Mental Health:
Suicide among older adults is an often overlooked, public health concern. While conversations about mental health have become a lot more common and less stigmatized than in the past, the focus is frequently on younger generations, leaving older adults by themselves in the previous mindset of mental struggles being better left unspoken. Understanding the unique challenges faced by older adults is crucial in addressing this silent crisis and ensuring that those at risk receive the support and care they need.
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Mental illness represents a wide array of conditions that affect a person’s thinking, feelings, or mood. Mental illness may affect one’s ability to think rationally and exercise control, which makes it challenging to care for oneself on a daily basis.
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Mental illness encompasses various conditions affecting one's thoughts, feelings, and mood, making daily self-care challenging. Unfortunately, stereotypes often hinder conversations about mental health in older adults, leading to misunderstandings.
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Our mental health is a crucial part of our well-being. It is made up of many component parts and it can also be impacted by a number of factors including living environment, stress, coping with challenges, and disease. Our bodies and minds are intimately connected and so our diet, exercise, social engagement, passion and creativity, all play a role in our overall well-being. It is crucial to be empowered advocates for the mental health of ourselves and others as we age.
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Whether through full-time homecare, regular doctor visits, or long distance care, caregiving has become an all-encompassing part of all our lives. As our caregiving intensifies, so too do our stress levels, when we must juggle family, work, and our loved one in need, all in the same day.
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“Depression in elderly people is a widespread and serious public health concern,” according to the National Institute of Mental Health. It has been estimated that 15% of older Americans experience depression at some point in their golden years. In nursing homes, around 20% of the residents are depressed, especially those living with a serious medical condition, like cancer or heart disease.
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Caregivers love to help people. It is a good feeling to comfort and give aid to someone in need. This support can also take its toll. There is a great responsibility and at times a burden that is felt in the caregiver role. It is important to find a way to express and channel the frustration that naturally occurs in helping relationships over time.
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Be kind to your heart and health and turn off the news, doctors say.
Northwestern University experts suggest checking in on current events a couple of times a day and no more. Constant updates can fuel anxiety and depression, they warn.
"As a practicing preventive cardiologist, one of the most common risk factors for heart disease that I am seeing this year is stress," said Dr. Sadiya Khan, assistant professor of cardiology and epidemiology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. "I know we can all agree it has been an extremely stressful year for all in every aspect of our lives, including stress related to the pandemic and associated health, financial and political events."
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Loneliness, particularly among folks under shelter-in-place orders, is a growing issue for Americans during the coronavirus pandemic, new research finds.
More people report they are feeling lonely, depressed and even harboring thoughts of suicide as COVID-19 cases in the United States soar. And those who are chafing under lockdown or other stay-at-home restrictions appear to be at the greatest risk, according to a research letter published in the December issue of the journal Psychiatry Research.
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The loss of loved ones can hit the elderly particularly hard, but a new study suggests it's anger, and not sadness, that may damage the aging body more.
Anger can increase inflammation, which is linked with conditions such as heart disease, cancer and arthritis, the researchers said.
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This action is much easier to say than to do. Many people get the holiday blues, especially older adults. Seniors are more likely to have just lost a loved one, or have learned about bad health news than their younger counterparts. The holiday season can trigger memories of loved ones who have passed away.
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If your loved one has dementia, chances are good that they are not getting a good night’s sleep. Your loved one’s sleep habits may have gone topsy-turvy with the dementia keeping him from knowing the difference between night and day. These interruptions may mean that your loved one is napping throughout the day and night.
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Depression is not a normal part of aging. As a caregiver, you should understand this. Your older adult’s station in life has changed. He or she may be slowing down, but that does not mean the depression he or she feels is part of the aging process. Depression, in and of itself, is not easy for the layman to diagnose, and in most cases, older adults who have depression are not receiving the attention that they need.
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Family travel can be a joy or a big headache. Matters become even more complicated when you add a family member with dementia into the plans.
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Although your loved one is suffering from dementia, you want to keep as much of his or her life the same as possible. For many people, this includes watching television during their free time.
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You’re concerned about your aging parent. The last time you went to the house, it was a disastrous mess! But how do you know if your loved one is just messy, is having trouble keeping the house clean because of physical limitations, or has a hoarding problem?
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Many people think that the solution to hoarding is easy: Just go into the home and clean everything up. But, if your loved one is a hoarder, you know it’s not that simple.
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Living with and/or caring for a person with dementia is not easy. Your loved one suffering from memory disorders (including Alzheimer’s disease) may experience irritability, restlessness, and explosive behavior – or agitation.
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There may come a day when your loved one – perhaps a parent – will need to downsize, either due to health or because they desire hassle free living. Moving is stressful for anyone, and for older adults the need to downsize can symbolize one of the last stages of their life. Caregivers need to be patient and understanding during this transition
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Everyone knows that physical exercise is important to keep the body healthy and strong. Did you know that your brain also benefits from exercise, too? Keeping your brain active and alert is a must as you transition into older adulthood.
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Busy midlife adults who care for older relatives and look after the needs of their own families while holding down full-time jobs often find themselves experiencing short-term memory lapses. They can't remember where they parked the car at the mall, what they did with the car keys, why they forgot to pay last month's electric bill, and who was the nice man who said "Hi" at the supermarket?
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As parents grow older, you and other family members may notice that he or she is becoming increasingly forgetful. Your mother has difficulty remembering how to use the stove or follow her favorite recipes and your once-sociable father no longer recognizes you or the friends he has known for years.
Such behaviors are common signs of memory disorders. As the disease progresses memory loss turns decision-making, bill paying -- even following simple directions for preparing a meal -- into complicated tasks for people with the disorder.
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Wandering is common in older adults with memory disorders like Alzheimer's. More than half of all wanderers are likely to become lost whether they live with their families or in nursing homes, according to the Alzheimer's Association. It's essential for families to understand why their parent wanders and what precautions they can take to prevent wandering and ensure his or her safety.
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Everybody loves a good story – especially stories about their own family and its history. Some of the very best tellers of tales are your family's senior generation. People with memory problems or chronic illnesses are often very capable of remembering and sharing stories about the good old days. With a little prodding senior relatives can regale younger generations with yarns about growing up during the Depression, serving in the military during wartime, traveling by train instead of a plane, immigrating to a new country, and other memories of their younger days.
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If you're a caregiver for a family member with a memory disorder like Alzheimer's disease your to-do lists are too long and the days are too short to finish all your chores. You often misplace your car keys. You forget to buy milk, leave the sheets in the dryer for a week and can't remember the name of your family member's doctor. You start to wonder if YOUR memory is failing too!
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Caring for a person with Alzheimer's disease or other memory disorder at home can be a rewarding experience for you and your parent. But tending to the needs of someone with a memory disorder can be stressful for even the most devoted care provider – especially as the disease progresses.
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People with Alzheimer's disease and other memory disorders often have trouble communicating and understanding what other people are saying to them. As the disorder progresses the person's ability to communicate gets worse.
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It's not uncommon to feel down or discouraged when you are caring for an older family member. Continuing feelings of emptiness, worthlessness or sadness may be signs of something more serious --depression. Depression is a serious illness. However it can be treated successfully.
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