Feelings of accomplishment and value can increase longevity and lead to a better quality of life. Therefore, family caregivers need to find different ways to make their senior loved ones feel confident and appreciated. Continue reading for some tips that could boost your loved one’s self-esteem.
Customize Activities
Most seniors give up on household chores, games, and other activities when their health decreases. They may feel embarrassed or guilty about not being able to keep up, thinking their family members have to give up specific activities due to their health limitations. As a result, their self-esteem could decrease. However, you can customize each activity based on your loved one’s strengths and weaknesses, reducing his or her feelings of fear, shyness, or embarrassment.
Low self-esteem can result in mental, emotional, and physical challenges for aging adults, but seniors don’t have to handle them alone. In Edmonton, at-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.
Ask for Your Parent’s Opinions
When it comes to your loved one’s care plan and daily activities, go over his or her wishes, and take his or her opinions seriously. Including your parent in the planning stages can boost his or her self-esteem and stave off various physical and mental health problems. For example, when planning a family activity such as a game night, ask your loved one what games he or she prefers, and try to incorporate as many of those choices as possible. When your loved one is encouraged to voice his or her opinions, it could reduce the risk of isolation and provide things to look forward to each week.
Encourage Physical Exercise
Slips and falls are common among the elderly, but with a good workout plan and more confidence, your parent can avoid falls and increase his or her balance and flexibility. Encouraging your loved one to take up more physical activities like swimming, walking, and lifting weights could enhance his or her physical abilities and strengthen his or her bone health. These are things that could motivate your loved one to take on more physical activities in the golden years, reduce falls, and boost his or her self-esteem.
Seniors with low self-esteem may not be motivated to practice healthy lifestyle habits, which can result in serious illnesses that make it challenging to care for themselves on their own. If you’re the primary caregiver for a senior loved one in Edmonton, respite care is available when you need time away from your important caregiving duties. At Home Care Assistance, our respite caregivers are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to help your loved one manage everyday tasks in the comfort of home while you have the chance to take a much-needed break.
Avoid Negativity
The tone and phrases family caregivers use can impact their loved ones’ self-esteem, which is why you should remain compassionate and avoid lecturing your parent. When speaking about mistakes, look for the positives in each situation and avoid pointing out everything your loved one did wrong. This type of negativity could damage your relationship, lowering your parent’s self-esteem.
Make Changes to the Home
Whether it’s replacing traditional rugs with nonslip maps, adding grab bars in the bathroom, or lowering cabinets in the kitchen, making changes to the home can boost your loved one’s confidence levels and increase his or her safety. Speak with your loved one’s primary care physician to learn about home renovations that could enhance your loved one’s safety and lower the odds of accidents or illnesses. These changes can make it easier to navigate the home and increase independence.
When older adults feel good about themselves, they’re more likely to enjoy the golden years and remain independent. Not every senior has the same care needs, which means they don’t all need the same type of home care. You can rely on Home Care Assistance to provide an individualized care plan to meet your elderly loved one’s unique care needs. Our holistic Balanced Care Method was designed to help seniors focus on healthy lifestyle habits, such as eating nutritious foods, exercising regularly, and maintaining strong social ties, and our Cognitive Therapeutics Method offers mentally stimulating activities that can stave off cognitive decline and delay the onset of dementia. Call us today at (780) 490-7337 to discuss how we can give you the peace of mind that comes from knowing your loved one is being cared for with professionalism and compassion.