When Barbara T. made her usual Sunday visit to her mother, she was alarmed to see her 80-year-old mom with a black eye and large bruises on her arm. She had tripped on the stairs. Fortunately, she was not seriously injured, at least not this time. It wasn’t the first time she had fallen and, she confessed, she was having trouble with her balance. She also had high blood pressure and the doctor said she may have had more than one TIA, also known as a mini-stroke. She had lived alone since her husband died three years before, and she was having trouble managing the upkeep of the family home. Clearly, Barbara thought, something needed to change. Her mother needed to live in a place without stairs, and needed some help with grocery shopping, transportation and other tasks.
A good first step–before a crisis arises–is to hold family meetings with your parent, spouse, children, siblings and other key people so everyone can share their views and help decide how best to proceed.Many of us find that as our parents age, they’re more likely to need assistance to carry out everyday activities. Barbara’s first instinct was to suggest that her mother move in with her and her family. And while this is often a first–and sometimes the best–solution, it’s one that needs careful thought and planning.
In this column and the next, we’ll explore the range of residential options for caregiving. In column 1, we’ll look at options for someone with fewer care needs, like Barbara’s mother; in column 2, we’ll explore options for those with more demanding health conditions or those with Alzheimer’s or another dementia.
The most typical situation is one in which adult children are assisting aging parents, and that’s the example we’ll focus on here. But the information applies to anyone—spouse, grandparent, friend, aunt, sibling, even yourself—who may no longer be able to live independently.
Read more:
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/options-want-stay-home-age/
