Caring at Heart

Home Care Services in Charlotte NC

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We service Rock Hill, Lancaster, Fort Mill, Chester, Tega Cay, York,
and Catawba South Carolina.

How to Bust a Bad Mood

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Bad moods are something that show up for everybody. As a caregiver, you might find that your own mood has a bigger impact on the situations around you than you expect. Busting your bad mood and replacing it with a better one can help.

Go Out in the Sun for a Few Minutes

Caregiver Matthews, NC: Busting Bad Moods

Just a couple of minutes out in the sun helps your body to start making vitamin D and that is a huge mood booster. Vitamin D is a key component in healthy bones and muscles and it also can help with brain health. Sunscreen blocks what your body needs in order to make vitamin D, so be sure to only go outside without sunblock for a few minutes at a time.

Find a Fuzzy Friend to Cuddle
Taking care of a furry bundle of joy can do so much for your mood. Your pet, or even other people’s pets, rely on us for so much. Depending on the pet you’re hanging out with, you might also get a good bit of exercise in. Pets offer unconditional love, which is amazing to receive when you’re feeling down.

What Have You Eaten?
Believe it or not, what you eat matters when it comes to your mood. If you’re eating a lot of sugar and carbs, you might think they’re helping you to feel better, but odds are that they’re actually keeping you feeling sluggish. Try to make a concerted effort to eat healthier when you’re not feeling so great emotionally. The nutritional boost can help your body to get what it needs.

Caffeine Is Not Always Your Friend
Caffeine might keep your body moving, but it can also magnify your anxiety and you might experience a crash later. If you’re already feeling a little off, you might want to consider limiting your caffeine a bit. Don’t completely go without, though, particularly if you’re used to taking in a lot of caffeine because you can end up in withdrawal and that usually includes a bad headache.

Exercise for a Little While
Even if you don’t have a pet of your own or a friend’s pet to exercise with, that doesn’t mean you can’t move a bit. Some exercise might help you more than you realize, especially if you’ve got a friend you can exercise with. Consider a walk around the block or a few minutes of yoga. Go easy on yourself.
When you’re a caregiver, sometimes it’s difficult to recognize how important your own mood is. Your mood is something that everybody else picks up on. Even with Alzheimer’s disease, your senior can pick up on your mood and respond to that, without even knowing the cause. You owe it to yourself to do what you can to bust a blue mood.

Excerpt: Some days just leave you feeling off. Try some of these options to help improve your mood.

 

If you or an aging loved one are considering a Caregiver in Matthews, NC, please call the professional staff at Caring at Heart today at (704) 379-7510.Serving Charlotte, Statesville, Ballantyne, Mooresville, Huntersville, Matthews, Concord, Gastonia, Pineville and Indian Trail

What Should Your Senior Do if She Feels Dizzy?

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Short episodes of dizziness are something that anyone can experience. But for an aging family member, even a small dizzy spell can lead to a painful fall. It’s really important to treat every dizzy spell carefully so that it doesn’t turn into a much bigger problem for her.

Encourage Her to Sit or to Lie Down

Senior Care Matthews, NC: Seniors and Dizzy Spells

Senior Care Matthews, NC: Seniors and Dizzy Spells

When dizziness strikes, it’s important for your senior to lower her center of gravity. Sitting down accomplishes that easily. Sitting also ensures that she’s more secure than she was when she started to feel dizzy. If sitting down doesn’t seem to help enough, then lying down would be a good follow-up option. Just taking a moment and allowing the dizziness to pass might be all your senior needs.

Avoid Doing Anything that Makes the Sensation Worse
If there’s anything that makes the dizziness or the sensation of being about to fall any worse, definitely encourage your senior to avoid doing that activity. Depending on potential causes, your elderly family member might need to rest for a while with her eyes closed. Bright lights, moving too quickly, and even activities she enjoys like reading or watching television can all make a spell of dizziness worse.

Try to Determine the Triggering Factor
For some people, attacks of dizziness occur more often than they’d like. There’s usually some instigating factor or trigger that sets off the spell of dizziness. Learning your senior’s triggers can be incredibly helpful in ensuring that she doesn’t have to go through these spells very often. Keeping a log of what she eats and what she does can help with tracking.

