Taking Care of Yourself - Good Nutrition Is Essential & Easy

Maintaining good nutrition habits is tough for anyone, but especially difficult for caregivers because they are  juggling the potentially selective appetites of a patient, other family members, and  their own personal mealtime likes  and  dislikes. Here are  some simple guidelines:

Drink Water: Water is an  essential nutrient because about 55 percent of your  body is made up of water. Begin  every  day  with a glass of water, drink water between and  at every  meal, and  create the  habit of taking a bottle of water whenever you go out.

Eat Whole Grains: Whole  grains are  part of a healthy diet. Here are  a few ways  to transition from  refined grains to whole grains:  Switch breakfast cereals. Change from  white to whole grain bread. Eat brown rice rather than white rice and  whole grain crackers rather than regular ones.

Close to Perfect Foods: Fruits and  vegetables are  easy  to prepare, they taste good, and  they’re good for you.

Protein Variety: Most  of us get more  protein than we need. The average woman needs about 50-80  grams of protein daily;  an average piece  of chicken contains 34 grams. Make  sure to eat protein from  a variety of sources, not  just meat. Fish, eggs, dairy foods, soy products, and  beans are  good alternatives.

Slimmer & Healthier Tips for Supermarket Shopping

• Avoid shopping when you are hungry and  tempted to buy high-fat, high- calorie snack foods.
• Read  food labels to compare nutrition and calories.
• Buy  fresh foods so you control what is added to your  meal, avoiding the  hidden calories in packaged foods.

Slimmer & Healthier Tips

Your weight is the  balance between the  amount of calories you eat  and  the  number of calories you burn.

• One  can  of soda  every  day  can  add  10 to 15 pounds in a year. A 30 minute daily  brisk walk can  subtract that amount in a year.
• Learn your  actual calorie intake by keeping a diary of what you eat.  Note  your  emotions when you eat  sweets.
• Recommended portion sizes  are  a deck  of cards size  meat or fish and  a tennis ball  size  serving of carbohydrate.
• Fill  half  your  plate with salad and  vegetables and the  other half  with meat and  starches.
• Don’t skip  meals or eat  fewer  than three per  day.
• Begin  to increase calories you burn by adding a few extra steps each  day  using stairs or parking farther away. Stretch several times during the  day.

Comfort Keepers provides in-home care to seniors and the elderly living in Ocala, Gainesville, and The Villages, Florida. We provide superior in-home care to seniors and the elderly throughout Central Florida so they can live enriched independent lifestyles! Call us today at 855-592-0013.
photo credit: nice days, nice places

Travel with Mobility Challenges

A Good Time Can Be Had By All

Traveling with someone who has mobility challenges or a chronic health condition requires careful planning before leaving on a trip. To prevent problems during travel:

• Tell the  person’s primary care doctor about the  trip. Ask if there are  any  special care  needs to
  prepare in advance or during travel.
• If going  to a foreign country, ask the  doctor  about immunizations.
• Check the  insurance policy to see what emergencies are  covered. Is medical equipment insured if it gets lost  or stolen? Is evacuation for medical reasons covered?
• Take the person’s health insurance card. Write the  primary care doctor’s phone number on the card  and  the  date of the  last tetanus shot. Take the  insurance benefits booklet. Consider buying travel insurance, but  be sure to read the  policy carefully, including the  fine  print.
• If you spend money  for medical care, medications, or equipment during the  trip, keep all  receipts to get reimbursed.
• If the  person is going  to need medical care  after arriving, make an  appointment with a doctor  in the new  location before you leave  home.
• Carry a card  with the  phone numbers of people to  contact in case  of emergency.
• Consider taking a portable grab bar  for bathrooms.
• Tell the travel agent or airline if the person will need a wheelchair, and  have it marked on the  tickets.
• Tell the  airline about any  special food considerations.
• Call  ahead to the  airline, bus, or train station if you will need assistance getting the  person onboard.

Traveling with  Medications

Pack the  medications the  person in your  care  takes on a regular basis. All medications in any  form  or type and  associated supplies are  allowed through airport security checkpoint once they have been  screened.

• List all  the medications the  person takes and  why, with brand and  generic names. Keep  one copy in your suitcase and  another in your  carry-on.
• Bring enough medications to last the  entire trip—plus some extra. Keep the medications with you at  all  times. Don’t check  them.
• Keep  the  medications in the original containers with the  original prescription labels.
• Make arrangements for refrigerating  medications, if needed.

Comfort Keepers provides in-home care to seniors and the elderly living in Ocala, Gainesville, and The Villages, Florida. We provide superior in-home care to seniors and the elderly throughout Central Florida so they can live enriched independent lifestyles! Call us today at 855-592-0013.

photo credit: Global_5000

Family Communication

The right words can make all the difference…

Whether with our  own family, or in a professional caregiver relationship, we need  skills to communicate effectively.

