When an elderly parent in the nursing home says "I just want to go home" How does a caregiver convince an elderly parent that the nursing home, assisted living center or other senior care center is home?
How to balance an elder’s sense of purpose and dignity with their safety Seniors need to feel useful, by doing activities and hobbies they enjoy. When should caregivers interfere if they see danger in elders’ activities?
Eye, Ear, Teeth Check-ups Are Difficult When Elders Have Dementia When it comes to health check-ups elders with dementia or Alzheimer's often become confused and afraid.
Should Your Elderly Parent Risk an Anesthesia Disaster or Forego Surgery? Sometimes caregivers must make the decision about whether or not an elderly parent should risk surgery.
Elders Abusing Their Adult Children Who Are Taking Care of Them Why do elderly parents turn on the child that is trying so hard to take care of them?
Caregivers and Multi-tasking: Holidays Can Push People Caring for Elderly Parents to the Max For the Sandwich Generation, holidays are stressful. Their elderly parents need help, the kids need help, the spouse needs help. Here's advice how to cope for caregivers.
Two Parents With Dementia: How Do Caregivers Cope? When an elderly mom and dad both have dementia, how does a caregiver deal with the feelings of sadness, frustration and isolation?
Two Parents with Dementia: How Do Caregivers Cope? Taking care of one parent with dementia is tough enough, but caring for two parents with dementia can leave you feeling overwhelmed, isolated and angry.
Senior Housing: The Emotional Side of Moving Your Elderly Parent Moving an aging or elderly parent into assisted living or a nursing home is a hard transition for both the caregivers and the elderly mom or dad.
Hospice Care: How to Choose the Right Hospice for Your Elderly Parent Investigate hospices early, before your elderly parent’s end of life approaches.
Having “The Talk” with Elders: Conversations about End of Life Issues How caregivers can address elders’ plans, wishes and issues related to end of life.
Is My Elderly Parent a Shopaholic? Adult children trying to curb their parents’ spending habits can find it hard going.
How to Hire In-Home Help for Elderly Parents Caregivers can't do it all alone, and in-home care for aging parents can be a blessing -- but here are some "gotchas" to look out for when hiring someone to look after your elderly mom or dad.
When Elders Don’t Accept Outside Caregivers in the Home Some elders don't want home health agencies and professional caregivers in their home. What can caregivers do to ensure their elderly parents get proper care?
Family Caregivers Need to Be Fair to Out-of-Area Siblings When caring for an elderly parent, its often the sibling who lives closest to mom or dad who ends being the caregiver. But how do out-of-town siblings feel about this?
Elders and Controlling Behavior: What's a Caregiver to Do? Some controlling behavior by elders toward their family caregivers is fear driven.
Elder Parent Care Can Bring out the Worst in Siblings Often, a mediator, such as a geriatric care manager can help siblings resolve their differnces regarding caring for elderly parents.
Younger Seniors and Older Elderly: How Nursing Homes Need to Adjust There's a culture clash happening in nursing homes: younger seniors (60s) versus older residents (80s).
How to Communicate When Your Elderly Parent Can No Longer Speak When parents can't talk, caregivers still must find ways to communicate with them.
How Do I Get Dad Out of His Cluttered, Unsafe Home? The task of getting an elderly relative out of a cluttered, filthy, unsafe home is never easy. Here are some tips for caregivers and family to make the process more successful.
"I Promised My Parents I'd Never Put Them in a Nursing Home" The time has come when you can no longer safely care for your senior parent at home. Should you break the promise you made and put them in a nursing home?
"I Promised My Parents I'd Never Put Them In a Nursing Home" You promised your parents you'd never put them in a nursing home. Now, your their caregiver, but can no longer take care of them at home. Should you break that promise you made?
Dad Won’t Shower or Change His Clothes. What Do I Do? How caregivers can deal with elders who refuse to bathe or shower.
Five Steps Caregivers Can Take If They are Unhappy with a Senior Care Center What's a caregiver to do if they aren't happy with the care their elderly seniors are receiving at an assisted living facility, nursing home or other senior care facility?
Dad Died, Mom Has Dementia. Should I Tell Her? Should a family caregiver tell their elderly parent when their spouse dies?
