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How to use pet therapy correctly with seniors

aadmin — Sun, 27 Dec 2015 09:12:29 +0000

Have you considered purchasing a pet for an elderly loved one, but thought it might be too much for him/her to handle? The truth is that this added responsibility may be just what he/she needs. Recent studies have shown that pet ownership offers a wide range of benefits for the elderly. Below is a look at some of the top ways your loved one could benefit from introducing a pet into his/her life.

Provide Companionship One of the most prevalent benefits of having pets is that they offer companionship. Common pets, such as dogs and cats, attach to people very quickly. This every day companionship can help to fight loneliness and depression, especially in elderly people. Pets can also boost a person’s overall mood and serve as a protector for seniors that live alone.

Minimize Stress There is no need to worry about overburdening your loved one by giving him/her a pet. In fact, the exact opposite is true. Pets can actually help to reduce stress. Just playing with or petting a dog or cat for several minutes can lower a person’s stress rate almost instantly. This, in turn, can reduce the risk of several serious health conditions, such as heart attacks, and it can help to lower a person’s blood pressure. The benefit of introducing a pet into the home will far outweigh any extra work it takes to care for the pet.

Gives Purpose Everyone needs to feel like he/she has a purpose in life. This is a serious issue for many seniors because they may not be physically able to complete many of the tasks they deem important. In addition, their children are all grown up and there is no need to care for them on a daily basis.

This can leave many seniors feeling like they are not needed. The introduction of a pet into their life can give them purpose again. Best of all, most pets only require minimal care.

Increase Activity Level If you are concerned that your loved one is not getting enough exercise or socializing enough, a pet may just do the trick. Caring for some types of pets, like a dog, requires consistent training, regular visits to the veterinarian, and daily walks. This will force your loved one to remain active on a daily basis in order to care for his/her pet properly. By taking the dog to the vets or the local dog park, he/she will also meet other people in the area and have the opportunity to socialize with other pet owners. It is important to talk to your elderly loved one before introducing a pet into his/her home.

This will ensure that you select a pet that he/she will enjoy. You also need to be sure that your loved one is physically capable of caring for the pet, or that you have people willing to step in and help. If you are not sure if a pet is right for your loved one, many assisted living facilities and senior service agencies offer pet therapy opportunities. This will give you the chance to see how your elderly loved one responds to being around a pet before you commit to purchasing one.

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Caregiving

Family and Personal Care

The biggest warning signs for elder abuse

aadmin — Sun, 27 Dec 2015 08:50:06 +0000

Unfortunately, elder abuse isn't a minor problem. Studies have shown that over two million elder Americans are victims of elder abuse, while for every case of abuse reported, as many as five go unreported. As a caregiver for elder adults, nothing can be as disheartening than the suspicion that someone is the victim of abuse. But understanding - and recognizing - the signs of abuse can keep it from becoming an ongoing problem. While such abuse can take many forms, it can usually be classified under these categories: physical, sexual, psychological, financial, and neglect.

Physical

The use of physical force that results in injury, pain or impairment is a broad definition of physical abuse. Like abuse in general, it can take many forms, including hitting, shoving, slapping, shaking, kicking, pinching and burning. Signs of physical abuse include:

Injuries with no easily explainable cause that are incompatible with the victim's medical history, such as cuts, lacerations, bruises, welts and discoloration.
Injuries that appear to have been caused by cigarettes, caustics, or friction from ropes, chains or other objects.
Injuries in areas covered by clothing.
A combination of new and old injuries.
Denial of an injured state.

Sexual

Sadly, this form of abuse happens in older adults. Signs of it include genital or anal infections, difficulty while walking or sitting, or bruising of the inner thighs.

Psychological

This type of abuse can be harder to detect than others, in part because it can be part of other aging, medical, mental or physical problems. But it can be detected by observing the actions of others, including family members. Are threats being made to an elderly parent? Or, perhaps someone speaks poorly of the person on a consistent basis, or ignores him or her and their needs. The victim, meanwhile, may seem depressed or withdrawn, or unwilling to talk openly and freely.

