Caregivers in Stuart FL
Dementia behaviors such as aggression, wandering, and agitation can be extremely troubling for you to deal with as a family caregiver. If you're not careful, your elderly loved one's meltdown can even lead to you feeling that you're about to melt down, too. Learning how to manage these situations can help both you and your elderly loved one to have a much better caregiving experience.Learn to Look at the Behavior as a Smaller Part of a Bigger Situation It's tempting to look at each challenging behavior as an individual incident that you have to manage on its own. Most often, however, those individual behaviors are part of a larger situation. If you can start to accept that, you can learn what your loved one's triggers and signs are so that you can help to resolve situations before they become challenging. It's very rare for your elderly loved one to react when there isn't another cause behind the action. Finding that cause can sometimes feel difficult, though.
Learn to Pay Particular Attention and Take Notes if You Need To As your elderly loved one's behaviors ramp up, ask yourself what has changed in her environment. If she's hot, cold, hungry, tired, or otherwise in need, that can play a big part in what's going on. Even having too much attention or being irritated emotionally can factor in. If you can start to keep a journal of sorts, you can start noticing different triggers as they crop up. Eventually, by going back over your notes periodically, you can start to notice triggers and potential triggers.
Choose Your Attitude The most important thing for you during these trying times is to remember that you can choose your attitude. This isn't always easy, of course, but it's essential. Remember also that your elderly loved one is likely to pick up on your mood, whether it's a good one or a bad one. Make a conscious choice every day to approach every day and every situation with the most positive attitude that you can. If you have trouble with this part, look for ways to help yourself choose a better attitude. You might need to take more time away, get your own self-care plan underway, or talk to a therapist or counselor that you trust. Taking the time to understand your elderly loved one's triggers behind challenging behaviors can help you to learn how to keep them in check or avoid them altogether. Source http://www.alz.org/care/alzheimers-dementia-stages-behaviors.asp
If you or an aging loved one are considering caregivers in Stuart, FL, contact the caring staff at BrightStar Care of Jupiter. Call today (561) 741-1200.