Living with Elderly Parents: Do You Regret the Decision? “What have I gotten myself into? I don't want mom to live with me anymore." What do caregivers do when they’re living with an elderly mom or dad and they want out?
Caregivers Find Support When They Have Time - Which Isn't Often Caring for an elderly parent is a 24-hour-a-day job. As one caregiver found, those who care for their senior parents often find solace and support in the wee hours.
Are Your Siblings More Interested in Getting an Inheritance Than Elderly Parents’ Quality of Care? What to do if your siblings care more about getting an inheritance than giving your elderly mom or dad the quality care they need and deserve.
Don't Let Caring for Your Elderly Parents Ruin Your Other Relationships How much of their lives do adult children owe their aging parents? Caring for your senior mom or dad can take a huge emotional toll and destroy other important relationships.
Should Aging Parents With Dementia Lose the Right to Vote? As dementia worsens, should seniors be denied the right to vote? Where do caregivers draw the line?
Who’s Telling the Truth: The Alzheimer’s Patient or the Nurse? People with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease often get paranoid about people taking things. And there’s a reason for it. Sometimes, people are stealing from them. And sometimes they’re not.
Elders and Sex: Who Gets to Decide What is Proper? What happens when your elderly, single mom or dad falls in love with another single senior at the nursing home or assisted living facility?
Is It Right to Convince Mom and Dad to Move Close to the Kids? What happens when Mom and Dad live far away from their children, and then one of the elderly parents gets ill or one dies and the other is left alone? Should they move closer to family?
Alcoholism and Elders: Watch for the Signs One caregiver's personal story of an elderly loved one and his struggle with alcoholism.
Keeping Seniors Busy How to keep your elderly mom or dad active, both physically and mentally.
Adult Day Care – or Day Services – Can Fill a Gap for Caregivers Although senior day services are not widely known, these respite services are a blessing for caregivers.
Caring for Parents Who Didn't Care for You How to give emotional and physical care to your elderly parents, even when they didn't care for you as a child.
Caregiving and Guilt: The Wisdom of Hindsight Learn how to lose the guilt and forgive yourself for your imperfect caregiving.
The Sandwich Generation: What It Is and How to Cope When caring for elderly parents and children, sandwich generation caregivers must take time for themselves and utilize the respite help that's available.
A Caregiver’s Personal Story: Getting Into a Dementia Patient’s Head How to deal with caring for an elderly mom or dad who has dementia.
How Can You Recognize the Stages of Alzheimer’s? Caregivers of Alzheimer's patients often want to know what to expert. This article on the stages of Alzheimer's can help caregivers understand what their elderly mom or dad is experiencing.
Early Grief and the Long Goodbye The caregivers' grieving process begins the moment a loved one is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, and it can last for years.
Why “Role Reversal” and Other Catch Phrases Can Skew a Caregiver’s Thinking Are you now “parenting your parents?” Is this what they mean by “role reversal? Well, yes and no.
Sibling Issues Can Get Heated During the Holidays Caring for your elderly parent is hard work as it is, but what do you, as their primary caregiver, do when your less involved siblings come home for the holidays and start criticizing your efforts?
How Caregivers Can Stay Positive During the Holidays: Drop the Fantasy, Lose the Guilt The holidays are hectic for everyone, but even more so for caregivers, whose "To Do" list quickly becomes overwhelming. Here are some tips to enjoy the season, guilt-free.
National Family Caregivers Month Is Here To Remind You to Celebrate What You Do National Family Caregivers Month isn’t just about honoring those who give care. It’s about reminding you to take better care of yourself.
Hospice and Palliative Care: Helping People Die Here is one caregiver's personal story dealing with hospice care and with the death of her senior father.
What should I do when my elderly mom refuses to go to the doctor? Carol Bradley Bursack answered: When your elderly parent refuses and doesn't want to go to the doctor, a caregiver can't physically get them in the car. But there are other tricks.
How do you physically remove someone from their home to assisted living? Carol Bradley Bursack answered: To get help with physically removing your elderly mom from her home to assisted living, call social services or go to your state's aging services website.
I can't take care of my mother alone anymore, but I've heard horror stories about nursing homes. How can I get some help? Carol Bradley Bursack answered: Not all nursing homes are bad. Many are excellent. You need help and this may be your only choice.