Financial

Financial abuse is not an insignificant problem, as studies have shown that 12 percent of all elderly abuse is of this kind. It can be defined as improper or illegal use of an elder's assets, and it can entail:

Social security or pension checks cashed without permission.
Coercing or deceiving the elder into parting with money or property.
Diverting guardianship assets.
A family member who is not willing to pay for an elder's basic needs when money is available.
A warning sign could involve a family member who persistently seeks financial control while being financially stressed themselves. Or, also if bank statements are no longer coming to the victim's home.

Neglect

Neglect can take many forms, including not providing food, medicines, hygiene, or even personal safety. Signs of neglect include:

Neglected bedsores, skin conditions or rashes.
Untreated injuries or other medical issues.
Hunger, malnutrition or dehydration.
Poor hygiene
Lack of clean clothing and bedding.
Poor skin condition
An excessively dirty environment than may smell of feces or urine.

It's important to know the most common types of elder abuse and the forms they take. It's also important to note that people who suffer from Alzheimer's or dementia are at a greater risk of abuse and neglect. As a caregiver, understanding the signs and facts of elder abuse can help stop and prevent it.

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What Did You Say? How to Listen For the Signs...That It's Time For A Hearing Aid

aadmin — Tue, 17 Nov 2015 20:21:17 +0000

Roughly a third of all elderly people between the ages of 65 and 74 have some degree of hearing loss. In addition, almost half of those over the age of 75 have trouble hearing. Difficulty hearing can cause a variety of problems for an older person, including making it harder for them to understand and comply with a doctor's orders. They may also have trouble responding to doorbells and hearing alarms in their home. Interacting with friends and family may also be a significant source of frustration.

The first question a senior citizen will have to answer is: Do I have trouble hearing?

Signs that this may be the case include:

They have trouble hearing when using a telephone.
They have trouble hearing when there is noise in the background.
They are not able to follow a conversation if more than one person is talking at the same time.
They often misunderstand what others are saying and respond in an inappropriate way.
They may turn the volume on their television or radio to excessively high levels.

Solutions for Elderly People with Hearing Loss  If an individual is suffering from hearing loss, they should seek the help of a professional. One professional who can help is an otolaryngologist. This doctor’s specialty is the diagnosis of hearing problems. An otolaryngologist and can provide options for treating hearing problems. An audiologist is another type of doctor who may be able to help. Audiologists are trained to identify different types of hearing loss as well as the degree to which hearing has been lost. Audiologists may be able to fit a hearing aid.

About Hearing Aids These are electronic devices worn behind the ear. They amplify sounds. To find the hearing aid that works best for a particular patient, it will be necessary to try multiple devices. An audiologist can provide help in this area. They will also be able to help an elderly person adjust to the fact that sounds are different with a hearing aid.

Benefits of Getting a Hearing Aid Now

The longer the patient waits, the harder it will be for their brain to adjust to a hearing aid. This is because wearing a hearing aid involves relearning certain sounds. Starting as soon as possible gives the patient’s brain more time to adapt.
When people start using hearing aids, it can improve their quality of life, according to the national Council on Aging. They will have a greater sense of independence as well as improved mental health.
Hearing loss has been tied to dementia. Seniors who do not have their hearing loss treated face a considerably higher risk of developing the condition. While the reasons for this are not known, it is thought that auditory deprivation is a cause.

Hearing aids do not cure hearing loss but they do enable communication and thus can make an elderly person's life better. It is essential that the diagnosis and treatment of hearing problems not be postponed.

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10 Tips for Preventing Falls In The Elderly

aadmin — Tue, 17 Nov 2015 19:43:23 +0000

Falling is dangerous for anyone, especially seniors. Bones become more brittle as people age and a fall can be seriously debilitating for a senior citizen. Broken hips, arms and legs mend at a slower rate as the body ages. Head injuries can be fatal.

The Center for Disease Control is "taking a stand" on helping seniors prevent falls with programs for seniors and care givers. The program is called STEADI, Stopping Elderly Accidents, Deaths and Injuries.

You can take action to prevent falling and enjoy an active life as a senior with a few precautions.

