Smart Senior

How Can You Age Proof Your Home?

 

An article by Tom Kelly, in the Real Estate section of the Herald (Sunday, December 20, 2009), touched on the timely subject of giving your folks a safer place to age. Instead of looking for alternative living arrangements for someone who doesn’t want to move, how about thinking about how they can safely stay in their own homes.

 

Mr. Kelly suggested giving your parents a custom gift certificate that would allow them to have an “aging in place” evaluation done of their home.  Surveys show that 90% of people over age 65 would prefer to remain in their own home.    The downside is that many of them will have trouble maneuvering safely around if some modifications aren’t considered.   At this time only about 10% of the nation’s homes have features that make them universally accessible.  A gift certificate for an evaluation by a certified contractor could be the first step to making this happen.

 

Projects for accessibility remodeling can range from something as simple as installing grab bars to more complex renovations such as creating downstairs living quarters.   An aging in place specialists can help determine what needs to be done in a practical no nonsense way.  Often hearing about something like this from a trained unbiased third party is much more acceptable than trying to from a family member.

 

 

 

How Can You Age Proof Your Home?

 

An excellent article by Tom Kelly in the Real Estate section of the Herald (Sunday, December 20, 2009) touched on the subject of giving your folks a safer place to age. Instead of looking for alternative living arrangements for someone who doesn’t want to move, how about thinking about how they can safely stay in their own homes.

 

Mr. Kelly suggests giving your parents a custom gift certificate that would allow them to have an “aging in place” evaluation done of their home.  Surveys show that 90% of people over age 65 would prefer to remain in their own home. The downside is that many of them will have trouble maneuvering safely around their homes if some modifications aren’t considered.   At this time only about 10% of the nation’s homes have features that make them universally accessible.  A gift certificate for an evaluation done by a certified contractor could be one of the first steps toward making this happen.

 

Projects for accessibility remodeling can range from something as simple as installing grab bars to major renovations such as the creation of first floor living quarters.  An aging in place specialists can help determine what needs to be done in a practical no nonsense way.  Often hearing about something like this from a trained unbiased third party is much more acceptable than hearing it from a family member.

 

 

Care Giving: What Can You Do To Help Your Senior Be Independent?

 

 It is hard to watch someone spend an hour just getting dressed in the morning, but this simple activity can give a senior a great deal of pride and a sense of accomplishment.  It will be tempting at times to just do everything for him/her but your acts of kindness may very well undermine his/her feelings of independence.

 

 Remember that everything that you can do for yourself makes you feel good about yourself.  It is more important to learn new ways to be independent than to have someone else do everything for you.  There are many gadgets available today that can make activities of daily living easier.  These gadgets are known as assistive devices and you and your senior can shop together to find the ones that work best for her/him.  Learn how to use them. Work together with your senior and help make independence a goal.

 

 Above all, do not allow your senior to become sedentary because this is the worst thing that can happen.  Ask the doctor about a course of occupational therapy to help them compensate for their lost skills. Consider a class teaching your elder how to fall and how to get back up.  You will undoubtedly meet resistance but if you can break down that communication barrier and share common goals, the battle is half won. 

 

Visit your elder with an eagle eye toward safety issues.  Have a meal together at least once a week and talk about family, shared interests and current events.  There is no reason why a senior can’t remain interested and interesting, but sometimes it takes more than a caregiver can give.  It takes a village (or at least a family).

 

Studies show (Eldercare for Dummies by Rachelle Zukerman, PhD) that when they are allowed (and encouraged) to control their environments, seniors are healthier, happier and more alert. The years piling up are depressing enough but it is the loss of control that people fear the most.  It is important to include them into decision making instead of just doing everything for them because it is easier, or because you have some misguided ideas about what is best for them.

 

Last but not least…learn how to listen, and encourage your senior to talk. Encouraging them to share an oral history (consider recording, or jotting down notes and scrapbooking) and you can share in a real treasure.  Ask them what it was like living during the depression or where they were during significant historical events.  You don’t have to read gigantic tomes to relive the past…you have the past alive and well right in your own family.

 

 

 

Aging in Place: What Can You Do to Make This a Safeand Satisfying Experience?

 

Home is the place where you feel safest, but statistically peaking people over 65 experience a high rate of injury related accidents in their own homes.   Unfortunately most people do not think about dangerous situations until something catastrophic happens.  Granted, you have the right to live as you please; even it means that you could injury yourself. Yes, you do have rights.  Living in your own home is your right, but think of it as a privilege as well. It is up to you to use good judgment if you want this to be a safe and satisfying experience.  Good judgment might mean allowing other people help you.  People who love you will try hard not to impinge on your personal freedoms, but it isn’t easy to watch or take care of someone living on the brink of disaster.   Seniors who want to remain independent need to be open to some changes, in order for this to happen.

