Adeste In-Home Care - Colorado

In-Home Care in Colorado

How To Make Your Sandwich Generation Lifestyle Easier

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America’s sandwich generation – Generation X – includes men and women in their forties and fifties that are faced with the challenges of caring for both children and aging parents at the same time. It’s our fastest growing demographic.

What does it take to work a full time job, raise a family, and care for parents living with medical complications, all while trying to maintain a healthy relationship with your partner or spouse? And attempt to have life balance and a little me time too?

Something’s got to give. And unfortunately for Gen X, they’re finding there isn’t a lot of wiggle room.

What can you do? [Read more…]

Top 3 Reasons Seniors Enter Assisted Living … And Why There Is A Better Way

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Top 3 Reasons Seniors Enter Assisted Living

Every day, families across the world find themselves in an entirely new world. The reality that mom and dad can no longer live on their own is a bit terrifying. Now what?

Caregiving isn’t something we think about until it’s thrust upon us. And from that moment on, we scramble to make the right choices.

If mom or dad can no longer live on their own, the best choice is to move them out of their home and into someplace safe where they’ll be well taken care of, right? In reality, that thought process may be all wrong.

We usually find ourselves considering caregiving options for one of three reasons:

1. A sudden change in health – it may be recovery from a surgery or a diagnosis of a chronic illness

2. A decline in daily living – you usually start to notice it in little things. They may show weight-loss from losing interest in preparing daily meals. They may allow newspapers and mail to accumulate in a corner.

3. A change in capabilities – they may get confused on what medications to take at what time of the day. They may lose their ability to drive.

Yet while each of these changes can open your eyes to the fact that mom or dad needs help, it’s the kind of help that will set the course for their future well-being. [Read more…]

Why Customized Caregiving May Be The Right Solution

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Why Customized Caregiving May Be The Right Solutio

When you need a service performed in your life, you have one of two choices. You can choose the mass route, where one service is perfected and performed over and over again. Or you can choose the customized approach, where the service is entirely constructed around what you need most.

We’re seeing the mass route pop up in all kinds of industries. Maybe you’ve noticed it in services like dentistry, or massage therapy. You can choose to go to a chain massage therapy center, for example, where employees are hired and taught to provide a certain quality of service. There is no deviation from what they do from client to client; they perform the same task over and over again.

Or you can choose the customized approach, where a massage therapist learns all about your needs, and customizes an approach to provide you with the best service possible. Their approach changes from client to client, depending on the approach best suited for the individual.

This same approach is also popping up in the in-home caregiving industry as well. As the population ages at an incredible pace, the need for caregiving services is increasingly right along with it. And in some cases, the tasks performed may become repetitive, giving the mass caregiving route an advantage. That is why assisted living facilities continue to open on a regular basis. In some cases a person can remain independent with simple, structured tasks. A quality meal three times per day may be a big bonus to a family worried about their loved one eating.

But what if your loved one is a picky eater and decides not to eat the meals cooked at the mass-caregiving facility (ie an assisted living facility)? [Read more…]

Now That You’re Home: Caregiving From Afar

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Now That You’re Home: Caregiving From Afar

The holidays are past, the tree has been put away, and the resolutions have long been forgotten. But there is one thing you can’t forget and its been troubling you since you boarded the plane: your parent’s health.

Many adult children face this fact every year as they return home for the holidays only to discover their older parents simply can’t do everything on their own anymore. They need assistance. But how can you do it from afar? How can you manage work, a family, and everything that keeps you busy 24 hours of the day AND try and figure out this new caregiving role from hundreds of miles away?

While it may sound like an overwhelming, stressful, even impossible task, keep in mind that this scenario plays out all across the world every single year. You are not alone. Yet now that you’ve discovered there is a problem, its time to do something about it.

Across America, it is estimated that there are around 7 million people providing long distance care for their family and loved ones. Caregiving is complicated in the best of circumstances; distance adds a new realm to the issue. First realize that caregiving will come with many different aspects for you to deal with – emotional, physical and financial – and there are some things you’ll be able to do, and some things you’ll have to rely on help.

Who is in your community?

Your first task is to make sure mom and dad are safe. Do you have siblings that live near by? Do you have other close relatives, such as an aunt, uncle or cousin? Do your parents have close friends that can help out as needed? Put together a list of everyone that may be willing to help with a caregiving task. In some cases, the people on your list may already be doing their fair share. With a simple meeting, you can discuss your parent’s health and determine what resources are available and being used right now. [Read more…]

Coming Home For The Holidays: What To Do When Your Parents Aren’t As Well As You Expected

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Coming Home For The Holidays What To Do When Your Parents Aren’t As Well As You ExpectedThe holidays are a time for getting together with family scattered across the globe, renewing friendships, taking in the sights and sounds of the holidays … and checking in on aging family members to see how well they are managing.