Tips for effective  communication:

1)  Assess the situation. Listen to every  member of the  family to figure out  what the  issue really is. Look for meaning and  emotions behind what is being  said.

2)  Let  them know you under- stand. You can  share their feelings without getting overwhelmed by their issues.

3)  Try  to be  a reporter, not a judge. Instead of saying, “It is wrong for you to smoke and  you are  hurting yourself,” try, “I notice that you are  having trouble breathing and  it’s getting worse from  smoking.”

4)  Maintain personal balance. Allow yourself time to decompress and  have a separate life with your own activities and  down  time. Find people  you can  confide  in when you are  puzzled or overwhelmed. Join a support group if you feel isolated.

5)  Avoid guilt, depression, and judgments. You can  grieve, feel frustrated or overwhelmed, and know  these are  normal feelings. Accept  the  tough outcomes and still  feel good that you gave  it your  best.

Keeping a Lid on Anger

When communication fails,  stress levels  go up. Higher stress is associated with heart attacks, high  blood pressure, and  more severe diabetes symptoms. You can  stay healthy, and  help  those in your  care  stay healthier, by asking yourself these questions to help  reduce stress and  avoid anger triggers:

• Is what I am  arguing about really important? Pick  your  battles and  let  the  small stuff  go.
• Am I storing up  resentments from  the  past that are  making things seem worse  in this conversation? Stay on the topic—don’t bring past issues into  the  current discussion.
• Don’t take it personally. Be polite  and  keep your  boundaries. You don’t need  to get angry just because you don’t like  what someone is saying.

Setting Your Boundaries

How can  you take care  of yourself when the  demands on you are  increasing? Clear, polite but  firm,  communication can  help. Here’s  an  example: A caregiver is asked by her father (or a client) to do a task that would  keep  her beyond her  scheduled hours. She  wants to be helpful and  has  a hard saying “no,” but  knows that she  can’t take on more tasks right now.

Good communication can  include the  following responses:

1)  “I’m sorry. I’d like  to be able  to do that task for you, but  I have family commitments starting in one hour. Why don’t we get to that next week at the  beginning of the  day,  so I can  finish it properly for you.”

OR

2)  “I know  you’d like  for me to stay longer with you today, but  I need  to get back  and  take care  of my children (or other clients). Why don’t I bring you a TV schedule and  set  out  a cup of tea  so you can relax after I leave.”

Comfort Keepers provides in-home care to seniors and the elderly living in Ocala, Gainesville, and The Villages, Florida. We provide superior in-home care to seniors and the elderly throughout Central Florida so they can live enriched independent lifestyles! Call us today at 855-592-0013.

photo credit: Tim Morgan

Adapted with permission from a presentation by Mark Edinberg, Ph.D., author of the book, “Talking with your Aging Parents.”

A Good Night’s Sleep

Twilight Years Sleep Troubles

As we age, it becomes harder to reach the  deepest stages of sleep. Menopause causes night sweats that wake us up. Certain prescription medications contain stimulants. Spending more  time in bed due  to illness or age can  make a person feel restless. Some  people  also  suffer from chronic pain.

More Relaxed Sleep

The  following tips  may  help  you and  the  person in your  care  get a better night’s sleep:

• Avoid caffeine, alcohol, and  sugar in the  evening.
• Settle down  in the  evening with a book, television, or quiet activity.
• Go to bed at the  same time every night.
• Get  daily  exercise—but not  too close to bedtime because it is energizing.
• Avoid greasy, spicy  or heavy foods near bedtime. Choose  a warm soup or milk,  or toast instead. (Beware of too many liquids before  bed, which can  cause nighttime trips to the  bathroom.)
• Try  a relaxing, warm bath before  bed.
• Be aware of medications that affect  sleep.

Keep  a journal of sleep  patterns to see what might be causing sleep problems. Seek  professional help  if you, or the  person in your  care,  is suffering from  chronic depression that keeps you awake.

NOTE:  Nightime Wandering
Alzheimer’s Disease can cause disturbance in the wake-sleep cycle. Be sure locks are installed so someone can not leave during the night. If the caregiver cannot get adequate sleep, hire a home health aide to be with the person at night. There are also some day care programs for seniors who cannot sleep at night. And, the physician might be able to prescribe medication to help with sleep.

Comfort Keepers provides in-home care to seniors and the elderly living in Ocala, Gainesville, and The Villages, Florida. We provide superior in-home care to seniors and the elderly throughout Central Florida so they can live enriched independent lifestyles! Call us today at 855-592-0013.

photo credit: eflon