There are many wonderful parts of aging that are often under-discussed – the fact that you live with no pretense or the desire to impress anyone, being surer of yourself, having the wisdom of the years behind you, and knowing what really matters in life, like family.
However, it’s true there are downsides, of course. We need not list them here, but the one of note is that health conditions become more common and likely. It’s not unusual for an elderly individual, even with a healthy life behind them, to have one or two conditions that need management. Thankfully, medicines and healthcare appointments exist to keep them on the right track.
It also helps to provide some love and care as their younger relatives. It’s what we would hope for ourselves after all, and so soothing their daily experience can count for a great deal. But what principles can help you in this duty, especially if you have children and a full working life to manage?
Well, let’s explore that.
Medication Management
Keeping track of someone’s meds isn’t hard because the task itself is complicated (even with a fair amount of prescriptions) it’s more that it never really stops, and because of how important it is. If your elderly relative has trouble with their need to to check or reorder or double-check, and if you’re juggling work and kids on top of that, it can be tough. But before you notice pills running low, and want to avoid realizing they missed a dose because the old bottle didn’t have one of those pop-up reminders, there are some measures you can use.
Some people use alarms on their phone, or you may just tape a note to the fridge and go from there. Weekly pill boxes can be helpful too, especially the ones with big writing that show what’s been taken and what hasn’t.
Device Upkeep & Repair
If a device they rely on stops working, it slows everything else down, and you can usually tell something’s off before they even mention it. That might include a hearing aid that’s started to buzz or lose clarity, which can cause a bit of quiet withdrawal, which can happen without anyone really noticing until someone points it out.
Hearing aid repair, or making sure you go for maintenance checks of the device in question, can help. In this case it might be a blocked tube or the battery running low, and a quick clean or part swap sorts it. There are also services that can check the device without needing a full in-person appointment, which helps if getting out is tricky. It’s worth checking every so often, even if they haven’t said anything.
Routine Scheduling & Management
Most people like knowing what their week looks like no matter their age or health, and it doesn’t have to be rigid, just enough structure that there aren’t surprises. But when we’re elderly we care about that more, such as having a repeated morning walk for exercise, lunch at the same time most days, or going for chekups.
Helping them with this can help, like such as swinging by the pharmacy on the way back from a check-up or booking appointments close together to save an extra trip later in the week. And if you can’t make it one day, asking a friend or relative to step in can help. But assisting you relative is very worthwhile in this matter.
