Senior Care – Compassion & Patience with Seniors
Any parent will tell you that no newborn comes with a user manual. Despite all the advice friends and family eagerly dispense, raising a baby and discovering their unique quirks can be a process of trial and error. While senior care has rewarding moments, it is also chock-full of pitfalls, bafflement, and moments of second-guessing decisions made on their behalf.
Is it easy? Certainly not. Are thousands of adult children facing similar daily challenges? Definitely.
Do any of the following sound vaguely familiar? Firstly, cooking your favorite meal. Secondly, supplying comfort when life seemed difficult. Thirdly, offering guidance when choices were confusing. Or even doling out chores that simply needed to be done. Decades ago, it was comforting to know mom and dad provided for our basic physical and emotional needs. Likewise, these days more and more adult children find themselves in a similar position. That is to say, facing the challenges of caring for their aging parents.
Why Is It Important to Treat Our Seniors With Respect?
Seniors have a thing or two to teach us about enduring change and handling life’s adversity.
Even though a senior’s hearing or memory isn’t what it used to be, our elders have great wisdom to impart. These people are powerful. They created the comforts younger Americans take for granted. They are not cute like babies or puppies, and I think it’s demeaning to treat them as though they are. We must treat our seniors with respect, even if their bodies or minds are beginning to fail them. 
When Ageism Is Rampant, people can become uncomfortable dealing with the emotions of aging. Moreover, the trials and tribulations of the golden years also contribute to ageism. “Ageism” is defined as a tendency to regard older persons as debilitated and unworthy of attention.
The simple act of paying attention can do wonders. Even if loved ones suffer from cognitive diseases, such as Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia. After all, learning history and spending quality time together can benefit everyone and create irreplaceable memories. Our grandparents and parents raised us to believe in the importance of treating others with courtesy and respect. These past generations have held tight to their dignity, ethics, faith, honesty and integrity. For this reason, condescending or even inadvertent belittling is not okay. Even when the goal is to protect rather than harm.
Why Is Compassion Important for Seniors?
We believe that compassion is crucial to any solid service for seniors. You are dedicated to caring for your loved one with joy and kindness. It is important to preserve your loved one’s independence and dignity and to promote graceful aging.
Compassion during this phase of life goes a long way. Besides, frustrating moments are usually outweighed by happier times together. Beneath the changed faces exist those same loving folks, who have guided you through difficult times in your own life.
Most importantly, if time and health allow, adult children caring for their older loved ones could find themselves in the same place as their parents one day. Empathy and compassion go a long way; remember not to take the time you have left together for granted.
As I have shown, the best way people who are younger and more robust can offer an easy passage for the elderly is to show love, compassion and kindness. While simultaneously accepting the fact that aging brings with it unimaginable fears. When we show love and kindness, we tell our elders that we are thankful, that they mean a lot to us, and that their life has been well-spent.
Being Compassionate To The Elderly
Old age causes one’s mortality to stare us in the face. Seniors suddenly become unsure of themselves, unpredictable and frightened. Death seems to beckon, and seniors are scared to die.
Elizabeth Kubler Ross has said it so well in her treatise on death and dying, which, though applicable more to cancer, is relevant to our elders. Our elders are first angry that they are incapacitated; then they feel betrayed by disappointments they have faced in life; then they plead with life for more time, and finally, accept the reality of their impending death. Yet most people pass away in the pleading stage and never really attain the accepting stage.
What does compassion mean in aged care?
Compassion means ‘concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others’. It is the co.’ept of understanding what your senior is going through and supporting and helping them. It is about making time for the elderly and being sensitive enough to spot ways in which a care recipient can be helped.
How do you show compassion in senior care?
You don’t need to do anything too complicated to show compassion for your seniors. It’s simply essential to show empathy and connect with them. Ask them a bit about themselves, or tell them about yourself. In addition, you should include them in your life and share memories with them.
Senior Care FAQs
With over 18 years of experience, Options For Senior Living has helped countless helped thousands of families find assisted living communities through our senior living options in Arizona and Georgia. Below, we’ll answer some of your most frequently asked questions about Senior Care.
Why is senior care so expensive?
As your loved ones become more ill and require extra help, their out-of-pocket expenses rise. Moreover, Medical care costs rise as people age and require more treatment, which often adds financial stress to families.
We’re here to help you find the best long-term care community for your aging parent or spouse – at no additional cost. Simply contact us below, and we will help you ease the burden of stress that comes with finding the right community for your senior’s next chapter.
What are the levels of care for seniors?
There are four distinct levels of hospice care. The four levels of hospice are routine home care, continuous home care, general inpatient care, and respite care.
If you need more information regarding the levels of care for seniors, contact us below. We’d love to help you.
Contact Options For Senior Living
Here at Options For Senior Living, we offer advice, guidance, senior living options, and local resources based on your unique needs.
We have over 18 years of hyper-localized expertise in Arizona and Georgia’s best-rated senior community resources. Let us help to ease the burden of stress that comes with finding the right community for your senior’s next chapter.