I've been caring for and living with my eldery mother since I got out of college. I can't get on with my life. I'm broke and depressed. I want my life back. Help! Carol Bradley Bursack answered: You can't do this at your age - shouldn't at any age. A therapist may be able to tell you who can help you free or for little charge, if she can't.
My sister has moved my father who has dementia into her home. My other sister and I live 600 miles away. How can help give her a break? Carol Bradley Bursack answered: One option is to help pay for someone to relieve her at home. In-home health agencies do this.
My eldery mother refuses to go to the doctor. What should I do? Carol Bradley Bursack answered: It happens often and is horribly frustrating. You can't physically get them in the car to go.
4 days ago MindingOurElders Give a hug Write on Wall
You, too. And thanks for the hug. I needed that!Carol
4 days ago mizunderstood10 Give a hug Wall-to-Wall Write on Wall
Thank you so much!! Have a wonderful day!!
5 days ago mizunderstood10 Give a hug Wall-to-Wall Write on Wall
6 days ago Bree Give a hug Wall-to-Wall Write on Wall
MY FRIENDS!! I have been getting the legal stuff handled..power of attorney, living ill, etc. I have found a nursing home, gotten medical files to them...its coming close to being done.Whats EVEN MORE MIRACULOUS IS : MOMZ IS BEING AGREEABLE TO GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!My prayers are being answered!! I have told her its a major health problem...well one she will accept( cuz she refuses to believe she has alzheimers!) like blood vessels working inncorrectly which can cause her a stroke..so she accepts this, and agrees MOST of the time ( she changes her mind or forgets and I have to remind her...man am i tired of explaining- just talking so much!!my mouth needs a vacation! I have nevr begged, explained, pleaded so much in my life!!) to go to the "HOSPITAL" FOR 2 WEEKS. I will handle the rest of the battle after I get her in there!
i HOPE EVERYONE IS DOING WELL AND HOLDING UP, I NEVER WOULD HAVE GOTTEN THIS FAR WITHOUT YOU ALL!!!
Feb 1, 2010 Lilliput Give a hug Wall-to-Wall Write on Wall
Thank you, Carol, for your wonderful articles, gentle posts, and good advice.I was wondering if you could to direct me to articles/books or submit an article about the movement to keep elders in their homes permanently. I cannot find too much information about specfics such as: how to arrange for and organize caregivers in the home, medicare/medicaid assistance, make sure it is safe, what are the downfalls, etc...My mother's wish is to stay in her home. I have not made those promises, but I want to know what I am getting into if we choose homecare....it just seems more humane to me.thanks,Lilli
Jan 25, 2010 csavage Give a hug Wall-to-Wall Write on Wall
Thanks for the tip and support. You're awesome! Yes, the sister has issues of her own. I do have my attorney reviewing it at this time. I want her involvement, yet don't want the negativity for my brother's sake. It's a fine balance.
Jan 20, 2010 Judy5ft4 Give a hug Wall-to-Wall Write on Wall
Jan 19, 2010 chicksandstrats Give a hug Wall-to-Wall Write on Wall
I really admire you. Thank you for being here. Best, Maureen
Jan 9, 2010 jenniferdeclue Give a hug Wall-to-Wall Write on Wall
Thank you so much! It's all so overwhelming, but it's good to know where to start.Jen
Jan 5, 2010 Bree Give a hug Wall-to-Wall Write on Wall
TRICKS NEEDED: How do you physically remove someone from there home , to Assisted living.
My mother has alzheimers.In denial.Thinks shes fine.How do I physically remove her from home? She will physically fight.HELP! im stressed, I am the only child..only family...wanting to put her in assisted living is enough stress...to ACTUALLY GET HER THERE WILL BE A MIRACLE.If anyone is famaliar with Tyler Perry movies...there is a character called MADEA..THATS MOMZ! HELP ME!!
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Gail M. Samaha is the founder of GMS Associates. She is a successful management consultant who from her own personal experience along with her background as a hospice volunteer and 30 years of business management , created an elder care planning division for elders and caregivers and trusted advisors.
Answers and more about Gail M. Samaha
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