<!–[CDATA[If you are a caregiver for a senior loved one, you know how tough it can be to keep all of their medical information and appointments organized. It is even more difficult when multiple family members are involved in the senior’s care.

Updating changes in medications, tracking new symptoms to review with a physician, and arranging transportation to appointments can be time consuming. For a busy caregiver, it’s time you often lack.

Fortunately, technology offers families some comprehensive and inexpensive solutions. Many can be accessed and updated with a few clicks on your smart phone or tablet.

Helpful Apps for Caregivers

As is true of many things today, there is an app for almost every task you need to complete and that includes caregiving duties. Here are a few apps that are popular with people caring for a senior loved one:

• Care Zone: Available for both iPhones and Androids, Care Zone makes it easy for family caregivers to store and save important health information. You can maintain a list of medications and receive automated medication reminders.
• Lotsa Helping Hands: This free platform can be a lifesaver when a variety of people are involved in a senior’s care. You can set up and share calendars with those who follow the community you create. It also allows people to volunteer for everything from providing a meal to covering transportation.
• Caring Village: Another great app for organizing and sharing a senior’s health-related information is Caring Village. The dashboard and mobile app store documents, care plans, and daily “to do” lists.

Another struggle family caregivers grapple with is how to safely manage medications. This can be especially true for older adults who live alone. Fortunately, there are tech solutions for that challenge too.

Technology to Help Manage a Senior’s Medication Schedule

Here are a few products to explore if you are trying to help an older loved one manage their medications safely:

• MyMeds: This comprehensive med-management system promotes itself as being a real-time conduit between patients, providers, and physicians. One important benefit is that patients can download their med list and set up dosage reminders.
• MedMinder: These electronic pill dispensers work off of wireless technology. Depending on the model you select, these dispensers can do everything from unlock the compartment with the timed dosage to alert a family member if a medication is missed.

There are additional tech products to make caregiving—especially long -distance caregiving—easier. They include whole-house monitoring, video chat, and life-alert systems to call for help. Each one is designed to make the role of caregiver a little more manageable.

Hands-On Caregiving

At Five Star Senior Living communities, we use a variety of methods to help each resident live their best quality of life. They range from the latest technology to hands-on support from experienced caregivers. Call the community nearest you to learn more and to schedule a private tour!

The word “caregiver” has many connotations. Hearing the word, we may think of the parent or guardian of a young child. Someone caring for an aging parent. An older person caring for their spouse. Or even a paid caregiver, a home health aide, or a babysitter.

These answers are all correct.

But who are caregivers, really? What are their concerns and challenges? And how can we best help them?

A Glimpse at Our Nation’s Caregivers

The Caregiving in the U.S. report, a survey put together by the National Caregivers Alliance and the AARP, provides insight into caregiver demographics, duties, and challenges.

The statistics about who our nation’s caregivers really are may surprise you.

• The “average” caregiver, as one might expect, is a woman, age 49, caring for an older relative.
• Just 40 percent of caregivers are male.
• Nearly 25 percent of all caregivers are between the ages of 18 and 34.
• The average caregiver spends 24.4 hours a week providing care, making them a “higher hour” caregiver.
• 23 percent of caregivers provide 41+ hours of care per week.

Financial Challenges of Caregivers

The average household income for a caregiver is just $47,500. This doesn’t leave much room in the budget for paid time off related to caregiving or to hire outside help to assist with services such as delivered meals, transportation, in-home health services or respite care.

Emotional Challenges

In addition to the financial strain of caregiving, 46 percent of caregivers who provide more than 21 hours per week of unpaid care report experiencing emotional stress as a result of their duties.

And many don’t see an end in sight. Most have been caring for their loved one an average of 4.5 years, and predict they will be doing so for at least five years more. 

For caregivers in danger of experiencing burn-out, it could be worthwhile to consider respite care to get a break for a week or two. Or consider taking advantage of adult day programs, even if only for a few hours a week.

Providing Nursing Care for Loved Ones

Six in 10 higher hour caregivers report performing medical or nursing care duties without instruction or training, and 20 percent of those say they find it difficult to do.
Are You a Caregiver Who Needs a Break?

