You may not believe it but your senior mom or dad can be struggling with depression. You may not realize their attitudes and mood have to do with chemical imbalances and you may not know how to help them. One of the best things you can think about for your aging loved one who wants to live at home is thinking about hiring home care. When your loved one ages in place with home care, it ensures someone is watching over them and helping them battle depression even when you are not around. Here is how to tell if your loved one is depressed and how home care may help them.
They Stop Caring
Sometimes this comes in many forms, they may stop caring about hobbies they once loved, their appearance, or they stop caring about friends and family. Home care can be there to help notice this sign of depression and can help encourage and remind a senior of the things they love. Sometimes a simple reminder is all a senior needs to snap out of it but sometimes it takes more than that. If home care is noticing multiple symptoms they can encourage your loved one to reach out to other families, therapists, and doctors to help. Depression can range from a few months to years and it is hard to battle alone.
Seniors May Become Irritable
If your loved one is usually happy and kind to everyone it can seem like a drastic change when they become angry and irritable. Home care may notice these changes over days, weeks, and months. Your loved one will need to talk to a doctor because they may need medication to help correct the chemical imbalance. It is normal for people to go through hard times, even seniors, but if this mood persists over weeks it can lead them to feeling more angry about how they are living.
They May Sleep Less or More
Sleeping patterns may change as seniors age but the truth is they should still be getting 7-8 hours of sleep. Anything more or way less can be a sign of depression. If all a senior does is sleep for hours on end it can be a sign that something is not right and they are suffering from depression. Home care can typically help a senior create routines that revolve around healthy sleeping patterns but it can be harder to stick to when a person is unhappy or depressed. Depression can lead to exhaustion which is hard to battle as a senior. Home care can help pay attention to sleeping patterns.
Thoughts of Suicide and Death
In very extreme cases a senior may start to think death is better than living and this is when a senior needs to seek extra help. They may need to go to therapy, group therapy, and talk to doctors. No senior should want death when they have years to live. Home care can help them maintain quality of life but a senior will also need treatments from doctors. This is not normal thinking and the thought patterns will need to change if they want to age in place.
If you or an aging loved one are considering Home Care in Tye, TX, please contact the caring staff at Clear Path Home Care today at (325) 244-0877
Clear Path Home Care provides compassionate, high-quality home care in Childress County, Cottle County, King County, Stonewall County, Fisher County, Nolan County, Hardeman County, Foard County, Knox County, Haskell County, Jones County, and Taylor County in Texas.
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