Talk to Your Senior’s Doctor about What’s Happening
Whether this is an issue your senior has dealt with for a long time or something that has just started for her, you need to mention it to her doctor. Even an issue she’s had before could have a different cause this time around. Your senior’s doctor can take a look at details and situations that might not have occurred to either you or your aging family member. If a solution can be found, that’s optimal so she doesn’t have to continue to deal with dizzy spells.

Dizziness may be your senior’s only warning that she’s about to experience a fall. If there are factors contributing to dizziness, such as not eating as regularly as she should, then having help from senior care providers throughout the day can be incredibly useful.

Excerpt: Dizzy spells can lead to a fall for your senior. If she knows what to do in advance, you can help her to prevent that possible fall.

If you or an aging loved one are considering Senior Care in Matthews, NC,please call the professional staff at Caring at Heart today at(704) 379-7510.Serving Charlotte, Statesville, Ballantyne, Mooresville, Huntersville,Matthews, Concord, Gastonia,Pineville and Indian Trail

4 Fun Activities Elder Care Can Do with Seniors

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Just like everyone else, seniors get bored sometimes. This can be especially true for older adults who spend a lot of time alone. They may not know what to do to pass the time or they may have disabilities that make doing the things they enjoy difficult. However, with the help of an elder care provider, your aging relative can participate in fun activities that give them something to look forward to every day. Below are 4 examples of fun activities an elder care provider can do with seniors.

 

#1: Bake Treats for the Grandchildren

Elder Care Waxhaw, NC: Fun Activities for Seniors

Elder Care Waxhaw, NC: Fun Activities for Seniors

Many older adults love to bake and especially enjoy baking treats for their grandchildren. Unfortunately, some seniors have difficulty with baking because of cognitive problems that make following directions hard. Or, they may have mobility problems that make it hard or unsafe for them to do the bending and lifting involved in baking. Elder care providers can help them every step of the way, from choosing a recipe to going to the grocery store to taking the treats out of the oven.

 

#2: Try a New Craft

There are a plethora of ideas for crafts that are senior friendly on the Internet. Elder care providers can set up the supplies to do a craft and assist the person to get started. An elder care provider can also assist with steps in the craft that are difficult because of poor eyesight or arthritic hands.

 

#3: Take a Trip to the Library

If your aging relative enjoys reading, watching movies, or listening to music, a trip to the library can be a wonderful way to pass the time. Unfortunately, getting out of the house isn’t always easy for older adults. Many of them are unable to drive because of conditions that make it unsafe. They might also have physical disabilities that make them worry about falling. An elder care provider can drive them to the library and escort them in and out of the building so they can choose a pick, check out a movie, or find a music CD to listen to.

 

#4: Feed and Watch the Birds

Watching birds is an enjoyable activity for many older adults. Birds are colorful and their antics can be fun to watch. It can also be interesting to identify the kinds of birds they see. Lots of older adults like to set up bird feeders and watch the birds from their window. However, lifting heavy bags of bird seed and reaching up to fill the feeders can be impossible for some. Elder care providers can assist with filling bird feeders and help the senior to look up the birds they see in a bird watching guide.

 

If you or an aging loved one are considering Elder Care in Waxhaw, NC, please call the professional staff at Caring at Heart today at (704) 379-7510. Serving Charlotte, Statesville, Ballantyne, Mooresville, Huntersville, Matthews, Concord, Gastonia, Pineville and Indian Trail.

 

Caring for Seniors with ALS

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Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or ALS is a neurodegenerative disease that affects the spine and brain and how they control the muscles in the body. Most people develop ALS between the 40 and 70 years old, with most cases appearing in the elderly. Caring for an elderly adult with ALS can be an enormous challenge for family caregivers, especially if the senior has other health issues.

 

There are many factors that contribute to the type of care a family caregiver can provide for an aging relative with ALS. It helps to be familiar with the stages of this serious disease and the associated symptoms. This can help family caregivers focus on the type of care their aging loved ones need. Some seniors may take many years to go through the symptoms while others only take months. Regardless of the progress of this incurable disease, family caregivers have a lot to learn about properly caring for an elderly relative with ALS.

 

Early Stages of ALS in Seniors

Home Care Indian Trail NC Seniors with ALS

Home Care Indian Trail NC Seniors with ALS

The early stages of ALS include several symptoms that range from mild to more moderate. Symptoms include muscle weakness, clumsiness, slurring the words, problems with swallowing, fatigue, balance issues, muscle cramps and muscle spasms. The symptoms may be barely distinguishable at first and then advance more rapidly.

