Strategies for Getting (and Staying) Organized While Caregiving
Photo credit Ekaterina Bolovtsova
Caring for a vulnerable elder can be rewarding as well as frustrating. It can increase our self-esteem to know that we are helping someone in need, but it can also burden us as we grapple with difficult care decisions and the fact that we aren’t perfect caregivers. (Hint: No one is.) Caregiving requires continual learning and adjustments, and no two situations are identical. But, becoming as organized as possible and making a consistent effort to stay that way can help you relieve caregiver stress and use your time and energy more efficiently. It might seem overwhelming to maintai...
Source: Minding Our Elders - November 4, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Arts Improve Quality of life for Stroke Survivors and People with Alzheimer's
Photo credit Elina Sazonova
...An article about the study on Eurekalert also reports that "researchers have shown that listening to" music directly stimulates a feeling of pleasure by releasing dopamine in the brain." These results shed light on the importance of lifelong exposure to art for improving the recovery process after a stroke. Introducing art into nursing care after a stroke could help improve stroke survivors' quality of life. Theater has also been used as a type of therapy for people with Alzheimer's disease.
NPR reported on an outreach program at the Lookingglass Theater in Chicago that offers people with A...
Source: Minding Our Elders - November 3, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Minding Our Elders Blog Back After Server Disruption
Gentle readers,
My apologies for the disruptions during the last couple of weeks. I've used the same blog host since I began, and they have served me well. However, it seems that the company was sold, and the new owners decided to move hundreds of thousands of blogs to a new server. I understand. These things are part of business. What I (and the other bloggers) don't understand is why we had no notice that this would happen. We couldn't have changed the process, but we could have let our readers know what was going on. Anyway, as of today, things seem almost back to normal, so kudos to them! This means that not only can ...
Source: Minding Our Elders - November 2, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Hospice Care for Dementia: When Is It Time?
...Unlike other serious illnesses, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and related dementias are extremely difficult to categorize into the neat stages of progression that are typically used to determine whether hospice care is appropriate. Life expectancy is difficult, if not impossible, to pinpoint for patients affected by AD or other forms of cognitive impairment, such as vascular dementia, Lewy Body dementia, and frontotemporal dementia. Furthermore, patients in the later stages of these conditions are usually unable to communicate pain, discomfort, wants, and needs. This means that family caregivers and even their loved ones...
Source: Minding Our Elders - November 1, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Adaptive Footwear Can Aid Comfort and Joint Health While Helping You Prevent Falls
While the average person is unlikely to do high jumps or run marathons, even daily life can wear out our joints. Over time, this wear may become apparent through pain. Age aside, diseases such as arthritis can eat away at our joints and cause inflammation, as well. The result of these assaults can be damaged hips and knees, and malformed feet and toes. Wise people learn that supportive, adjustable footwear can make or break our day, and that’s where Silverts can help.
Extra wide for inflamed and non-aligned toes: The pressure of shoes on sore or twisted joints can force even people who once had narrow feet into sandals ...
Source: Minding Our Elders - October 28, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Medications Should be Carefully Controlled as Alzheimer's Advances
While Alzheimer's specific drugs may help slow symptoms for some people, they also may increase the risk of hip fractures, fainting, urinary problems, and other health issues. Most researchers now think that a time comes when many medications for the elderly are no longer beneficial and may be harmful.
According to an article in JAMA Internal Medicine, researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester looked at 5,406 nursing home residents who had late-stage Alzheimer's or dementia with more than half of them being older than 85. The scientists found that 2,911 of the patients - nearly 54 pe...
Source: Minding Our Elders - October 27, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Why Would Mom Choose to Smell Rather Than Use Incontinence Products?
Dear Carol: My mom is only 79 but she has a lot of health problems including lung disease requiring oxygen. She receives good health care through her Medicare policies, and she doesn't need help around the house other than what I can provide by going to see her two or three times a week. Since we live near each other, that's not a problem. The problem is she leaks urine. She doesn't leak constantly, but she does smell most of the time even though she showers. I've told her that she should try some pads, but she refuses, saying that she doesn't need them. Why will she agree to use oxygen but then feel insu...
