10 warning signs of Alzheimer’s Disease November 19, 2009
Posted by columbiaagedcare in articles.Tags: aged care, Aged Care Australia, Alzheimer's Disease, Columbia Aged Care Services, elderly, loss of memory, Residential Care, Signs of Ageing
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The Alzheimer’s Association in the US have provided 10 signs to help you recognise that Alzheimer’s Disease might becoming a problem for an elderly person in your care.
1. Memory loss that disrupts daily life
One of the most common signs of Alzheimer’s is memory loss, especially forgetting recently learned information. Others include forgetting important dates or events; asking for the same information over and over; relying on memory aides or family members for things they used to handle on their own.
2. Challenges in planning or solving problems
Some people may experience changes in their ability to develop and follow a plan or work with numbers. They may have trouble following a familiar recipe or keeping track of monthly bills. They may have difficulty concentrating and take much longer to do things than they did before.
3. Difficulty completing familiar tasks at home, at work or at leisure
People with Alzheimer’s often find it hard to complete daily tasks. Sometimes, people may have trouble driving to a familiar location, managing a budget at work or remembering the rules of a favorite game.
4. Confusion with time or place
People with Alzheimer’s can lose track of dates, seasons and the passage of time. They may have trouble understanding something if it is not happening immediately. Sometimes they may forget forget where they are or how they got there.
5. Trouble understanding visual images and spatial relationships
For some people, having vision problems is a sign of Alzheimer’s. They may have difficulty reading, judging distance and determining colour or contrast.
6. New problems with words in speaking or writing
People with Alzheimer’s may have trouble following or joining a conversation. They may stop in the middle of a conversation and have no idea how to continue or they may repeat themselves. They may struggle with vocabulary, have problems finding the right word or call things by the wrong name.
7. Misplacing things and losing the ability to retrace steps
A person with Alzheimer’s disease may put things in unusual places. They may lose things and be unable to go back over their steps to find them again. Sometimes, they may accuse others of stealing. This may occur more frequently over time.
8. Decreased or poor judgment
People with Alzheimer’s may experience changes in judgment or decision-making. For example, they may use poor judgment when dealing with money, giving large amounts to telemarketers. They may pay less attention to grooming or keeping themselves clean.
9. Withdrawal from work or social activities
A person with Alzheimer’s may start to remove themselves from hobbies, social activities, work projects or sports. They may have trouble keeping up with a favourite sports team or remembering how to complete a favourite hobby. They may also avoid being social because of the changes they have experienced.
10. Changes in mood and personality
The mood and personalities of people with Alzheimer’s can change. They can become confused, suspicious, depressed, fearful or anxious. They may be easily upset at home, at work, with friends or in places where they are out of their comfort zone.
Caring for an elderly spouse may be becoming too risky for you November 11, 2009
Posted by columbiaagedcare in articles.Tags: aged care, Columbia Aged Care Services, Aged Care Australia, elderly, spousal caregiving, elderly spouse care, elderly spouse, stress, care giving
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Caring for elderly spouse presents difficult challenges. It is extremely important to ensure your loved one is properly cared for, but it is equally important to look after yourself.
Looking after a loved one is a stressful and strenuous process and sometimes it can all become too much. It is important to constantly evaluate your situation and assess if the current situation is best for the both of you. Care giver stress have provided some hints to help you gauge if spousal caregiving has become too risky for you:
- Missing or delaying your own doctor appointments
- Ignoring your own health problems or symptoms
- Not eating a healthy diet for lack of time Overusing tobacco and alcohol when you feel stressed
- Giving up exercise habits for lack of time
- Losing sleep Losing connections with friends for lack of time to socialize
- Bottling up feelings of anger and frustration and then being surprised by angry, even violent, outbursts directed at your spouse, other family members, co-workers – even strangers
- Feeling sad, down, depressed or hopeless
- Loss of energy
- Lacking interest in things that used to give you (and your spouse) pleasure
- Feeling resentful toward your spouse
- Blaming your spouse for the situation
- Feeling that people ask more of you than they should
- Feeling like caregiving has affected family relationships in a negative way
- Feeling annoyed by other family members who don’t help out or who criticize your care
If you are experiencing a number of these signs, it is important to get support. Sometimes even the most resourceful person needs to ask for help from other family members or outside professionals or sources. It is important to take care of yourself, while taking care of someone else.
