As we age and enter our senior years, life becomes more difficult. It just does. This doesn’t mean, of course, that seniors can’t enjoy life or that these challenges are in anyway insurmountable. But we’re lying to ourselves if we don’t anticipate the challenges of aging for either ourselves or our loved ones. And it’s fairly straightforward for us when these challenges are more tangible and better understood.
We know many seniors will develop mobility issues, and we’re prepared to deal with them. We know that as we age, changes to our diet might become necessary. We’re even cognizant of the significant challenges posed by illnesses such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. But there is another issue that faces millions of seniors and it’s one that we don’t think about enough.
Loneliness
Seniors are one of the most at-risk demographics for illnesses and challenges stemming from loneliness and isolation. We don’t consider this often enough. And when we do, we are often guilty of underestimating its impact. Or sometimes, we see it as a symptom of another problem, which it sometimes is.
However, it is becoming increasingly the case that many issues –such as dementia, lack of eating, lack of exercise, and depression– are caused, or are at least exacerbated, by loneliness and isolation. An otherwise fit and healthy senior can see his or her life begin to deteriorate as a result of their isolation. And yet, many of us can’t think of a decent solution to this problem. Well, there is a great solution, and it is companion care.
Companion Care
Most of us see the value in hiring somebody to come over and help our elderly loved ones with health or mobility issues. Yet why is it we don’t often consider the same when it comes to companionship?
Executive Home Care offers companion care. Having a highly skilled, personable, and empathetic care worker come by to talk, play games, and assist with correspondence, can make all the difference in the world in a senior’s life. And when coupled with more straightforward tasks such as light housekeeping, helping with meal preparation, and reminding clients to take medication and finish meals, a companion care worker can quickly become a vital and greatly beneficial component of a senior’s life.
Emotional and Mental Stability
Investing in companion care effectively means to invest in the mental and emotional wellbeing of your elderly loved one. Even when seniors have no significant mobility or physical issues and even when they are free from illness, they may still be at risk mentally and emotionally.
Think about it: if you’re a senior and many of the friends you had around your age have passed on or are losing/have lost their faculties, or worse still, your spouse has passed on or lost his or her faculties, life can be very depressing. Not to mention that, with retirement, many seniors struggle to find purpose or structure in their lives and can become depressed or withdrawn. Companion care helps to ease all these problems and keep seniors emotionally and socially engaged, which can greatly benefit their overall health.
If you’d like to learn more about companion care or any of the other services we offer at Executive Home Care, please do not hesitate to contact us today.