When you are a family caregiver for an elderly adult with Alzheimer’s disease, every choice that you make matters. Everything you do can influence your parent’s care and how they manage their disease. By understanding this, you can focus your daily decisions on making the ones that will best address your parent’s needs and challenges, and help them to live their best quality of life.
Mealtime is often particularly challenging for family caregivers of seniors with Alzheimer’s disease because of the difficulties with eating that these adults can face. Your senior might not remember why they are hungry or how to eat, and they might get confused or disoriented when presented with meals and not know what to do. Something as simple as how you set your table, however, can make a tremendous difference for your senior, and for you.
Use these tips to set the table for a senior with Alzheimer’s disease in a way that will help make mealtime less stressful for both of you:
-Clear the table of anything that is not directly related to the meal. Centerpieces, candles, and other decorative items can be distracting to your parent and keep them from focusing on the meal.
-Do not use fake fruits in decor as these can confuse your parent or lead to them trying to eat them, which can then cause them to not want to eat real food.
Your parent might struggle to tell the difference between the plate and the table, and the plate and the food. This can make it difficult for them to eat. Simplify this by using plates and utensils that contrast with the table and that are not the color of food that you serve, such as blue for a light tablecloth, or white for a dark one.
-Unsure movements can cause your parent to knock cups and bowls over while trying to feed themselves. This can be upsetting and frustrating. Eliminate this issue by using bowls and plates that are designed to stick to the surface of the table with suction cups so that they will not fall over.
-How can Senior care help?
If you have been looking for ways to enhance your parent’s life, improve their care, and support their highest quality of life possible as they age in place, now may be the ideal time for you to consider starting elder care for them. An elderly home care services provider can be there with your parent to ensure that they always have access to the level of care, support, and assistance that is right for them to help them manage their individual needs and challenges, seek as much activity and independence as possible, and live a fulfilling lifestyle as they age in place.
These highly personalized services can include safe and reliable transportation, assistance with keeping their home clean and healthy, assistance with personal care tasks such as bathing, grooming, and toileting, medication reminders to keep them compliant and help with needs such as meal preparation. As a family caregiver, knowing that your parent is getting these services can give you peace of mind and ease your stress, allowing you to take a step back and focus more time and energy on other needs in your life, such as your children, your marriage, your career, and yourself.
If you or an aging loved-one are considering senior care in San Juan Capistrano, CA, please contact the caring staff at Canaan Home Care today!
1-844-CANAAN-1 (1-844-226-2261)
Source:
Alz.org
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