 

 If you are a family member caring for a senior who is exhibiting signs of poor judgment, the least you can do is provide/encourage a safe environment.  Sometimes that is all you can do.

 

A complete home make-over using universal design techniques is ideal, but unless you have a great deal of foresight and start doing this when you are in your 40’s or 50’s it probably isn’t going to happen.  We all live in a state of denial when it comes to planning for our own entry into our senior years, and you never quite feel old enough to worry about it.

 

Experts will tell you that 1/3 to ½ of home accidents can be prevented with some rather cursory home modifications or repairs.   If you are thinking of major renovations you will be pleased to know that there are contractors with special training and certifications in these matters.  From a practical standpoint, especially if you are doing this after the fact, a physical or occupational therapist can do a safety check and work with you to plan a safer environment.

 

Sometimes you don’t notice that you are engaging in unsafe practices so it is up to your family members to observe and suggest.  The worst thing you can do for yourself is to become angry and defensive when someone tries to help you.  Little things like raising the height of a low bed to make it easier to get in and out of, installing grab bars anywhere a little lift would help, beefing up the lighting, removing obstacles from the floor or counters, providing reaching devices and installing turntables on shelves to make it easier to get at things can make a huge difference.

 

Stairways are a big problem and unfortunately many houses are arranged on several levels. If converting the downstairs into your living quarters isn’t possible you have to come up with innovative ways to deal with steps.  Installing a second railing or even a chair lift or elevator can go along way when it comes to home safety.  Minor renovations may also be necessary to make sure that doorways are wide enough for walker, wheelchair of scooter access. Bathrooms are more dangerous than any other room in your house.  Be sure to look into bathroom with grab bars, non-skid mats, hand-held showerheads, shower chairs, temperature controls, raised toilet seats and the like.

 

Use common sense.  Make sure there are no cords to trip over and keep stairs and hallways free clutter.  Make sure that existing furniture is stable enough to provide support if someone uses it to regain balance.  When you see your loved one exhibiting unsafe behaviors you can discuss it with them, and perhaps the two of you can arrive at a solution.  A trained professional can help you identify problems areas.  Living with or checking in with your senior often still doesn’t ensure absolute security.  You can’t be with them every second of every day but you can make their environment safer.

 

Exercising Your Brain: Adult Education for Seniors

 

Mental lapses are laughable when you are younger but when you officially become a senior, every time you forget your car keys becomes a huge concern.  We all fear the worst but you will be pleased to know that dementia is not a given.  The experts assure us that normal aging does not necessarily result in a significant decline in intelligence, memory, or learning ability.  Severe mental decline is generally from a disease process rather than from normal aging. Whew, that’s a relief!

 

In the book “Healthy Aging for Dummies” (Brent Agin, M.D.) we are told that certain brain changes are inevitable, but that doesn’t mean that you have to slow down.  You can take some steps that will help keep the cobwebs at bay: exercising your mind, physical activity, proper nutrition, stop smoking, drink alcohol only in moderation, manage stress, protect your head when exercising and getting enough rest.  Whether you do these things or not is up to you, but pleading ignorance isn’t going to help you either.

 

Exercising the mind is probably the easiest and most fun way to keep yourself mentally sharp.  Challenge yourself.  Learn how to play a musical instrument, read, do puzzles, games, learn a new language, take up a new hobby and stay up to date on current events.

 

A friend of mine writes:

 

‘I don’t think that people realize what is out there for them to do.  I recommend checking with local colleges and universities for programs that seniors can audit (often for little or no tuition).   There has to be room in the class and you need to get permission from the professor/instructor but that usually isn’t a problem.  You still have travel costs and have to buy the text book.  There are many interesting subjects available.   When I started Polish lessons there was another woman auditing it too, but she didn’t stay with it.  Because you aren’t paying an arm and a leg for tuition, it is easy to figure that you can miss a time or two, but if you do that enough, you will soon drop out.  It is nice if you have a friend join you so that you can motivate each other and study together. It is great fun but time consuming, although I am sure that some subjects might not need as much hands on work as a foreign language.  I am interested in Polish because we have family from over there and I have the added incentive of trying to patch together letters to send them”.

 

Learning a language is a huge undertaking and requires discipline.  Another friend of mine is studying Norwegian and kudos to both of these ladies. I have tried several times to learn Spanish with a language tape but haven’t found enough time to stick to it.  The local senior center does offer Spanish and French conversation language instruction though so I haven’t ruled this out yet.  Seeing that I struggled with languages when I was younger I can’t say that it is any more difficult now than it was then.  I do know that it is  never too late to learn something new.