There are big challenges coming our way over the next ten to fifteen years as our population continues to age, live longer, and ultimately die. Demands for care will grow exponentially, hospitals will not be able to cope, and publicly funded care homes will house only those with the most complex care needs. Those who are healthier will need to fend for themselves either in expensive private care homes or live with family.
Last week you read article one A Weekend Visit Ain’t 24/7.
This week, the second article is below:
Sometimes Our Loved Ones Bad Behavior Shows Up When Others Don’t
Clearly one-third of our younger generations will be caring for both their children and their ageing parents and we are seeing the early signs now as health ministries begin to adjust their service strategies from hospital and care home based to staying in the family home.
Our family-sourced care providers will need to learn new skills in order to avoid the very real possibility of caregiver burnout. One of these skills is clear communication. This is especially true when family members outside the home of care need to understand the challenging behavior their ageing elder displays.
Often times poor behavior shows up when our ageing family member is fatigued usually at the end of the day and often in the evenings. Also, it is true that we tend to lash out at those we trust most. This can be especially true with a family member whose world is collapsing around them and they are limited contact wise to a specific family member giving them care 24/7.
When it is daytime and family is around for a family visit it feels like life has gotten back to normal and often times our ageing family member relaxes into the ‘normal’ feeling and their ‘bad’ behavior recedes into the distant background. So when family is around they may not get to experience what the primary caregiver witnesses when no one else is around.
This apparent difference in behavior can cause conflict within the family. The primary care provider sees and experiences it first hand when others aren’t present. Those that don’t witness the bad behavior and love their ageing family member may have a hard time accepting that they could behave poorly.
A simple solution is to have a family member join you for a weekend in giving care to your loved one. When one other family member sees the behavior the conflict will begin to resolve.
Read the previous post: Caregiver Burnout-It’s A Very Real Issue! Part 1
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