When it comes to care during the early to moderate stages of ALS, family caregivers need to build a support group of doctors, physical therapists, respiratory therapists and home care providers. The aging adult with ALS will need help with daily tasks, especially when it comes to self-care and home care. Family caregivers and home care providers can take on a lot of the assistive duties like bathing, dressing, grooming, meal preparation and laundry. Seniors may need to use walkers, canes and even wheelchairs as family caregivers look to adapt the home environment for ALS.

 

Late Stages of MLS

As the elderly adult’s range of motion diminishes with ALS, they will need round-the-clock care. The senior may lose the ability to swallow on their own, resulting in a feeding tube. At this point, most aging adults with ALS will need a wheelchair and they will be dealing with muscle paralysis in various parts of the body.

Family caregivers will need to enlist the support of home care providers more than ever, as elderly relatives will need help both day and night. Seniors can boost their quality of life with adaptive tools to help with eating, writing and communicating, plus transfer lift chairs, shower chairs and more. Aging adults with ALS will certainly need 24-hour help with bathing, toileting, dressing and many other daily tasks.

 

With ALS, there is no cure and the disease eventually make it impossible for aging adults to live without constant care. Family caregivers can make an enormous difference in the physical care and positive mental health of their aging loved ones with ALS.

If you or an aging loved one are considering Home Care in Indian Trail, NC, please call the professional staff at Caring at Heart today at (704) 379-7510. Serving Charlotte, Statesville, Ballantyne, Mooresville, Huntersville, Matthews, Concord, Gastonia, Pineville and Indian Trail.

It’s Never Too Late for Seniors to Quit Smoking

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Christy’s elderly uncle received some bad news from his doctor during the latest checkup. His doctor pointed out the uncle’s rising blood pressure, reduced lung capacity and his recent nasty bout of pneumonia. The doctor warned Christy’s uncle that many of those conditions were most likely complicated by his lifelong smoking habit. She encouraged Christy and her uncle to seriously think about enrolling him in a “quit smoking” program.

 

However, Christy wondered if there would truly be any health benefits for her uncle to quit smoking so late in life. The doctor assured her that seniors are never too old to benefit from quitting smoking.

 

It’s a mistake to believe that because an elderly person has been smoking all their lives that their health would not benefit from quitting. Health and wellness experts agree that quitting smoking results in significant health benefits, even for those who have smoked for decades. Seniors are especially susceptible to all the harm that smoking does to the body. Family caregivers should seriously consider working with their aging loved one to quit smoking.

 

Health Benefits of Quitting Smoking

Elderly Care Concord NC Seniors and Smoking

Elderly Care Concord NC Seniors and Smoking

Studies show that within just a few days of smoking that the body starts to respond positively. Soon, blood pressure lowers, and the blood stream carries more oxygen because the lungs let more in. After several weeks, a person’s sense of smell improves, as does their sense of taste. Seniors should also notice an improvement to the health of their hair, skin and teeth. When a person quits smoking, they greatly lower their risk of a stroke and a heart attack.

 

Seniors May Struggle with Quitting

Millions of seniors took up smoking in their youth, well before a lot of the modern studies were done on its impact on health. Even though millions of people have either decided not to smoke or have quit smoking over the years, many elderly adults find it extremely difficult to break a decades-long habit. Aging adults who are dependent on family caregivers, elderly care providers, and friends will need their support to quit smoking.

 

Tips on Quitting Smoking for Seniors

It’s extremely hard to quit smoking, but the health benefits are well worth it. Even elderly adults can see improvements in their health and wellness when they leave smoking behind. With help from family caregivers and elderly care providers, seniors can successfully stop the habit. The first thing they need to do is come up with an alternative activity to smoking, such as chewing gum, eating hard candy or a healthy snack. Keeping their hands busy is another effective method for breaking the habit. Chemical help for quitting, such as nicotine gum and patches, are the key to successfully quitting smoking.

 

Any seniors who are interesting in quitting smoking certainly won’t be able to do it alone. When they are surrounded with support from family caregivers, friends and elderly care providers, they have the best chance to improve their health and drop a dangerous habit once and for all.

 

If you or an aging loved one are considering Elderly Care in Concord NC, please call the professional staff at Caring at Heart today at (704) 379-7510. Serving Charlotte, Statesville, Ballantyne, Mooresville, Huntersville, Matthews, Concord, Gastonia, Pineville and Indian Trail. 

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