Exercise

STEADI recommends Tai Chi, Yoga and other exercise programs for maintaining and improving legs and core muscle strength. Many senior living communities offer classes in these exercises along with aerobics. Walking, swimming, golf, tennis, bowling and other sports are also highly recommended for seniors.

The objective is to stay in good condition, improve strength, coordination and balance. People want to stay independent as long as possible and enjoy their activities.

Eyes and hearing check-ups

Get an annual eye check-up and make sure you have glasses if needed. Be careful on stairs if you wear bifocal or multi-focal lenses. You want to see any obstacles that might be in your way. Hearing checks are also important so you can hear warnings that someone may call out to you.

Stairway safety

It's easy to trip on steps if you can't see them. Stairways should have railings and handholds. Steps should be lighted, especially at night.

Special non-slip stair treads can be added to hard surface and carpeted stairways for better traction.

Grab bars are helpful

Install grab bars in bathrooms, bedrooms, kitchens and other areas. They prevent falls.

Showers without borders or curbs are elements of Universal Design that makes bathrooms easily accessible to everyone. Bathroom and kitchen flooring and mats should be non-slip and kept dry.

Avoid heights

Keep items you need on low shelves and cabinets so that a chair or step ladder is not needed to reach them. This applies to food, dishes, medications and other items used on a daily basis.

Walkway safety

Outdoor pathways and walkways should be free of debris, hoses, wheelbarrows and other gardening equipment. A person may forget to put away outdoor equipment and trip over a hose or bump into the lawn mower.

An uneven pathway with cracks or broken flagstone can be dangerous. Walkways should be dry when possible and free of snow and ice during the winter.

Indoor safety

Keep all electrical cords out of the way and against walls. Unplug and remove a cord on a heating pad or other small appliance that has been used temporarily and may be in a pathway.

Rooms should be well lighted.

Carpeting and floor coverings

Carpeting should be tight and tacked down at seams and doorways to avoid tripping.

Area rugs and throw rugs should adhere to the floor. It is also easy to trip over a raised doormat. Hard surface flooring should be the non-slip variety in all rooms where it is used.

Shoes

Wear comfortable shoes with good support in place of flip-flops and high heels. If you wear slippers, use the type that have tread on the soles instead of a smooth surface.

Medication reviews

You should review any previous falls and your medications with doctors. Several prescribed medications may have side effects that cause dizziness and other problems. You should talk to your doctor about your risk of falling.

The National Institute of Health advises seniors to take these preventive measures so they do not have to fear falling.

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Family and Personal Care

The benefits of know about your benefits

aadmin — Thu, 22 Jan 2015 19:50:42 +0000

While reaching your 65^th birthday is hardly the guaranteed sign of retirement it once was, it is still an age that means change for your group benefits and health insurance. When approaching retirement make sure you know how your group and individual insurance will change whether you are working full time, part time or doing what you want on your own time. A few minutes going over your policy fine print will save you from unwanted surprises in the future.

If working full time:

At age 65 many benefits change. Group life insurance and accidental death and disability insurance benefits commonly decrease by half at age 65, even if you are still working full-time. It is a good time to evaluate what individual life insurance you have and what you will need.

Most individual disability insurance policies will remain the same if you still work a certain number of hours per week; however, you need to inform the insurance company of your status. Past age 65, the benefit period for a claim commonly drops to two years.

Some individual disability and critical illness policies also have provisions that allow you to convert the policies to long term care policies, as your focus changes from income replacement to funding potential future care.

For both personal and group plans, out of country travel coverage usually changes at age 65, decreasing by either the length of travel covered or the amount payable. (If you rely on your credit card for travel insurance read the fine print on that policy as well. Each card is different, but for most cards the terms of coverage change at age 65.)

If retiring:

Know what you can take with you. In most cases, your workplace group life insurance can be converted to a personal policy when you retire or leave a company.

Investigate what government plans will cover so that you get the health insurance coverage that you need. And if you have a spouse with his or her own workplace plan, see if that plan can pick up where yours is dropping off.

Apply for a personal health insurance plan right away. If you apply for coverage within 60 days of leaving a group insurance plan, minimal or no medical proof of insurability is required by most companies. Your current insurance carrier may offer a plan, but you can look into options from other insurance companies as well.

