Too much stress can have a negative impact on mental, physical, and emotional health, putting seniors at higher risk for conditions like hypertension, heart disease, and weakened immune systems. However, making simple changes to daily activities could lead to positive thoughts, reduced stress levels, and a better quality of life. Here are some stress management tips for aging adults.
1. Talk Things Out
Ignoring problems won’t make seniors feel better. Keeping issues bottled up inside could cause more stress. Your senior loved one needs to speak with you or others about the issues he or she is facing. The objective is to address the cause of the stress and find a temporary or permanent positive solution.
2. Exercise
Staying physically active helps older adults produce endorphins, which act like natural painkillers for the brain and body. These chemicals can boost your loved one’s mood. Your loved one can try water aerobics, walking, yoga, and other stress-relieving physical activities. Yoga is good for stress management because the exercise allows seniors to practice deep thinking and breathing techniques that can boost their mood and lower their stress levels.
For seniors with mobility issues or health conditions that make it difficult to exercise on their own, professional caregivers can be a wonderful asset. There are a variety of age-related health conditions that can make it more challenging for seniors to live independently. However, many of the challenges they face can be easier to address if their families opt for professional senior care. You can rely on expertly trained caregivers to keep your loved one safe and comfortable while aging in place.
3. Stay Positive
Even when things seem bad, seniors need to look for the positives in the situation. For example, if your loved one has received an unwelcome diagnosis from his or her primary care physician, he or she should focus on the positives, such as treatment options that might slow the progression of the health issue or eliminate it altogether. Focusing on the positives can reduce stress and give your loved one hope. Instead of feeling worried, angry, and defeated, he or she can continue to be happy, determined, and focused.
4. Make Time to Relax
Lack of sleep can contribute to high stress and anxiety levels. Even a slight change in your parent’s sleeping schedule could alter his or her mood and cause him or her to feel depressed, confused, and agitated. When sleep decreases, stress levels generally increase. During sleep, the body and brain rid themselves of dangerous toxins and hormones that affect mood, metabolism, and thought processes. To lower the levels of stress hormones in the body, help your loved one develop a bedtime routine, and encourage him or her to get at least eight hours of sleep each night.
Caregivers need stress relief, too, so making time to relax is a great idea for the whole family. Family caregivers sometimes need a break from their caregiving responsibilities. When they need respite care, Roseville families can rely on professional caregivers to help their senior loved ones remain safe at home.
5. Eat Healthy
When it comes to managing stress, sweets should be one of the things seniors cut back on, including sugary beverages and artificial sweeteners. Caffeine is another bad option. Too much caffeine can affect the fight-or-flight response and cause higher levels of stress hormones to be produced. Instead of consuming sugar, caffeine, and processed foods, seniors need to add more stress-reducing items to their diets, such as:
- Nuts
- Carrots
- Dark chocolate
- Green tea
- Milk
- Salmon
- Poultry
- Kale
- Spinach
- Blueberries
Stress can have a number of unhealthy physical and emotional effects on seniors, so lowering stress levels is an important part of boosting their overall wellbeing. In Roseville, elderly home care agencies can be a great boon to seniors. With the help of the caregivers at Home Care Assistance, your aging loved one can lead a happier and healthier life. We offer a revolutionary program called the Balanced Care Method, which encourages seniors to eat nutritious foods, exercise and socialize regularly, and focus on other lifestyle factors that increase life expectancy. Call one of our friendly Care Managers at (916) 226-3737 to learn about ways our experienced caregivers can help your loved one.