The reluctance of some older people to be cared for is a
fairly common situation. Coping with the changes that occur with age is a slow
process that involves major transformations in the older adult's life and
requires patience and understanding. That initial refusal to receive help,
either from the family or from a professional caregiver, does not have to be a
final decision if you know how to redirect the situation. Bellow, David
Berkowitz from the Chicago-based Nursing Home Aperion Care, will tell you how to
approach the care of the elderly.
Analyze the reasons: why don’t they accept help?
Although aging does not have to be synonymous with the loss
of autonomy, the passage of time always takes its toll. As the years go by, our
elders find themselves with some limitations that, however small, were not part
of their day to day before. Assuming these changes are not always easy, is all
the more reason why having professional support offers great advantages.
However, it is common for older people to refuse to be cared
for. It is a situation that is repeated more frequently, especially in those
early stages of aging, when family members begin to consider the advisability
of using a home caregiver or a nursing home to guarantee the assistance they
need.
Bringing a stranger into the home raises many doubts,
especially among elderly people who have spent their entire lives enjoying
their independence and privacy. However, it is not just a question of trust.
Resorting to home care is, for many older adults, assuming their inability to
continue leading the life they led.
In these new circumstances, there is also a certain fear of
rejection. "What if by becoming a burden I am going to lose the respect
and affection of my family?" Although this possibility is not contemplated
from the perspective of the relatives, the thoughts of the elderly person
sometimes take the form of these concerns that do not come to be expressed
openly and that end up causing great stress, explains nursing home owner David Berkowitz.
Before making any decision regarding the care of the elderly,
it is important to analyze all these factors, comment on them and convince them
that it is not a question of limiting their capacities but of promoting and
empowering them in a safe environment. Letting yourself be cared for is the
guarantee of a happy old age with quality of life.
Tips for Dealing with Older People Who Refuse Help
If the first step to make our family member change their
attitude is to understand her motives and fears, the next step is to take an
active position in the search for a change in attitude. What can we do when an
older person refuses care?
Solve the situation naturally. You should not turn your
family member's refusal into an added problem. According to David Berkowitz
from Aperion, it is always better to approach these circumstances from a
positive mindset and from the perspective of a change that is as natural as it
is necessary. This is not the time to be overprotective or to impose solutions.
It begins by raising the great advantages of having the help of a professional
in carrying out small day-to-day tasks, in the time that it would save and in
the activities in which it could invest it.
Go little by little. It is difficult for anyone to open the
doors of their home to a stranger. Our house is our refuge, an intimate and
personal space in which we feel comfortable. The introduction of the figure of
the caregiver in the life of the elderly has to be a progressive process. In
this regard, at Berkowitz Nursing Home we recommend that, if your family member
is reluctant to receive assistance, you convince him to try our home care
services by the hour. This contact with the caregiver and this mutual knowledge
will make him feel comfortable in a very short time, without his presence being
uncomfortable at home, but quite the opposite. Good company never hurts.