If working part time:

Don’t assume working fewer hours but staying with the company means that you will still be entitled to the group insurance coverage. Most employee plans require you to work a minimum hours per week to be eligible for benefits. Know that number before you make the switch to part-time hours. Choose your schedule accordingly if you want to keep those benefits in force.

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More Boomers looking to real estate as encore careers

aadmin — Fri, 21 Jun 2013 16:57:12 +0000

Retirement is not what Hollywood tells us, with a silver-haired man playing a relaxing game of golf on a sunny day, and later enjoying a relaxing dinner at an upscale restaurant with his wife. In fact, for a growing number of Baby Boomers across North America, retirement is just an opportunity for a new chapter of life to begin, and not the end.

For many Boomers in the United States and Canada, retiring from their day jobs opens up the opportunity, not necessarily to relax, but to find a new job; one that offers more meaning, enjoyment, or a better work-life balance than their previous roles provided.

An encore career is a job taken by a previously-retired person, and it can be anything from working part-time as a math tutor to a Wal-Mart greeter, and the goal is not necessarily primarily financial, but rather to achieve personal or ideological goals.

“Instead of accepting the notion of a career as an arc that rises in youth, peaks in midlife, and declines into retirement, they are charting a new territory - one that for many will reach its apex of meaning and impact when others in past generations headed for the sidelines,” wrote Marc Freedman, founder of Civic Ventures, a San Francisco-based organization which promotes encore jobs, in his 2008 book, ‘Encore: Finding Work that Matters in the Second Half of Life.’

And while encore careers is a growing trend in North America, not all jobs are ideal for already-retired Boomers; some roles are physically demanding, stressful and can be frustrating.

To help Boomers find the best roles for their post-retirement jobs, here are three of the five encore self-employed careers:

Consulting: This job offers the flexibility that many full-time workers do not have, and depending on the area of specific expertise, the high hourly pay can offer few weekly hours in return for an enjoyable experience, social outlet, and intellectual stimulation.
Entrepreneur: Similar to consulting, this career allows a semi-retired Boomer to determine their workflow and the area they in which they would like to specialize- regardless of whether it is related to their past experience.
Sales: This job can be selling a product or a service for another company or agency, or working on commission-only for selling houses in a close neighborhood.

If a part-time or self-employed isn’t the right fit for your encore career, and you’re looking for a head start on finding the right job, visit RetirementHomes.com’s jobs checklist HERE and find yourself the right encore career.

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How better sleep could help you live longer

aadmin — Thu, 23 May 2013 17:21:32 +0000

Each night, we pass through five stages of sleep. Our night begins with drifting off in stage one, light sleep in stage two, deeper sleep in stages three and four and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep in stage five.

Your body cycles through all five stages four or five times a night, with each full cycle lasting approximately 90 to 110 minutes. Stages three and four are the most physically restorative, when your body releases growth hormones and repairs the day’s muscular damage. In REM sleep, your mind restores itself, moving information from short- to long-term memory and organizing thoughts.

Older adults may spend less time in the more restorative stages of sleep (stages three and four) and more time in lighter sleep (stage one and two), explains Dr. Michael Breus. This is due to a complex blend of lifestyle and biological changes.

“We know that as we age, stage three and four sleep decreases in power,” adds Breus. “The brainwaves of an 18-year-old during stages three and four are more powerful than those of a 45- or 65-year-old.”

Longevity

“Data now shows that if you get less than five hours or more than 10 hours of sleep, there’s a double mortality rate,” says Breus.

“Why it is that mortality goes up isn’t clear,” says Dr. Gerald Simkus, cardiac sciences program medical director, Fraser Health. “You may be sleeping too much because you are unwell or depressed, which are also related to increased mortality.”

What research does tell us is that sleep deprivation can double the chances of dying from a cardiovascular event since sleep deprivation, especially if it is due to sleep apnea, seems to increase blood pressure.

