Making decisions about the future can be difficult, especially when those decisions involve senior care. If you’re a family member or friend helping someone care for an elderly loved one, you’ve probably found yourself in this situation before.
Remember that no matter what decision your older loved one makes, don’t forget to include love and respect into the equation. This article discusses four tips to help your loved ones make the right decision regarding their care:
- Acknowledge Their Emotions
You’re in a great position to help your loved one make difficult decisions about their care. However, you must listen to their emotions and acknowledge their feelings before they can begin reasoning about making their decision.
Acknowledge their emotions by saying, “I understand” or “I hear you.” Make sure you’re available for your loved one during this period so they feel supported and not alone in making these decisions.
- Have A Family Meeting
As a caregiver, you might experience some of the same challenges and concerns as your loved one. One way to help them make an informed decision is to have a family meeting with everyone involved in the conversation.
The goal of the meeting should be to discuss all the options available:
- Caregiving provided by family members and friends
- Hiring an in-home aide or another professional service provider
- Moving into assisted living or nursing home care
- Entering hospice care
During this meeting, discuss what’s most important for your loved one at this point in their life. For instance, you can explain how crucial maintaining independence at home as long as possible is. Afterward, explain what kinds of services might be available based on those needs (e.g., home health aides who could assist with cooking meals). You might also want to discuss how much each option will cost. That way, everyone understands how much money you need before deciding care options for your loved one.
- Respect Their Wishes
Your loved one may want to do things differently than you think is best. That’s okay. Respecting their wishes will help them feel more empowered and in control of their choices, which can help reduce stress and anxiety for everyone involved.
Make sure they clearly understand what they want and don’t want. If your loved one is still determining how long they’d like to live in a nursing home or assisted living facility, discuss all the options with them. This way, you can make an informed decision together.
- Be There For Them
Older adult care decisions can be difficult, especially when someone is dealing with a loved one’s health or memory issues. If your elderly loved one is trying to decide about their care, they may need your help and support.
Listen to their concerns and opinions, and show them that you care about what they say. Be open-minded and patient as they work through this process. Rushing them into making decisions won’t help your case.
Key Takeaway
Knowing what’s best for a loved one can be tricky, especially when facing complex health decisions. But by caring for them how they want to be cared for, you honor their wishes and help ensure they remain comfortable and at peace with their decisions in their final chapters.
