to make her miserable! The increasing irrationality of individuals with dementia makes it even harder on the caregiver.”

Continue reading article HERE.

Know the Signs of Elderly Depression in Sarasota, Florida

I found this article at www.Agingcare.com and decided to share it with you.  If you need help for an aging loved one in the Sarasota FL area, visit www.sarasota.comfortkeepers.com.

Is Dad Okay?  Or Is It Depression?

by Mikol Davis, Psychologist

You’re visiting your elderly Dad, and notice that he just doesn’t seem to have his old “spark.” He speaks slowly. He doesn’t want to go out. He spends his time watching TV or falling asleep during the day. He isn’t eating much. You’re worried. Is Dad okay?

Recognizing the signs of depression in the elderly

Depression is the most common of mental conditions, which can be treated, but among the elderly, it is one of the most overlooked.  Sometimes, it’s because physicians don’t recognize the signs and symptoms. Sometimes it’s because of an overall attitude of society that perhaps feeling low is just part of getting old.

The danger in overlooking depression is twofold. First, quality of life that could be improved isn’t, and unnecessary suffering goes on. Second, the alarming fact of elder suicide looms.

Depression is an emotional state with a physical component. The physical component is triggered by brain chemistry, and can be helped.  When it is, physical symptoms tend to lessen.

Continue reading full article HERE.

Understanding Alzheimer’s Disease in Sarasota, Florida

This is a great article for anyone who is affected, or newly affected by Alzheimer’s Disease, and is trying to understand it’s effects on our loved ones.  If you need help with an aging loved one in the Sarasota FL area, visit www.sarasota.comfortkeepers.com.

Stay Alert on Alzheimer’s Disease

By: Barbara Rockwell

The term dementia refers to a brain disorder that demonstrates itself in several ways. A person may easily become confused even in known settings, may ask questions repeatedly, or may neglect such basic things as their own hygiene or basic safety issues. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia linked with old age.

The disease is named after German Doctor Alois Alzheimer. In 1906, Dr. Alzheimer noticed variations in the brain tissue of a patient of his that died with unusual mental illnesses and dementia. His study guided him to discover anomalous clumps and tangles of fiber in the brains of those patients who were suffering from this same disease.

Thus, whilst it was common for persons who were older and losing their mental faculties to be dismissed as “senile,” Dr. Alzheimer was able to pinpoint the actual breakdown in the brain that led to the loss of their mental faculties.

According to the National Institute on Aging varied test conclusions, there are actual brain changes in persons with Alzheimer’s disease. They can find out how nerve cells die in areas of the brain that affect memory and basic abilities. It may seem strange, but everything that we do on a daily basis is because of memory.

We remember that we need to take a shower on a regular basis that we need to shut the door behind us when we leave the house. We don’t realize that we’re doing these things because of memory, and assume that they just happen naturally. But when those memories break down because of Alzheimer’s or any other mental disorder, even the most basic everyday functions begin to be confusing or neglected.

In fact, the brain works by a series of connections between nerve endings, all of which are related. For example, the part of the brain that controls speech sends signals to the nerves that spark the muscles and parts of the mouth when we wish to talk. Of course, all of our mental and physical functions work this way.

With Alzheimer’s disease, these nerve signals are disrupted or broken. If the brain cannot continue to make connections in the nerve cells that control memory, all the basic functions are disrupted. The brain can’t memorize that it just asked a question, so a person repeats it. They can’t remember their own children, so they are now strangers. Alzheimer’s can be a very frightening and debilitating disease for the patients and the families as well.

Article Source: http://myeldercarearticles.com

Senior Fraud Prevention in Sarasota, Florida

Senior Fraud Prevention

“Seniors can make easy targets for fraud, whether it’s for unbelievable investment returns or fraudulent sweepstakes prizes. Fraud on seniors can happen by phone, mail, in person, or, less commonly, the Internet (because seniors are online in smaller numbers). It can happen to wealthy seniors, and those of limited means. According to the Federal Trade Commission, studies show con artists are more likely to target senior citizens than other age groups because they believe seniors are more susceptible to such scams. The FTC reports that fraudulent telemarketers direct from 56 to 80 percent of their calls at seniors. The need for senior fraud prevention has become greater than ever.”