Surprisingly, too much sleep appears to be even more dangerous for us, more than doubling the likelihood of dying from other causes. Researchers think this is because the increased need for sleep is often a result of depression, pain or sleep disorders like narcolepsy. “Though individuals vary greatly in their need for sleep, as a minimum, I never like to see my patients getting less than six hours, and on average I like to see seven to nine hours,” says Breus.

But, he cautions, “quality of sleep, not just the quantity, matters. It’s better to get six hours of superior sleep, in which the majority of sleep is spent in stages three and four or REM sleep with fewer awakenings, over a restless eight or nine hours.”

Weight loss

Lack of sleep disrupts hunger-regulating hormones, which influence your weight. Sleep deprivation boosts levels of a hormone called ghrelin, which tells you when to eat, and suppresses the hormone leptin, which makes you feel full. Plus, the more sleep deprived you are, the higher your levels of cortisol, the stress hormone, which increases appetite.

The human body will eat, specifically complex carbohydrates, when sleep-deprived to help elevate levels of serotonin, the calming hormone, in the blood to reduce the feelings associated with elevated cortisol, explains Breus. “For the 45-plus age group, who may be carrying extra weight due to their slowing metabolism, adding the side effects of insufficient sleep is a recipe for weight disaster,” he cautions. “If you’re interested in controlling or losing weight, get a good night’s sleep.”

Concentration and memory

“Much of what we call aging – forgetfulness, not being as mentally focused – could actually be related to sleep deprivation,” explains Breus. REM sleep appears to be critical for the organization and consolidation of memory, and as we age, we get less of it. In a catch-22, this is often due to the aging brain’s inability to produce REM sleep. Shorter sleep times could also be a contributing factor, though this is still unclear. We need quality sleep to maintain youthful mental faculties, Breus adds.

Heart health

Getting more than seven hours of sleep may help prevent the accumulation of calcified plaques in the coronary arteries, which is a predictor of future heart disease, explains Simkus. He points to findings in the Journal of the American Medical Association (2008) showing that people who get more than seven hours of sleep are less likely to have calcium clogging their arteries. Calcified arteries were found in 27 per cent of those who slept less than five hours a night, dropping to 11 per cent in those who slept five to seven hours, and just six per cent for those who slept more than seven hours a night.

Brain health

“Sleep is essential for neuroplasticity, the continuous growth and reshaping of the brain’s networks and pathways throughout the aging process,” states Harvard University lecturer Dr. Alan Logan, co-author of Your Skin, Younger.

Until recently, doctors believed that the brain stopped making new neural connections when the body stopped developing, usually in the early 20s. It turns out the brain makes new neurons well into your 80s. “These brain-growing chemicals are alive and kicking when you are sleeping well,” says Logan. “Sleep loss equals brain drain, plain and simple.”

Anti-aging

“Sleep is a time for skin repair and rejuvenation,” says Logan. “Getting enough deep sleep will help your skin repair itself, while a consistent lack of sleep ages the skin.” Sleep allows skin to repair damage caused by stress, ultraviolet rays and other harmful environmental factors.

Hormones

A change in sleep quality and duration can affect your melatonin secretion and circadian rhythm (the sleep-wake cycle), and vice versa. “It’s not always clear which is the chicken and which is the egg,” says Dr. Jeffrey J. Lipsitz of Sleep Disorders Centre of Metropolitan Toronto.

Light exposure and body temperature may be factors in both cases. Melatonin is thought to help suppress the growth of some cancers in which hormones play a role. Night-shift workers may have a higher risk for these cancers because their melatonin levels are often lower. There are coping strategies, says Lipsitz. “Focus on consistent bed and meal times, daytime sleep environment, even lighting in the workplace, so that after a while [you] begin to display a normal circadian rhythm,” he explains. “If you’re unable to fall asleep during the day, a prescribed short-acting sleeping medication may help.”

Gender gap

Women need about 20 minutes more sleep a night than men due to their ability to multi-task, suggests current research from the U.K. conducted by Professor Jim Horne and his colleagues from the Sleep Research Centre at Loughborough University. The researchers established that women are involved in decision-making and lateral thinking to a greater extent than men and this contributes to their need for more sleep. A man who has a complex job may also need more sleep – though probably still not as much as a woman, states Horne.

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