Would your loved ones needs be met in an assisted living community? Five Star Senior Living provides a variety of services ranging from respite care to assisted living and memory care. If you’re a caregiver in danger of burn-out, National Family Caregiver Month may be the time to consider your options for senior care. 

July is Sandwich Generation Month. This term was coined to describe those caring for their own children as well as their parents. The Sandwich Generation is primarily made up of folks between the ages of 40 – 59.

Caring for your parents and children simultaneously can create a serious financial strain in many households. Indiana families who find themselves in this situation may be forced to make cutbacks in many areas. Even when aging parents tried hard to prepare for retirement, a serious illness or chronic health condition can result in care expenses that exceed their savings.

Adult children providing care for their parents can expect to pay several thousand dollars per year. Expenses like medication, transportation, and groceries can add up quickly. These costs may prevent you from adequately saving for your own retirement or finishing your children’s college education if you are not careful.

Take Initiative

The best way to mitigate the financial stress caregiving creates is to plan ahead. Caring for your children and parents will likely require a strict budget. Meeting with a financial planner can help put you on the right track.

If your adult children have moved back in with you, consider charging them rent. Most parents don’t relish this idea, but financial boundaries are essential. You are all trying to get through this together.

Take Advantage of Tax Breaks

Speaking with a Certified Public Accountant can also help. Remember these costs add up before you know it. Knowing the ins and outs of the relevant tax code will serve you well.

If you’re paying for a significant portion of your mom or dad’s care, you may be able to claim to them as a dependent. That might allow you to claim them as a dependent on your income taxes or open a flexible savings account for their expenses through your employer-paid health insurance. Renovating your home for accessibility can also be tax deductible.

Five Star Value

If you’re living in the Hoosier state and thinking about assisted living options for your parents, come see what Five Star Senior Living has to offer. We have 16 communities in Indiana to help older adults stay close to their loved ones.

At Five Star Senior Living communities in Indiana, we know the importance of value to our residents and their families. Our fee-for-service model allows you to for only the care and services they need.

As parents age, their adult children face many challenges. Some of which can be financial. Research shows older adults may be more susceptible to financial scam artists.  Additionally, older adults may be more susceptible to financial scam artists.  Additionally, older adults may be living on a fixed income and have concerns about how to pay for everyday expenses plus medical expenses.

Adult children might need to take on the responsibility of managing an older loved one’s finances–or at least helping out. Especially if an aging parent is considering a move to senior living and wondering if it’s the right financial choice.

These tips can help ease older adults into the idea of having a family take over some of the responsibility for the senior’s finances.

Tips for Helping a Senior Loved One with their Finances

1. Start with a conversation—or several
Your older loved one may have difficulties managing finances due to physical impairments, such as vision loss or arthritis. Or they may have cognitive difficulties due to a condition like Alzheimer’s.
If you feel your loved one is struggling—ask. Many will readily admit to challenges and want you to help them manage finances in whole or in part. They may not have wanted to ask because they think you are already too busy.

2. Assess the situation
If your aging loved one insists they don’t need help, investigate.

• Do you see unopened bills lying around?
• Does your loved one receive phone calls from “unidentified” phone numbers, often indicative of bill collectors?
• Does the checkbook seem to be up-to-date? Have there been any unexplained large withdrawals?
• Can your loved one explain most of the transactions in the checkbook? 

If you see any of the above signs, have another conversation to discuss ways you can help your loved one gain control of their finances.

3. Create a plan to help
Once you determine how much assistance your loved one needs, find the best, least intrusive way to provide it. Your goal should be to help your loved one continue to feel independent and competent while ensuring sound financial management.

An older loved one with arthritis might need something as simple as automatic bill pay to eliminate writing checks. Or your loved one may be okay managing day-to-day finances but need help with investments or financial planning.

If your loved one has Alzheimer’s, you might need to take a more active role. People with this disease often have impaired judgment which puts them at higher risk for fraud or theft. You can become an authorized signer on financial accounts in order to keep an eye on funds and assist with money management or become a joint account holder to maintain greater financial control.

