“I’m telling you, there is a dog in my closet! I hear it growling the whole night long. We’ve got to find its owner!”
Hearing an older loved one voice anxieties similar to this that you are aware to be false is unsettling – however, not unusual. Your very first reaction may well be to try and rationalize with the individual with a response such as, “Nonsense! There’s no way a dog might have gotten into the closet!” Nevertheless, for many reasons, this can be the least effective strategy to manage paranoia symptoms in the senior population.
Instead, at JFS Care, we highly recommend the following tactics to help bring back a sense of peacefulness and well-being:
- To begin with, arrange for a physical with the senior’s health care provider. It is imperative that you uncover any cognitive impairment in order to be certain he or she receives appropriate treatment if required. There also might be prescription medication side-effects occurring.
- Find out the thinking associated with the paranoia symptoms, and subsequently figure out how to eliminate the issue. As an example, the heating vent in the closet could be loose, or an air vent might be blowing onto a row of hangers and making a strange noise.
- In place of wanting to correct the senior loved one, react lovingly with assurance and compassion. Concentrate on acknowledging the feelings being expressed, as well as on having the individual know that you are there to assist. Accompanying a senior loved one into another area and creating enjoyable diversions, such as listening to music, baking, gardening, or browsing through photos together, can really help restore calm.
- One of the most effective ways to get over any challenge is finding out what has helped others in a comparable situation. Consider becoming a member of an in-person or online community of family caregivers, making it possible for the exchange of helpful guidance and information. A variety of choices are available, such as AgingCare.com’s caregiver online community.
- Search out the support of a knowledgeable in-home care provider, such as the Los Angeles, CA home care team at JFS Care. Our caregivers are adept at assisting older adults in remaining active and involved, as well as helping to ease challenging and difficult behaviors. Working with a reliable caregiver also will provide you with much-needed respite to take a break from caregiving duties while knowing your loved one is benefiting from top quality care.
For more recommendations on assisting your parent through struggles with growing older, dementia or chronic illness, reach out to the Los Angeles senior care experts at JFS Care. We are always readily available to answer any questions, share resources specific to the challenges you are facing, and to provide a complimentary in-home consultation and development of a customized care plan to improve quality of life for an older adult. Reach out to us any time at (213) 383-2273.