It’s the Bank Holiday Season!
At this time of year there always seems to be a lot of Bank Holidays, a number of long weekends between March and May. In reality its only three! For many people this is a family time and it often gives people a chance to spend more time with elderly relatives. We find often if an elderly person’s family live elsewhere the extended weekends allows them to visit. It may be during these visits that it becomes apparent an elderly parent is not coping as well as they used to.
This happened to me (Mark, Owner of Independent Living). I used to travel 140 miles to visit my widowed mother in Scarborough. For years (almost 20 years!) I just took it for granted everything was alright. My mother usually appeared happy and healthy with a good social life revolving around the church. However, after COVID my mother became depressed and withdrew from social activities blaming how she felt on the effects of isolating from COVID. However, over the following months I received phone calls from her local church friends concerned about her behaviour, for example, forgetting where she had sat, trying to buy herself drink twice, saying unusual things. Then I noticed my mother struggled with door keys and turning up the heating thermostat. This turned out to be the start of dementia which was very progressive over the next two years.
If you see signs an elderly relative is struggling (it may be physical rather than dementia) perhaps it is time to consider support and care at home. At first the care may only be needed once a week, this keeps the cost of care low and allows a person to adjust to the change. Many older people enjoy and look forward to a care visit and it is generally a positive experience. The carer can feedback any concerns they are noticing back to family, or ideas to help the person. You can increase the care time only if you want or need to.
In my own situation I only put home care in place for my mother after a sudden weekend emergency. In hindsight this is not the best solution, putting home care in place when you first have concerns is a far better option.
Are you worried about a loved one and cannot be there at short notice? Why not give Lilian or Amanda a call in office hours for an non-obligation chat 01257 696 050.
