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Tips to make sure the seniors in your life receive the care they need

As people age, their need for support increases. Old age usually comes with mental function deterioration, increased risk of disease, and loneliness. Being there for an aging parent often comes with lots of responsibilities. The goal is to help improve the quality of their life. Here are some guidelines to help you care for your aging parents.

Watch out for health concerns

Senior people are predisposed to a wealth of health concerns, both physical and mental. Some people creep up suddenly, whereas others may experience depression and severe anxiety. As their caregiver, it is important to keep an eye on their general wellbeing. Identify potential concerns ahead of time, and be there to help. Start researching more information on common health problems in seniors. Often, your aging parent may even tell you if there’s something wrong and if they experience any concerning symptoms. However, there are times when the aging parent doesn’t realize that something is wrong. Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease are progressive diseases that can be difficult to tackle. Spend as much as time as you can with your loved one, and this way you’ll be able to determine potential symptoms that are more harming than they look.

Professional help

In case your parent or relative experiences mental of physical decline that you can’t handle by yourself, it might be a good idea to look for professional help. There are lots of healthcare services you can consider. Don’t miss out on weekly appointments to the doctor and search for ways to make their lives easier; even that may mean looking into assisted living facilities and nursing homes. Many people ignore the symptoms their aging parents have. Stay alert and look for assistance in your local community. Thanks to advanced technology, there are solutions to be close to your parent even if you live miles apart.

Make time to visit

The elderly are not just affected by medical problems. Studies have shown that many seniors living alone fight with depression, anxiety, loneliness, and severe fatigue. It might be a good idea to visit your parents at least once a week. Offer them emotional support, take the grandkids with you, and make them feel loved and cared for. Face to face visits are the best, although if that’s not possible you can stick to phone calls, or Skype chats.

Encourage socialization

Many seniors don’t want to get out of the house. They’ve been used to watching TV all day, and that’s it. Sedentary activities increase the risk of depression, so it might be a good idea to take parents out. Do things together every week. Go grocery shopping together, spend time in the park, and have a good time. Qualitative family time makes seniors feel valued. If you can’t visit often, recommend them to join a book club. Or encourage socializing with their neighbors. Living in isolation leads to physical and emotional distress. In the long term, loneliness may lead to increased fears (e.g. fear to go out, fear to talk to people, fear to call a child to say hello).

Home care

There’s a lot of debate around the notion of “home care”. Many people don’t like the idea because they associate it with improper care. The truth is, there are excellent home care facilities spread around the country. Many provide excellent services, apart from caregiving. Senior people need to stay social. They need to be active – both physically and mentally – to enjoy the best of life. Some of today’s advanced assisted living facilities are more comfortable than an actual home. These places provide excellent accommodation, lots of activities, treatments, and therapies that compel a senior to enjoy their lifestyles.

It is important for aging parents to appreciate life. The best care home in Maidstone provides exquisite services. However, for the system to work seniors must be open to change. It’s no shame in not being able to live on your own house. Rather than struggle performing daily duties, assisted living facilities are all about increasing the quality of your life. They can help you feel better, socialize with people the same age, try out lots of activities, and boost cognitive function. All these improve the quality of your life by 30%.

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Guest Post: Ways to Relieve Stress and Back Pain

Are you experiencing stiffness in your back? Beware; it might be an indication of stress. Though it might sound a bit weird, stress can cause back pains. Being anxious about anything switches on the stress response of your body. As a result, you become tenser as your body prepares you to fight, flee, or freeze in the stress causing situation. Your bloodstream is also flooded with a cascade of chemicals which in turn makes your muscles spasm. As a result, you experience back pain.

How To Reduce Stress And Back Pain?

After you know the reason for the back pain, it is important for you to take control of the stress levels. Here is a list of steps you can take to relieve stress level and the back pain generated from it.

Breathing and Stretching

Stretching can help you a great deal to make the stiffness of the back muscles go away. However, you should be very alert while stretching. Stop stretching if you experience any kind of pain. Deep breathing is a well-known technique which reduces stress. Pilates and yoga are also known to reduce stress and back pain. However, you should always consult a professional before you decide to take up these exercises.

Apply A Cold or Warm Compress

You can apply cold compresses such as ice pack if you have inflammation in your back. If your back is stiff, then you can use hot compresses such as a heating pad. Hot compresses also reduce muscle cramping and spasms. Therapists generally advise taking moist hot compress instead of dry one. To do that you can take a bath in hot water to loosen the sore muscles.

Avoid Caffeine

You should stop consuming caffeine at all. Caffeine increases the stress response in your body, which will prevent the healing of the back pain. You should go for caffeine-free alternatives such as lavender tea, which soothes the body and relieves stress.

Sleep

Sleep is most necessary to repair the sore muscles of your back. Most people who experience back pain also suffer from sleep disturbances which in turn induce stress. You should try different postures for better night’s sleep. Do not sleep on your stomach as this posture causes added strain to the back.

Exercise and Rest

Exercise is necessary to Relieve stress. However, too much exercise can increase back pain. If you do too little, then your muscles can become locked up resulting spasm. In short, you need to find a balance between these two. Regular walking and stretching can loosen and strengthen the back muscles.

Control of the stressors of life might not be in your hands, but maintaining your health is. So, practice these tips to not let the stressors interfere with the happiness of your life.