Source: Minding Our Elders - October 26, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Getting Over the Guilt of Placing a Loved One in a Home
Photo credit Alexander Dummer
If we could control events, most of us would never want our elders to be so sick that they need the care of a nursing home, especially homes that are still operating in the dark ages, as some of them still are. Many homes have now moved forward into person-centered care, and reluctant caregivers often find their elders thrive, once they have adjusted. Still, it's hard.
For many caregivers, placing an elder in a home spells failure on the part of the caregiver. Even when carers know they've done all they can, a subconscious nagging voice often tells them they are giving up on their parents or...
Source: Minding Our Elders - October 25, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Unearned Guilt Intrinsic to Most Caregiving
Photo credit Sharon McCutcheon
If ever there was a group of people who suffer deeply from unearned guilt, it’s caregivers. Whether you’re the parent of a vulnerable adult, an adult child of aging parents or the spouse of a vulnerable adult, you are bound to have your “if only” times where you are sucked into the quicksand of guilt. The reality is that most things you could have done differently wouldn’t have made a huge difference overall. Even if another approach would have made a difference, you can’t go back. Staying mired in guilt is counterproductive for you as well as your care receiver.
While som...
Source: Minding Our Elders - October 24, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Medicare Open Enrollment: Time to Check Plans to Optimize Coverage
Photo credit Nick Morrison
Dear Carol: I’ve recently begun working with my mom on her medical care and financial management. Though she’s happy with her Medicare coverage she says that during Open Enrollment, we need to check things over. I’m not clear about the differences between plain Medicare where she has a Plan F Medigap policy, Medicare D, and Medicare Advantage. I’ve searched Open Enrollment, but I'm hoping that you can clarify. What do we need to do? – KJ
Continue reading on Inforum for more about Medicare Open Enrollment and what you should do (or could skip) each year...
Source: Minding Our Elders - October 23, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Hearing Aids Help Balance, Prevent Falls for Some Elders
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), falls are the leading cause of both fatal and nonfatal injuries for people over 65. Falls can cause moderate to severe injuries, such as hip fractures and head traumas, and can increase the risk of early death. Fortunately, falls are a public health problem that is largely preventable. The CDC suggests these steps as a start:
Continue reading on HealthCentral for tips on how we can address fall risk (and how hearing affects this problem):
Minding Our Elders: Caregivers Share Their Personal Stories. “I hold onto your book as a life ...
Source: Minding Our Elders - October 22, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Hearing Loss Addressed Early Can Help Protect Brain
Since mild hearing loss is considered part of normal aging it's rarely treated until the loss is at a later stage. However, now that hearing loss is known to affect our risk of developing dementia, this casual approach needs to be reconsidered.
Anu Sharma of the Department of Speech Language and Hearing Science at University of Colorado and her team have applied fundamental principles of neuroplasticity, which is the brain’s ability to forge new connections, as a way to adapt to hearing loss.
"The hearing areas of the brain shrink in age-related hearing loss," Sharma said in an interview with Medical News Today. ...
Source: Minding Our Elders - October 21, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Caregivers Can Help Older Adults Retain Their Dignity
Discussions with Elders about HousingRespecting Elders' Dignity May Require Accepting RiskNeeds of Solo Agers a Growing Concern in Aging Population (Source: Minding Our Elders)
Source: Minding Our Elders - October 20, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Respecting Elders' Dignity May Require Accepting Risk
Discussions with Elders about HousingConfused About Palliative Care Vs. Hospice Care? You Aren’t AloneExercise May Help Prevent Alzheimer's: Study Shows Why (Source: Minding Our Elders)
Source: Minding Our Elders - October 19, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
Confused About Palliative Care Vs. Hospice Care? You Aren ’t Alone
Discussions with Elders about HousingCalming a Person with Dementia Begins with Joining Their World (Source: Minding Our Elders)
Source: Minding Our Elders - October 18, 2022 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
