By: Arthur Cooper
Submitted: 2010-11-02 09:07:45 | Word Count: 664
As seniors age, many changes happen to the body. Sometimes these changes are normal and can be dealt with quite easily, and sometimes a senior may need some help. Seniors who live independently may require in home elder care services.
Homecare services are beneficial to a senior that needs assistance in their daily lives. Assistance may include help with cooking, laundry, getting the mail, reading a book, adjusting in the bed, and may include home healthcare services such as toileting help, medication help, or incontinence assistance. There are many reasons that a senior may need home care services. Some seniors find it hard to talk about health problems they may be having. Talking with family members may be embarrassing, but talking with a healthcare professional may not be. If you think that your senior loved one needs additional care at home, look into an in home elder care service.
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Talking to your loved one about personal matters may be upsetting especially between a parent and a child. There are many talks we choose to avoid, but when it comes to your parents health, there are some things that should not be ignored. Usually bodily functions are hard to talk about, but having this discussion is normal for people who care about their senior loved one. Talking about incontinence can be upsetting for many elders and seniors, and having to talk about incontinence in general can be discouraging. But, as many families are close, this communication will help the overall well being of the senior.
You should not deny that your senior loved one may be incontinent. Although this is a common reaction, you cannot avoid the situation and may be inclined to get help for your aging parent or loved one. Therefore, the first step to helping a senior with incontinence is to deal with the fact that they are incontinent. Usually seniors do not have accidents on purpose, so you should never feel angry toward them for having an accident.
Talk about the problem and tell the senior that you know it is embarrassing and may be hard to deal with but your senior loved one will have to face the facts. You should then take the senior to the doctor if they havent been to a doctor regarding their incontinence. Sometimes medication can cause incontinence or it could be a sign of another infection in the body. For men, incontinence can mean an enlarged prostate. You will need to determine what is causing the incontinence in order to help make it lesser of a problem for both you and your loved one.
Clothes can be a struggle when a person needs to urinate. If clothes are too tough to take off to use the toilet, there may be an accident. Zippers, elastic pants, and Velcro are all great to have on pants for those with incontinence. Button fly pants are the hardest to take off quickly. You may also want to install handrails and grab bars near the toilet and in hallways to help the senior to the restroom quickly. A bedside toilet or urinal, or even a bedpan may be necessary for in the bedroom to use at night.
Setting up a toileting schedule will help regulating urination. When a person has a set time to use the toilet, it is easier for the body to regulate control patterns. If a person who has incontinence has a schedule for using the toilet, there will be less accidents. Usually, it helps to keep a log book of when the senior takes restroom breaks, so that you can make an appropriate toilet schedule for the senior. Avoiding fluids before bed will help prevent accidents during the night. You should cut down on fluids in the evening as much as possible without becoming dehydrated. Some foods and drinks with high acidity can be considered bladder irritants, and these should be avoided.
There are many incontinence products available to choose from including pants, briefs, underwear, moisturizers, and cleansers. Your senior loved one needs to remain dry to avoid getting sores on the skin, therefore it is necessary to have the proper products available. Home Healthcare professionals will help elderly seniors change their adult diapers, pants, and make sure that the senior is dry. If your senior loved one has incontinence, it may be time to look into in home elder care services.
