Home are in Cranford NJ
Imagine no longer feeling like you are in control of your own mind and body. You know who you are and how to get through each day in your life, and then gradually you start losing your ability to hang on to your memories or to think things through. It is as though both your mind and body are slipping away from you. You know that this is only going to get worse and that eventually you are not going to be aware of what is happening to you, but you will also not be able to take care of yourself in any way.
This sounds like a terrifying experience, but for the millions of people throughout the United States who are suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, it is their reality. Most people are very aware of the changes that are happening to them in the early stages of the disease, and may feel disconnected from themselves because they know something is wrong and cannot change it. They may know that they never had issues with their memory before or that they were always organized and on top of things, but now are not able to and they cannot change it.
Though for most this level of awareness will dissipate sometime in the moderate stage, you have no real way of knowing what your parent is going through in their mind. Maintaining dignity throughout the course of their care is essential for giving them the respect they deserve and the level of care and support that they need.
Use these tips to help you maintain dignity for your aging parent as they cope with Alzheimer’s disease:
- Do not condescend them. The decline in cognitive and physical function throughout the course of their disease may make your parent remind you of a child, but it is critical that you remember that they are still an adult. No matter how far progressed into the disease they are, you should never condescend them by treating them like a child. Do not use childlike words such as diaper, bib, potty, or “bye-bye” with them. Speak to them as you would before they developed the condition, with the only modification possibly being speaking more clearly and using more basic sentence structures.
- Preserve their privacy. The simple fact that your parent needs help with certain tasks does not eliminate their right to privacy. When you are assisting them with potentially sensitive tasks such as toileting, bathing, or dressing, give them the same level of modesty and respect that you would want given to you if you were the one in the care receiver position. This can include averting your eyes, keeping them covered as much as possible, or allowing them to handle certain elements of the task as is accessible to them. A home care provider can make a tremendous difference in this element of preserving your parent’s dignity. Because they are both neutral and professional, your parent is likely to feel more comfortable with an in home senior care services provider managing these tasks, and you are more likely to feel confident that they are getting done properly.
- Involve them. Insist that your parent be treated with respect in all situations. This includes people speaking to them rather than over them, acknowledging their needs rather than asking you to manage them without others knowing, and involving them in as much of their care decisions as is possible determined by their current stage of progression.
If you or an aging loved one are considering hiring home care services near Cranford, NJ, call the caring staff at Helping Hands Home Care today at 908-418-4299. Providing Home Care Services in all of Northern and Central NJ, including Clark, Westfield, Cranford, Scotch Plains, Rahway, Linden, Summit, Edison, Elizabeth, Mountainside and the surrounding areas.
After graduating from Seton Hall University with a BS in finance Helping Hands Homecare’s Owner / President, Robert D’Arienzo, went to work on Wall St. for six years. However, after Robert’s grandmother became ill with stomach cancer Robert and his family needed to find assistance in the home for her. After many trials and tribulations Robert could see that there was a great need for quality home care services here in NJ and loved the idea of being able to assist other families who were going through what his family went through with his beloved grandmother.
Thus, Robert had found his passion. After almost a year of preparation Robert opened Helping Hands Homecare in 2003. Robert wanted Helping Hands Homecare to focus on providing the highest quality of caregivers, exceptional customer service, and providing a service that familys could depend on in their time of need. Since then Helping Hands has assisted hundreds of individuals with the simplest of needs to more complex cases while preserving those standards set out many years ago.
Robert is a Google Verified Author
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