How Can You Know If Mom Will Do Well at Assisted Living?
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You’ve been worried about your elderly mother for quite some time. You’ve been looking after her, checking in on her by phone whenever you can, text messages throughout the day, and once in a while stopping by. She might not live close to you, but if she did, you’d certainly be there whenever she needed help. Yet, that would wear you out. Quickly. It does to most family caregivers. Most people who take on the role of “family caregiver” are surprised at just how stressful that job can be. You never imagined you would have to talk about caregiver topics with anyone, but it’s well past time you did.
You’ve been talking to friends, coworkers, and perhaps other family members about assisted living. One of the best caregiver options available for people of advancing years, especially those who need some support and assistance on some kind of basis is assisted living. But how can you know if your aging mother would do well in assisted living?
Let’s review a few points and see where your mother may fit in there.
1. She enjoys staying active.
Your mother might have often been an active person. Or she could have been somebody you viewed as a homebody, when you were growing up she didn’t do much, didn’t hang out with friends very often, and didn’t know much about the extracurricular hobbies or activities she enjoyed.
Whatever the case may have been in the past when people have finished raising children, are retired, or are in the latter part of their 60s, 70s, or 80s, that doesn’t mean they just give up living. They often want to do as much as possible.
Your mother might very well enjoy being active, but is she able to do anything about it? Is she able to go to art classes, the senior center, to play pickleball, shuffleboard, bocce, or other outdoor activities with friends?
If not, and she does want to be active, then assisted living would be great for her.
2. She needs support.
Whether it’s constant care, supervision, or just minimal assistance every once in a while, if your mother needs some help to maintain her Activities of Daily Living (ADLs), then assisted living would be a great place for her.
Unless you’re able to be there every minute of every day for her, then why not talk about an elder care option that is? That would be assisted living.
Caregiver Greenville SC – How Can You Know If Mom Will Do Well at Assisted Living?
3. Perhaps she has some form of dementia.
You’ve noticed your mother’s memory isn’t as sharp as it used to be. If she has not been formally diagnosed by a licensed medical professional, she should. It may very well be related to prescription medications, the natural process of aging, or it could be dementia.
If she has any type of dementia, which includes Alzheimer’s, she would be in great hands at a quality memory care assisted living community.
When somebody has dementia, you don’t want to wait. Yes, you can be a great support early on, but as the disease progresses, it’s going to become much more challenging, for you and her, and that’s why a memory care facility would be so beneficial for her.
