Senior Care for the Holidays: 5 Signs Family Caregivers May Need Help

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Next week is Thanksgiving, the official kick-off to the busy, holiday season. “Busy,” is often the first word used to describe the holiday season. A time that should be restful and full of family, is in reality a stressful flurry of activities and to-do lists. For the family caregiver, the busyness of the holidays is amplified by the care demands of their senior loved one.

Let’s slow down this holiday season. Let’s make it a point to enjoy the Christmas lights, that hot cup of cocoa, and visit with our family. What would it be like to have a moment of rest in all the busyness?

While it sounds good in theory to slow down this holiday season, let’s be honest, it is simply impossible with your current work load. All family caregivers know this because they have experienced it. That moment of stillness feels impossibly allusive for the caregiver. Something has to change. Maybe it’s time for some help.

You can be the daughter again, even if only for an hour or two. The right senior care in place can provide you with the time you need to run your own errands, decorate your house, or even take a nap.

Here are a few signs that senior care may be right choice for you, the family caregiver:

1. Tasks are slipping through the cracks. Your laundry is piling up in your house, and the refrigerator needs to be cleaned out at your senior loved one’s home. Try as you might, you can’t complete all that needs to be done.

2. Need to be in two places at once. You’ve used up all your “vacation” time at work to care for your loved one; and picking up your child from school always seems to coincide with that doctor’s appointment.

3. Crying at unexpected times. You feel like you are barely holding everything together and sometimes it shows.

4. Increased care needs of senior loved one. You are beginning to consider placing your loved one in a facility because the care needs are becoming more difficult.

5. Catching every cold. It seems like you are catching every cold that comes around. You are worn down and your own health is suffering.

These are just a few of the many signs that point to the need for senior home care. It is difficult to ask for help, as senior care providers, we understand. The holidays may be the perfect time to introduce a few hours of care into your daily routine so you can enjoy the season.

Contact a location near you to learn more about our senior care so you can get the rest you need.