Talking with your senior about her health and about her changing needs is not always that easy to do. You might have to take a good look at your own approach to the situation.
Pay Attention to What She’s Sharing
You may think that your aging family member isn’t hearing what you’ve said to her or that she’s ignoring what’s going on with her health. But start paying attention to what she’s sharing with you. You might have been trying to convince her that home health care providers could help her, for instance, but she’s been resisting the idea. Then she lets you know that a friend has home health care providers who drive for her. She may be considering the idea more than she’s letting on.
Slow Down a Bit and Meet Your Senior Where She Is
For you, some of these issues may seem pretty urgent and need her attention right away. But when you push, that’s more likely to cause your senior to shut down. Slow down a little bit. You might need to do this literally as well as figuratively. If you’ve noticed that your senior needs a little more patience from you, you’re going to need to offer it to her.
Follow Along Instead of Trying to Force a Result
Your elderly family member is in the driver’s seat with a lot of these issues. You may want to force her to see things from your perspective, but that’s not a healthy approach. You’re going to need to follow her lead a little more closely.
Take Some Notes about What You Discuss
It’s easy to lose track of where you’ve gotten in these conversations with your senior to keep you from hashing things out that you’ve already gained ground on. One of the best ways to keep up with this is to just take notes about what you and your senior talk about. You can also see when you look at your notes later that you’re making more progress than you think.
Make Yourself Available to Her
While you’re trying to make headway on these kinds of talks with your senior about her health, it’s important that you make yourself available to her. When she calls, make it a point to answer if you can. If she’s at the point where she’s ready to talk, it helps for you to be ready to go, too.
There may be times when your elderly family member is more receptive to what you’re sharing and suggesting than she might be at other times. You’re going to need to be patient and learn to let her respond at her own pace.
If you or an aging loved one are considering Home Health Care Services in Norwood MA, or anywhere in Eastern Massachusetts, please call the caring staff at CARE Resolutions – (508) 906-5572.
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