Caring for a Memory Impaired Parent or Spouse - Boca Home Care ...

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Spouses and other family caregivers for aging loved ones with memory loss usually become Caregivers by default. They don?t apply for this ?job? which is time consuming, emotionally, physically and financially demanding. It is thrust upon them with the expectation of doing it all.

You may or may not have experience with Alzheimer?s Disease or Dementia but are expected to?know many things and be on the job 24/7.? Boca Home Care Services strongly recommends the immediate family learn about their elderly loved one?s disease, now, what to expect in coming years and ?tricks? to enhance their role as the primary caregiver. Read, research, attend caregiver support groups and learn to be open about the situation and your needs.

Here are a few tips each caregiver can practice and master which can make caregiving a little easeir.

1. The person you love who has memory impairment has become brain damaged to some extent. Being reasonable, logical and rational is often a one way exercise. Your loved one may have diminished or nonexistent capacity to understand what you are explaining and expecting. Simple and Direct? short sentences are best.

2. If the facts no longer matter, don?t insist on them. Your father or mother may be speaking to or about a deceased family member as if they are here?. play along with it. Some ?therapeutic??fibbing is the right thing to do. Dementia robs? a person?s sense of ?reality? it doesn?t help to insist on things that are essentially harmless but comforting to them. You can achieve greater calm by agreeing and redirecting the subject matter.

3. There is NO PERFECT so don?t use your energy trying to be perfect or feeling guilty of not being so. Aim to be ?good enough, most of the time?.? Anger, frustration,? guilt, fatigue are human emotions, you are bound to feel them? and it is all right. If you are feeling consumed by negative emotions, seek help with individual counseling and/or a Caregiver Support Group.

4. Tell your loved one what is happening, don?t ask them. Say put on your red shirt or we are having lunch now.? Short, direct, specific instructions are preferable to giving choices which requires some degree of cognition which they may not be able to do.

4. Your spouse or parent may have times of lucidity which are striking and welcome.? It doesn?t mean they are cured, misdiagnosed or faking memory loss. Enjoy periods of strength, it is part of their disease.

5. You know your loved one best. You may need to educate the doctors, friends and family members about the condition and the abilities of your spouse or parent. Secrecy doesn?t really work and it takes a lot of energy to keep up a facade that others know is just that.

You Can?t Do It All ? Over Time! Being a Caregiver takes its toll. In fact the primary caregiver is often at greater risk than the diagnosed person. The stress, worry, responsibility and anxiety of the future take a physical and emotional toll. Get help! Accept offers from friends, family and say ?thank you? Hire help, even for short periods to give yourself Respite Time. It is all part of being human. The better you take care of yourself, the better you?ll be at Care-giving.

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Related posts:

1. Does My Elderly Parent Need Elder Home Care?
2. Tips For Caring For An Elder or Aging Parent Long Distance
3. How to limit Alzheimer?s wandering

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Source: http://www.bocahomecareservices.com/blog/caregiver-tips-caring-memory-impaired-parent-spouse/

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