While providing elderly home care, would you know how to identify
depression in your elderly loved one? Do you know the warning signs of
senior depression? If you answered no to one or both of these
questions, you are not alone. Depression may be described as feeling sad, blue, unhappy, miserable, down in the dumps, or feeling blah. The
common signs of depression can include:
- Trouble sleeping or excessive sleeping
- Dramatic change in appetite, often with weight loss or gain
- Fatigue, lack of energy
- Feelings of worthlessness
- Difficulty concentrating
- Agitation, restlessness, or irritability
- Withdrawal from once enjoyed activities
- Feelings of hopelessness or helplessness
- Recurring thoughts of death or suicide
Depression among seniors is harder to identify than depression among younger adults. Younger adults, and even children, more readily express feelings of sadness or depression that their senior counterparts.
Caregivers providing personal home care and family members of seniors
may not recognize the signs of depression. And if seniors are less
likely to express such feelings, the situation can prove to have
devastating results. Geriatric suicide is a growing concern. Suicide among the elderly is more common that any other age group. One reason for this, is that depression among seniors is often mistaken for other age related problems, or the aging process in general. But remember, depression is not a normal part of aging.
Many seniors are from an era where seeking help for mental health issues carries a negative stigma of being “crazy”. It is important, therefore, for family members and those providing senior in home care to be aware that their senior loved one is less likely to share feelings of depression, and less likely to seek treatment. Seniors often face loneliness, isolation, and grief over the death of a spouse. If you notice signs of depression in your aging loved one, try to reach out and talk about it with them. If you are the caregiver providing personal home care and notice signs of depression, share your concerns with the family members. If the senior is unwilling or unable to open up and share her thoughts, and the depression persists, it’s important
to speak to a medical professional.
Sitting down and initiating a discussion with your elderly parents about needing some personal home care can be uncomfortalbe. Many families avoid such conversations about aging, end of life, and finances because they view these topics as private matters. The following tips provide communications strategies that might help with the dialogue of care for parents.
1. Start discussions early-it’s much easier to have these discussions while your parents can be a part of the decision making process, rather than you having to do it for them because of illness or injury.
2. Go in prepared-don’t be surprised to learn that your parents have already thought about the need for personal home care someday. Create a game plan to present to your parents, include siblings and other pertinent relatives, and gather necessary information to share on senior in home care.
3. Explain your purpose-let your parents know you are concerned about them and that your goal is to help them. Your parents will be more responsive to elderly home care if they participate in the dec isions.
4. Take one step at a time-don’t overwhelm your parents by trying to solve too many problems at once. Change comes slowly to many seniors. Tackle the big problems first. Accepting the fact that they need help may take some for your parents to accept.
5. It’s ok to agree to disagree-if your parent’s don’t initially agree with your idea for senior in home care, don’t push too hard. Unless their immediate health or safety are an issue, their wishes should prevail.
6. Don’t give up-if you run into extreme resistance to personal home care on your first attempt…keep trying. Leave some literature for them to read. Be patient and approach the subject again once they’ve had time to disgest the idea.
CareGrade offers a free referral service for families searching for senior care services such as Home Health Care, Assisted Living, Adult Day Care and more. We have experienced, compassionate and knowledgeable senior care advisors who live right in your local area. These advisors can help you make an informed decision about what care is best for your loved ones. You can speak with them live or contact them via the web. Either way, they are there to help guide you through his difficult process.
Prior to making your decision, you can read reviews about the companies we refer. These reviews are written by our advisors who have first hand knowledge of each company. We also have reviews written by the families who we have referred. They are writing about their own personal home care experience with the company they have chosen. This unique resource offers you they most complete source of information available, allowing you to make a decision you can feel confident about.
Our services are free to the consumer because we are reimbursed by the service providers only after you are completely satisfied with your choice.
Find out more on the About CareGrade page.