In extreme situations where your loved one is unable to manage finances at all, you can file for financial durable power of attorney. This will give you the authority to manage your loved one’s finances for them.

When It’s Time for “The Talk”

Talking about money with your aging loved one may not be easy, but it is necessary. Even if you determine your loved one can still manage money—for now—it’s important to have a plan in place for when the time comes that he or she can’t.

It’s especially essential that you talk about today’s most common financial scams targeting older adults to prevent your loved one from becoming a victim.

<!–[CDATA[Are you juggling caring for an aging parent with caring for young children? If you feel pulled in many directions, you’re not alone. Research from the Pew Research Center revealed that 1 out of every 8 Americans between the ages of 40 and 60 is raising a child while caring for a parent. We call them Sandwich Generation caregivers.

22 million Americans struggle every day to balance these two caregiving roles. Many do so in addition to working at least part-time outside the home. While you do your best to make things work, there’s no denying a day in the life of a member of Sandwich Generation can be stressful.

What can you do to successfully manage all these responsibilities?

We have a few tips to help.

Survival Tips for Sandwich Generation Caregivers

1. Manage Your Expectations: This can be a difficult one for caregivers to do, but it is important to try. Accepting that you cannot be everything to everyone is the best way to set more realistic expectations for yourself. You might have to turn an annual Memorial Day party in to a potluck and ask everyone to pitch in. Or buy cookies from a local bakery instead of making them yourself for the church Mother’s Day brunch. Be kind to yourself and acknowledge that a few short-term changes are necessary right now.
2. Ask for and Accept Help: Adult children often believe it is their obligation to handle all their aging parents’ needs independently. While it is a noble goal, it isn’t a very realistic one.

   When friends and family offer to run an errand or pitch in to help, accept their offer. It will allow you to stay healthy and family and friends will feel as if they are doing something meaningful to support you.

   If you don’t have anyone close to you who can help out, there are other avenues for support available. Contact your local Area Agency on Aging to see if they know of respite services or call your church to find out if there is a volunteer-based friendly visitor program. Assisted living communities also offer short-term respite stays that benefit both the senior and the caregiver.

3. Get Organized: The sheer volume of paperwork you are likely coping with from juggling your children’s needs with those of an aging parent is no doubt overwhelming.

   One of the best ways to feel more in control of your many responsibilities is to take time out to get organized. It might be by setting up a “Command Center” in your kitchen where everyone’s schedules are written on one large calendar or by taking advantage of mobile apps and online scheduling systems. Feeling confident that you are on top of the day’s events can help reduce your level of stress.

4. Take Care of You: Too often sandwich caregivers put their own health last. They skip routine health screenings and let a healthy diet and exercise program slide. Over time it can put you at risk for problems like heart disease, depression, and diabetes. That’s why it’s essential to tend to your own physical and mental health. Remind yourself that if you don’t take care of yourself, you won’t be able to care for everyone who is depending on you.

We hope these tips help you care for your parents, your children, and yourself as you navigate your way through the Sandwich Generation years.

Once you’ve become a long-distance caregiver, you’ll face many tasks. These include managing your loved one’s medical care and emotional well-being, as well as ensuring that daily and weekly tasks. From personal hygiene to grocery shopping and housework, you will be responsible for getting everything done. And all this while you’re miles away!

Tips for Caregiver Success Long Distance

These five survival tips for a long distance family caregiver can help you maintain your sanity while ensuring your aging loved one receives the best care.

1. Create a filing system to organize all the information you need.
A big aspect of being a family caregiver is simply sifting through, sorting, and organizing important information your loved one will need to receive the best care.

Organize your parent’s medical information, legal documents, and financial papers in a filing system. If they are missing documents, such as a last will and testament, living will, or power of attorney forms, speak to an elder care attorney.

Make sure to communicate with siblings, caregivers, or others you trust about where they can find this information in case of an emergency. 

2. Educate yourself about the resources available.
Being a long-distance caregiver may seem like a daunting task, but resources are available to assist. The Aging Life Care Association, for instance, can help connect you with geriatric care managers, elder law attorneys, and others who can guide you on your journey as a long-distance caregiver.