Gardens Brighten Seniors’ Lives November 4, 2009
Posted by columbiaagedcare in articles.Tags: aged care, Aged Care Australia, Columbia Aged Care Services, Gardening, Gardening for the elderly, Senior Gardening, Seniors Activities
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Home Instead Senior Care and Rebecca Kolls, star of television show Rebecca’s Garden have provided some helpful hints to help seniors continue to enjoy gardening.
This dual-effort public-education campaign has sought to bring back gardening joys to seniors who have difficulty maintaining gardens, or who have given up gardening altogether due to health or age concerns. The initiative’s primary feature, a four-color gardening guide, includes lots of helpful tips and several fun, simple projects seniors can easily complete – either independently or with their families or caregivers.
Kolls, whose grandparents originally inspired her interest in gardening, credits gardens with supplying not only food and beauty, but also improved mental and physical well-being.
“There’s a nurturing aspect in gardening where you take a seed and coddle it,” Kolls said. “Seniors have given up child rearing, so gardening gives them baby plants and seedlings again. It’s a new way of caring for something.”
“We often hear our CAREGivers speak of their clients who love to care for plants and flowers, and how they see it enriching those clients’ lives,” said Home Instead Senior Care CEO Paul Hogan. “Many of our CAREGivers enjoy gardening as well, and are thrilled to help seniors enjoy gardening and plant projects.”
Another great thing about gardening as a senior activity is that it is timeless. “The beauty of the garden, if done well, will provide four seasons of color. While seniors in warmer climates can garden year-round, those in cold-weather climates should not despair,” Kolls said. “In the winter, snow catches in seed heads, and birds find refuge in shrubbery and feed off seeds from the cone flowers. So no matter where you live, there’s alwayssomething growing in the garden.”
One Container; Many Opportunities
A little creative thinking and some assistance from families or caregivers helps ensure that seniors can continue to enjoy the types of gardening they love. “Imagine growing almost everything for a recipe in one container,” Kolls said. “What a great gift idea!”
She suggests the following projects to get you started:
- Try a pizza garden! (If your senior isn’t a pizza fan, he or she might enjoy growing one for grandchildren.) Whiskey barrels work well for growing tomatoes, but can be expensive. A plastic laundry basket with holes cut in the bottom for drainage will work just as well. Plant a Roma tomato in the center, onions along the sides of the tomato and basil around the edge of the container.
- A twist on the pizza garden concept: a fresh salsa garden! It’s similar to a pizza garden, only with tomatoes, onions, hot peppers and cilantro.
- A one-pot vegetable garden is always a hit! Take three bamboo poles and make a teepee in the center of the pot. Plant beans at the base of each bamboo pole, and fill the horizontal space around the pot with carrots, beets or other favorite root vegetables (make sure your pot is at least 10 to 12 inches deep.)
Rebecca’s Senior Gardening Tips
Check out these handy tidbits on how to help the seniors achieve gardening success:
- Herbs grow anywhere and are great for seasoning. Kitchen herb gardens are wonderful for seniors. The more you pinch and pick the herbs, such as basil, parsley and chives, the more vigorous they grow.
- Think height, filler and spiller. When you’re creating flowerpots, consider height, filler and spiller. Plant a variety that will grow at least twice as tall as the container; fill in with plants that will grow to no more than half of the height of the taller plants, and then plant a variety that will cascade over the pot.
- When it comes to annuals, pack them in. When you create flowerpots, pack your annuals in because they will become root-bound and grow up and over the pots. You’ll get drama and a beautiful arrangement, according to Kolls.
- Look for equipment that can make the job easier. There are many wonderful tools available that can make gardening easier for anyone including seniors. According to Kolls, Bud-Eze tools, which can be found on the Internet, are a good option, as are bionic gloves. In addition, the Arthritis Foundation has a product and services directory for senior gardeners and others with mobility problems.
- Garden right outside your front door or back door. Container gardening allows seniors access to flowers or vegetables in one pot and also gives them the height that helps make gardening easier for them.
- Team with others to garden. If a senior can’t garden anymore, enlist the help of others who might enjoy sharing the work and the produce or flowers from the garden.
