Thursday, December 5, 2013

65 Things I have Learned Caring for 89 year old Miss Kitty!!

DEDICATED TO THOSE CARING FOR THEIR ELDERLY PARENTS! 
I appreciate you and THANK YOU for all that you do!




    Amazing smile!

  1. Patience, patience, patience
  2. To slow down and not rush with the elderly
  3. To speak louder and slower
  4. Awareness of the elderly around me in society
  5. To have more empathy and compassion for those with Alzheimer’s
  6. To have more of the same with the aging in general
  7. How to communicate with Alzheimer’s patient
  8. How to sit closer and look and speak directly to them
  9. How to shop for groceries with senior choosing smaller store
  10.  Managing the practical needs of the senior ie food, clothing.
  11.  Managing the health care of the senior – Dr’s appointments etc
  12.  Working with the Provincial Health System
  13. How to pretend that the Alzheimer patient is right and play along
  14. How to sneak into their room and organize and tidy up without their knowledge
  15. How to deal with a pharmacy on an ongoing basis
  16. How to pay for services ahead of time for the senior ie footcare, hairdresser
  17. How to monitor senior’s hygiene
  18. How to buy a walker and convince the senior to use it
  19. How to counsel a senior into having their meds distributed by residence
  20. How to encourage, inspire and motivate a senior who feels down
    Sad Face
  21. How to encourage, inspire and motivate a senior who needs to exercise
  22. How to move a senior across the country into a new province
  23. How much the move affects the senior
  24. How to shop for a senior’s residence facility
  25. How much the facilities charge and what they include
  26. How much the extra’s cost the senior
  27. Seniors need to social and party and celebrate
  28.  To appreciate the elderly for their wisdom
  29.  To appreciate the elderly for their experience and history they have walked
  30.  Learned they need antibiotics to visit a dentist if they have artificial knee or hip
  31. To converse with many seniors at the residence
  32. Learned that there are many in the same situation
  33. Met many caring caregivers, and care aids
  34. Where the Alzheimer's Society Office is and what they offer
  35. What about the various medications available
  36.  About urinary incontinence in seniors
  37. UTI (urinary tract infection) causes symptoms similar to Alzheimer's ie. confusion
  38. There are doctors who specialize in geriatrics
  39. That I or my husband will be in this place one day
  40. Happy Face!
    Long term memory can still be very much alive
  41. Seniors may be demented but are not stupid
  42. About Pharmacare (Drug assistance) available in my province
  43. Seniors don’t like to drink much water
  44. Seniors are often dehydrated
  45. Seniors love the old songs of their day and remember the lyrics
  46. Music brings them together in community
  47. Seniors still long for spiritual discussion and growth
  48. Seniors who have Alzheimer’s think everyone else is crazy
  49. Alzheimer’s patients are scared  and anxious
  50. They still like to have fun
  51. They all just want to be loved and respected as they have been
  52. Family is very very important to them
  53. They love to be included
  54. They need to be stimulated and challenged with games, movies, audio books
  55. They don’t want to lose their independence
  56. They feel lonely and isolated and need connection
  57. They can lose their filters and say what they truly think
  58. They need their finances and power of attorney in place before Alzheimer's
  59. There is still a lot of pride at any age
  60. To appreciate anyone in this care giving position
  61. Seniors often revert back to children with clicks and gossip
  62. Seniors still can be interested in the opposite sex
  63. Some seniors often still want an active sex life.
  64. It is an honour to serve the elderly
  65. I am modeling to my child how I would like to be treated

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