Its no coincidence that the busiest time for elder care options spikes around the holidays. That’s when relatives pick up on little details that let them know trouble is unfolding right before their eyes.

While its never easy to admit a relative is failing, it is important to recognize the first signs of trouble, and take action immediately to prevent further problems down the road. Here are a few things you can do.

Start With A Hug

What’s the first thing you do when you see loved ones for the first time in months? Give them a big hug. While you are hugging your parents or elderly relatives, use this as your first clue.

  • Do you notice obvious weight loss?  This can be a sign that they aren’t eating right, or are facing anything from depression to a disease like cancer.
  • Can you notice increased frailty?  As strength weakens, its also an indication of how well they can manage on their own. Are they more at risk for tripping and falling?
  • Do you notice obvious weight gain? This could indicate they’ve changed their eating patterns – they eat more junk food and not enough fresh foods. Or it could be a sign of dementia; they may not remember eating, and therefore eat all the time.
  • Strange body odor. Grooming habits can be a sign of memory trouble. If bathing and personal grooming becomes a chore, it may be one of the first things they “forget” to do.

[Read more…]

The 1 On 1 Relationship With In-Home Caregiving

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The 1 On 1 Relationship With In-Home Caregiving

Sally knew her mom needed extra help. She stopped by after work every day to make sure she was okay. She began noticing the little things – few dishes in the sink, missed doctor’s appointments, there were even days her mom never even dressed for the day. But her job took up 40+ hours a week, and there was no way her family could survive without her contribution. Now what, she thought over and over again.

This is a common scenario all over Colorado today. Eventually it comes to a point where decisions need to be made. Yet if this situation is new to you, what are your options, and which is the best for your situation?

Assisted living facilities are popping up all over the Denver Metro area. And while they are a viable option for some, for many, many more there is a different option that can keep your loved one safe, happy, in their own homes, and still provide you with the peace of mind you are looking for … in-home caregiving.

What makes in-home caregiving the way to go? Personalized service. [Read more…]

Taking On A New Role – Caregiver

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Taking On A New Role – Caregiver

One minute your living life the same way – kids to school, get to work, after school activities, date night with the spouse. And the next minute you’re thrust into an entirely new world – a world that means you’ll now be caregiver for your mom or dad on a regular basis.

If you’re caregiving for a parent or loved one, you are not alone. Roughly 66 million people in the United States are living in some type of caregiving role. They are unpaid, caring for those with chronic or long term care needs. It can be both challenging and rewarding – literally a job you can’t prepare for, and requires on the job training alone.

It can be especially frustrating because you’re suddenly thrust into a role reversal situation. Your parents were always there for you; now its up to you to take care of them. And if you’ve always been the type to fix things and get things done, it can be very frustrating when you’re faced with something you simply cannot change.

Your first step in your journey is to realize you are not alone. Rather than going it alone, fill your support system with people that understand your new position. Attend a caregiver class. Join a caregiver support group. And work with a in home caregiving company that can provide you with tips or resources that may have taken you weeks, even years to figure out on your own. [Read more…]

8 Things In Home Care Can Help You With

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8 Things In Home Care Can Help You With

In home care isn’t usually something you plan on using – you’re thrust upon it when you least expect it. Maybe you’ve come home to Colorado from far away and suddenly realize your parents aren’t doing as well as you thought they were. Or maybe your loved one takes a fall or has surgery, and now you know there is no way they can stay in their home by themselves.

Things have to change. But does that mean its all on your shoulders?

No. That’s what in home care is for. We become your extra set of hands. We become your peace of mind. All for when you can’t be there.

And this is how we do it.

1. Provide an extra set of hands.

In some cases the reason your parents aren’t doing as well as you thought is because they simply can’t do things the way they used to. In home care can provide a caregiver to help out during the day. From simple checkins to entire days, we can be there to provide service when your parents need it most.

2. Meal monitoring.

Is your loved one cooking regularly? Do they eat healthy, balanced meals? Do they shop for themselves? If you worry about their diet, why not let an in home caregiver make sure they are eating right. She can pick them up and take them shopping for foods they like. She can cook and clean up the kitchen after a healthy meal. She can even enjoy the meal together with your loved one, supplying much needed conversation. [Read more…]