A WAY TO STAY Home Care Yardley Newtown PA

Devon and I have turned our compassion into action. We serve a vulnerable population of older adults in their quest to stay independent at home.  We get service –

This video is worth the time.

My sister Devon and I admire what families do to keep their aging parents home; we consider it a spiritual Act of Service.  We find that families don’t think what they do is extraordinary – it’s just what family does for family.  They act as Geriatric Care Managers and cobble together amazing caregiving and life style solutions so their aging loved ones can continue to remain at home.

When families finally call us in to help them it’s almost always an emergency healthcare situation with their aging parent.  Something has happened to the elder and at long last the family network has been stretched so thin it’s close to breaking and the family can no longer provide all the necessary care.   

By the time families call in the “troops” (Home Care Agencies like A WAY TO STAY) they are physically, emotionally and spiritually depleted and it’s our job to help realign caregiving responsibilities so the heavy lifting falls on our caregivers instead of family members.

 My point is that families need to remember that taking care of your parents is usually a marathon not a sprint; you must practice physical, emotional and spiritual self care to continue to help your loved one for the long run.   The Alzheimer’s Association just released updated facts and figures related to this disease and its impact on families (some 15 million people) who provide care for their aging parents or loved ones.  

• Caregivers not only suffer emotionally but also physically. Because of the toll of caregiving on their own health, Alzheimer’s and dementia caregivers had $7.9 billion in additional health care costs in 2010.
• More than 60 percent of family caregivers report high levels of stress because of the prolonged duration of caregiving and 33 percent report symptoms of depression.

We know not everyone can afford Private Duty Home Care but if you can – get help now.  If you can’t afford Private Duty call your Area Agency on Aging and find out if your parents qualify for care subsidized by the Agency.

 Home care counselors at A WAY TO STAY Home Care are available to talk with you about your needs.  A WAY TO STAY is a home care agency providing In-Home Care in Yardley.

It’s apparent to me that bullying is a persistent part of the human condition; my 11-year old niece reports seeing it at school and a client recently told me that she was being intimidated by some “good ole boys” at her retirement community. I spoke to the staff and am on watch to see if the situation improves. My sister and I hear stories about seniors “disinviting” a club member from social functions because the elder “smells” or “can’t play bridge the way she used to”.   We try to strategize with the families who bring us these sad stories and brainstorm ways to address the situation.  Each circumstance is nuanced and often times we can work around it but not with total satisfaction.  

I found an article on the topic on the MSNBC website Mean Old Girls: Seniors Who Bully.  It says that while much scrutiny and study has been devoted to bullying in grade school and high school these last few years, less attention has been paid to another category of bullies: those with gray hair, false teeth, hearing aids and canes. But according to experts, gray-haired bullies do exist and, as with their younger counterparts, their behavior can run the gamut from verbal intimidation to physical violence.

“It’s kind of an institutional thing,” says gerontology expert Robin Bonifas, an assistant professor at Arizona State University School of Social Work, who’s currently researching senior-to-senior bullying. “It tends to take place in senior centers or nursing homes or assisted living facilities, places where they’re spending a lot of time and need to share resources, whether it’s chairs or tables or TV stations or staff attention.”

So listen closely to what’s going on with your aging parent or loved one; bullying in its many forms can and does persist throughout all ages and you need to be prepared to creatively address it.

Click hear to read the entire article

Home care counselors at A WAY TO STAY Home Care are available to talk with you about your needs.  A WAY TO STAY is a home care agency providing In-Home Care in Yardley.

Tips for a healthier you at middle age

(ARA) – With the popularity of movies like Sex and the City and the revival of the 50-year-old fashionista, the 42.9 million baby boomer women in America are approaching aging with confidence and style. While talking about many sensitive topics is no longer off-limits to this vocal group, there still remain several embarrassing health topics that many women will not even discuss with their doctors, let alone with their girlfriends. As a result, they suffer through these manageable health issues in silence rather than finding the solutions they need. Read the full story