5 Strategies for Meeting Your Aging Parent’s Emotional Needs

By 9  am on

Meeting Your Aging Parent’s Emotional Needs in Rosville, CA

Family caregivers often spend large portions of their days making sure their senior loved ones eat well, exercise, and take their medications. These are all important things to do, but you also need to be aware of your loved one’s emotional wellbeing. Seniors often feel sad, worried, and angry about the state of their lives, and these tips can help you meet your loved one’s emotional needs so he or she is happier.

1. Establish a Safe Environment for Sharing

The first thing you need to do is know where your loved one is emotionally. Some seniors value being stoic, and your loved one might not always say how he or she is feeling. Create an open atmosphere for sharing feelings by accepting anything your loved one has to say. Although they might not make sense to you, your loved one’s feelings are valid. Let your loved one cry when he or she is happy or make a joke when he or she is upset. Allowing seniors to express themselves means they’ll be more willing to share when they need to talk.

2. Use Physical Touch to Calm Negative Emotions

After losing spouses and having children move away, seniors tend to have fewer opportunities to touch other people. Physical touch releases endorphins that stimulate positive emotional responses. You can help your loved one enjoy this benefit by arranging safe and comfortable opportunities for him or her to enjoy physical touching. Getting his or her hair washed, snuggling with a pet, and enjoying a hand massage are just a few ways your parent can receive physical stimulation that soothes emotions.

3. Find Ways to Ease Emotional Outbursts

A senior’s moods are valid, but he or she must still follow the rules of society. Seniors sometimes find it difficult to control their emotions during upsetting moments. This is more common among seniors with dementia and other cognitive impairments. If your loved one tends to yell at people in public out of frustration or feels the need to throw things at home, you can begin to help him or her identify ways to calm down. Distractions and stress-relieving activities can help your loved one keep his or her emotional reactions under control.

Seniors can face a variety of age-related challenges. Though some families choose to take on the caregiving duties, there may come a time when they need a trusted Roseville at-home care provider. Families sometimes need respite from their duties so they can focus on their other responsibilities, and some seniors need around-the-clock assistance that their families are not able to provide. Home Care Assistance is here to help.

4. Recognize the Need for Diverse Social Contacts

Socialization feeds positive emotions. Try as you might, you simply cannot be the only person your loved one needs. Seniors need a diverse range of people around them to help them handle their changing emotions. Your loved one might need to have a home caregiver come in a few times a week to avoid boredom. He or she may also need to see a counselor to address difficult emotions.

For families living in Roseville, respite care can be a wonderful solution when their aging loved ones need companionship and socialization a few hours a week or just need minor assistance with daily household tasks. At Home Care Assistance, we thrive on helping seniors maintain their independence while living in the comfort of home.

5. Provide Opportunities to Feel Successful

Seniors need to feel useful and important to others. Find ways to help your loved one feel a sense of accomplishment. This could be as simple as praising how well he or she helped you set the table for dinner, or he or she might be able to volunteer. Either way, incorporating little successes into each day helps seniors maintain happier emotions.

Older adults need to prioritize their emotional wellbeing to maintain a high quality of life as they age. Senior 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 us at (916) 226-3737 today to talk to one of our compassionate Care Managers about our high-quality home care services.

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR BLOG


    Request Free Information or
    Schedule a Free in-Home Consultation