When you do not want to talk about something, what do you tend to do? If even your spouse, partner, or your children begin to bring up the subject, you shut them down, don’t you? Maybe you walk away. Perhaps you slam the door. You might yell. There are many ways that people cut out conversations they just don’t want to have. The same may be happening to an elderly person in your life, especially if they don’t want to discuss in-home care services. In-home care can be a sensitive topic for people as they age, especially if they are having difficulty with various tasks at home.
If you have been talking — or trying to talk — to your elderly mother or father, for example, about in-home care, but they continually stop you from getting a few words in, there could be several reasons for that.
They may be afraid. They might already feel the very real effect of losing control of their life. They may worry about the future. That fear may keep them from wanting to talk about it because, when people talk about something, it becomes more real and that is simply something they can’t handle at that moment.
You aren’t completely powerless, though.
Here are some things you can do that may help get the conversation moving in the right direction, or at least moving, even if it’s only a few centimeters at a time.
Step #1: Learn everything you can about in-home care.
You may think you know a lot about it, but if you have no prior experience with it, you may only know certain anecdotes. Is that enough information? Of course not. If you want to talk about something as important as elder care, you owe it not just to yourself but to that senior in your life to learn everything you can about it.
Contemplate the options available. Understand that most seniors want to remain home, known as aging in place, and in-home care support services are the best way to make that happen.
Only when you have learned a great deal about in-home care, the available options, and why it’s so important for seniors to consider, should you approach the senior to try and broach the topic once again.
Step #2: Listen to what the senior is saying.
Too often in our busy lives, we don’t spend enough time listening. However, listening is one of the most important (and overlooked) aspects of good communication. Spend some time listening to what your elderly mother or father or other senior is saying about their life, their hopes, their dreams, their fears, their doubts, their regrets, and so much more.
You may discover there are certain things he or she is missing that they wish they could do once again. That could be a way into the conversation about in-home care.
Step #3: Ask questions.
Once you have some inside information about the things they are missing or some of the clues about their fear, then you can start asking specific questions. Ask what activities they might do if they only have the right support.
Ask how they feel about living in this house all by themselves now. Ask questions that may bring out the more well-hidden fears and doubts they may have about their life because that could give you a way to start this conversation again.
Step #4: Find out about friends who are relying on in-home care.
Maybe they have friends who are using in-home care right now. If their friends are benefiting from in-home care support services, that can be a great way to help them see it’s not such a bad thing. In fact, a quality home care agency provides the best support for seniors to keep them safe, in their home, and living life on their terms, no matter what they are facing at the moment.
If you or an aging loved one are considering In-Home Care Services in Goodlettsville TN please contact the caring staff at Senior Solutions Home Care. (615) 307-4509
Senior Solutions Home Care is a Trusted Home Care Agency serving Nashville, Brentwood, Nolensville, Gallatin, Hendersonville, Smyrna, Murfreesboro, Mount Juliet, Lebanon, Goodlettsville, Davidson County, and surrounding areas.
Over the years, we have expanded, providing service in all 95 counties throughout Tennessee, and we now have a growing presence in Georgia.
Senior Solutions is recognized as a top 5% independent agency and a three-time Inc. 5000 honoree in 2018, 2019, and 2020. These types of awards matter to us because they show growth in our goal of eventually touching a million lives. We’re excited to continue that growth and to touch even more families with our commitment to quality care!
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