Putting off conversations about aging with your elderly family member doesn’t help her and it really doesn’t help you, either. These are conversations you need to have, even if you have to break them up over a few sessions.

Get Clear on What You Want to Say

It’s really important that if you’re ready to open up this conversation with your senior, you’re prepared. That means you need to know what you want to say and hopefully what solutions you want to suggest. This is a conversation that can get extremely emotional for both of you very quickly. Having a solid list of ideas about what you want to say can help you to stay on target.

Don’t Wander to Other Topics

Sometimes people deflect when they don’t want to talk about something. If your elderly family member frequently changes the subject when you want to talk about your concerns, make sure you don’t get derailed. Having some clarity about what you want to say can help a lot with this, but so can making sure that you gently steer the conversation back to where you left off.

Emphasize That You’re Concerned about Her

It’s possible that your senior could end up feeling picked on or singled out because of this talk. You may need to remind her more than once that this isn’t about making her feel bad, it’s about sharing your concerns and finding a happy resolution for anything that is a true problem. One way you can do this is to truly listen, especially if your senior is willing to talk about her concerns and her feelings.

Do Some Mental Role Switching

Again, this is a really difficult conversation to have with someone you love. If you find yourself feeling upset or afraid to talk about what you’re noticing, try some mental role switching. When you switch your perspective, it can be a little bit easier to know what to say to your senior. This is especially true if she’s feeling as if you’re not truly keeping her concerns at the forefront.

One of the solutions that might work well for you and for your senior is to hire elderly care providers. They have experience determining the needs of the seniors in their care and that can help you to pinpoint additional areas of concern that you can bring up with your senior’s doctor or with other professionals who help her.

 

If you or an aging loved one are considering Elderly Care in Bellaire, TX, contact the caring staff at Personal Caregiving Services at 832-564-0338. Providing Care in Houston, Bellaire, West University Place, Katy, and Sugar Land and the surrounding areas.