3. Build a long-distance network of helpers.
Use the telephone, Skype, or even weekend trips to get to know people in your loved one’s neighborhood. From landscapers to doctors, you’ll want to find professionals you can trust to help your parent. This may even include a neighbor who checks in on your parent once a day. It might also mean visiting senior living communities that offer respite care services.

4. Leverage technology to help manage your parent’s care.
Although being a long-distance caregiver isn’t easy, today’s technology can ease some of the burden. Consider GPS jewelry that displays your loved one’s whereabouts on your smartphone. Or smart house technologies that you to monitor your senior loved one from your computer or mobile device.

Medication apps for mobile devices can alert your loved one when it is time to take a dosage. And a smart pill bottle can send a message to the pharmacist when it’s time to renew the prescription.

5. Set realistic expectations.
As a long-distance caregiver it’s important to remember you can’t do it all. Maybe you’d like to visit once a month, but quarterly visits are more practical. With your support network and technology in place to help, it’s easier to be realistic about what you can accomplish from a distance.

Don’t worry that you can’t do it all yourself. Just do what you can to ensure it’s all getting done.

Accept Help and Support
Don’t be afraid to seek support for yourself. This could take the form of a group of caregivers in similar situations, friends willing to lend an ear, or an online support group. After all, you’re working hard to make sure your parent is in the best hands. You deserve the same consideration.

<!–[CDATA[The responsibility of providing care can be challenging no matter how resilient you are. Being responsible for a senior loved one’s well-being can lead to increased agitation and worry. Research shows that anxiety can take a toll on a caregiver’s health and wellness, both mentally and physically.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 29 percent of family caregivers say they have a tough time managing their anxious feelings. Finding healthy ways to reduce anxiety levels is important for both the care provider and their loved one.

Five Tips for Managing Caregiver Anxiety

1. Ask for and accept help

We start with this suggestion because it is so important. Family caregivers often feel duty bound to handle all of their loved one’s needs on their own. While it is a noble goal, it isn’t a very realistic one.

Enlist the support of friends, relatives, and even professional in-home care providers. They can supplement the work you’re doing. Think about what tasks you need help with and who you can turn to for assistance. 

2. Practice healthy self-care

It might feel indulgent to worry about yourself when a senior loved one’s health is declining. The truth is, by practicing good self-care you will be a better caregiver.

That means making time for exercise most days of the week, getting eight hours of sleep each night, and eating a well-balanced diet. It also means nurturing the spirit. This could include enjoying a laugh with friends, meditating every morning, or taking daily nature walks at a local park.

3. Manage your expectations

Instead of having unrealistic expectations, make your goals more reasonable. This applies to your caregiving, your job, and your family. For example, an immaculate house might be nice, but it isn’t realistic when you are juggling so many roles. Remember that balance is important.

Along these same lines is practicing positive self-talk. Don’t beat yourself up over small, unimportant issues. Instead, focus on what you have accomplished and the difference you are making in the life of your senior loved one.

4. Get and stay organized

Feeling disorganized when you are so busy can cause more anxiety. It can leave a caregiver with the nagging feeling that they are going to forget an appointment, neglect to refill a medication, or fail to follow-up on another important task.

Take time to get organized. Create a binder of the senior’s important medical information. Find a smart phone app to help you plan your time and stay on track. When you feel organized and in control of your schedule, you’ll likely find your anxiety drops.

5. Learn from fellow caregivers

Connecting with fellow caregivers is another way to manage your anxious feelings. You’ll probably find it comforting to know that others are suffering from the same self-doubts and fears you are.

Networking with your peers might also help you pick up tips about managing issues such as insomnia, transportation, and nutrition. Caregivers often find it easier to join an online support group when the days are already busy.

Respite Care at Five Star Senior Living

No two caregivers are alike when it comes to managing anxiety. What works for one, might not work for you. Sometimes what a busy caregiver really needs is time to rest and restore their sense of well-being.

Short-term respite care at a Five Star Senior Living community might be an ideal solution. Your loved one can stay with us for a few days or weeks while you take a break. Call us at (853) 457-8271 to learn more!