Follow this link to read the rest of this very informative article.  If you have any questions or need help in the area, visit www.sarasota.comfortkeepers.com.

Summertime a Good Time for Elder Care Planning in Sarasota, Florida

Summertime brings a lot of family time. With family reunions, picnics, weddings and other events, long distant family members travel to gather together. It is also the perfect time to do some planning for the future. With parents aging and their health and lifestyles changing, children need to discuss some changes and decisions that will be needed in the near future. Parents should take the time to tell their children where important documents are kept and what their wishes are in the event of needing health care directives or experiencing long term care needs.

For those children who live away, the change they see in their parent’s health and mental capacity may be alarming — whereas siblings that have daily contact are working with these issues constantly. Here is the chance to compare notes and work together as a complete family in the long term care planning process.

For you parents who are well and active, this is a good time to hold a family meeting and share with your children your plan for long term care. Tell them where financial and legal documents are located. Review health care directives, living wills and long term care alternatives.

Keeping Seniors Safe at Home in Sarasota, Florida

Generally, elderly parents want to remain living in their own home. However, remaining in the home becomes a concern when children see their parents slowing down, perhaps even having trouble with handling stairs and doing general daily activities. Yet, with parents’ mental and physical health currently not creating problems, there seems to be no imminent need to search out support services or other accommodations for aging parents.

This is now the time to evaluate the home to make it safe and secure for your loved ones — now and in the near future — in anticipation of aging disabilities that may occur. Help and support are available. The nation as a whole is more aware of elderly needs and services and products are becoming available at an outstanding pace.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics states,

“Employment of personal and home care aides is projected to grow by 51 percent between 2006 and 2016, which is much faster than the average for all occupations. The expected growth is due, in large part, to the projected rise in the number of elderly people, an age group that often has mounting health problems and that needs some assistance with daily activities.” Bureau of labor Statistics-Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2008-09 Edition

Know the Signs of Elderly Stress in Sarasota, Florida

Stress and the Elderly

Contrary to what we’ve been led to believe, senior living isn’t always the way it’s portrayed in glossy sales brochures and magazine advertisements. Rather than being a carefree period of life spent on the golf course and traveling around the world, for many of today’s seniors those “golden years” are incredibly stressful times.

What causes seniors so much stress? Change is a huge trigger for stress and seniors definitely experience plenty of change. It can be in the form of declining health, death of friends and loved ones, moving, a bad financial investment, and the list goes on. Here are some other reasons why senior living is stressful.

Continue reading here: http://www.thehomecaredirectory.com/home_health_care/related_articles/stress_and_the_elderly/13/

Visit www.sarasota.comfortkeepers.com if you need help with an aging loved one in the Sarasota, FL area.

Preparations for Aging Parents Care in Sarasota, Florida

This is a wonderful article for those who are preparing for the care of their parents.  If you need help in the Sarasota FL area, visit www.sarasota.comfortkeepers.com.

Baby Boomers and Aging Parents – Six Tips to Prepare For Their Care

By Katie B. Marsh

Although there is some debate over the exact age range of the Baby Boom generation, the US Census Bureau identifies most Boomers as those who were born between the years 1956 to 1965. In any case, whether you were born within that time frame or fairly close to it, chances are you are beginning to deal with end-of-life issues regarding your elderly parents. Your many considerations run the gamut from the practical to the spiritual and everything in between. So, where do you begin?

Caregivers. Imagine if we ended our lives as babies, completely dependent on a caregiver tending to all of our needs: loving us, feeding us, changing our diapers. Imagine now that we are not as cute as little babies but still have the same need to be cared for gently with love and respect. Who would you want to take care of you in this situation? Who do your parents want to care for them? This question should be posed directly to your parents. Don’t assume you know the answer. What they may have said 10 to 15 years ago may not still hold true today as they are closer to facing their mortality.