Working Through An Elderly Loved One's Resistance To Care

We face a number of challenges as we get older. Sometimes, our older loved ones are resistant to the idea of receiving assistance or additional care. It can be frightening to feel like one's independence is being infringed upon. Your loved one may have spent their life working hard to create a great life for the people they care about. Now, they are looking into a future where that may need to change. That is an intimidating prospect for anyone.

So let's take a look at some ways to help an elderly loved one move past their fears and discomfort.

1. Identify the reasons for hesitation and resistance.
The best place to start is at the beginning. Have a frank discussion about the challenges your loved one is facing and how they envision their future care. Explore your loved one's point of view. Chances are good they won't come straight out and give specific reasons; but they may provide enough information in context clues to figure it out. Wait for a relatively calm time to have this discussion.

2. Explain your own needs in relation to their care.
The elderly of today faced different social circumstances than younger people do today. It was not uncommon to expect family to contribute to care when they were younger. Unfortunately, there are many people out there working two jobs to take care of their own families or stay afloat. Being a caretaker and staying afloat just isn't possible for many. Explain your own life situation clearly so your elderly loved one can also understand the challenges you're facing in your own life and how homecare assistance will help you.

3. Reinforce that your loved one does have choices.
A trial run is a good way to get your loved one used to the idea of assistance. This will give them an opportunity to develop some rapport with the caregiver and see how valuable they can be. Furthermore, reinforce that they do have a choice in caregivers. It can be uncomfortable to know that you're going to have a stranger in your home. Assure them they do have recourse if they don't like the caregiver or there is a personality clash.

4. Assisting caregivers can extend independence and autonomy.
The point most overlooked about assisted care is how it can extend independence. The human body simply does not hold up as well as we get older. That makes doing chores like laundry, hauling things up and down stairs, much more dangerous. A serious sickness, bad fall, or broken bones can result in your elderly loved one needing to go into an assisted living home. On the other hand, an assisting caregiver can provide the help your loved one needs to stay safe and healthy in their own home.

Assisting caregivers can significantly improve the quality of life of elderly loved ones. Contact Visiting Angels today to see how we help our clients maintain a safe, high quality of life in their own home.