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Sep 15
0
Nutrition Tips for Seniors

Nutrition Tips for Seniors

By | Resources for Caregivers, Resources for Seniors | No Comments

What you eat is important. Nutrition affects many things- from your energy level to your body’s ability to fight off illness. While good nutrition is different for everyone, there are a few basics. 

Stay Hydrated

Dehydration is more problematic for seniors. It can be the result of limiting fluids to reduce incontinence issues, medications, or poor nutrition. A good rule of thumb is if you’re thirsty, you’re already dehydrated. There are many strategies for staying hydrated. Read more in this article https://almosthomeseniorservices.com/how-can-i-prevent-dehydration/

Limit Processed Sugar

According to the CDC, Americans are eating and drinking way too much added sugars, which can lead to health problems. There is a lot of hidden sugar in the foods and beverages a lot of people eat daily, such as bread, tomato sauce, or yogurt. Learning how to read food labels can help in making more nutritious choices.

https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/data-statistics/know-your-limit-for-added-sugars.html

Include Fruits and Vegetables

Including fruits and vegetables is a delicious way to improve nutrition. Frozen and canned vegetables are also an option if fresh is not available or a longer shelf life is needed. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3713183/

Eat “Good Fats”

Fats are an important part of good nutrition, but not just any fat. Poor nutrition can be attributed to either too much unhealthy fats, not enough healthy fats, or a combination of both. There are many foods with good fats. Learn more about incorporating these into a nutritious diet.    

https://www.eatright.org/food/nutrition/dietary-guidelines-and-myplate/healthy-eating-for-older-adults

Get More Fiber 

According to Medicare, dietary fiber is an important part of a healthy diet for people of all ages, it can greatly help older adults who have challenges with constipation, cholesterol levels, blood sugar levels, and their weight. Eating foods higher in fiber is another important part of good nutrition. 

https://www.medicare.org/articles/why-is-fiber-important-for-older-adults/

Before making changes to your diet, talk to your doctor about seeing a nutritionist. Almost Home is here to help families by offering quality & affordable Adult Day Care, Assisted Living & Family Consulting Services, including information and resources on how to keep yourself well. Contact us if you have any questions on how we can help you and your family.

Aug 17
0
Brain Health in Seniors

How Seniors Can Improve Brain Health

By | Resources for Caregivers, Resources for Seniors | No Comments

Brain health is more than just having a good memory. It refers to all of the brain’s responsibilities: cognitive function, emotional function, sensory function, and motor function. Here are some fun and easy ways to improve your brain health. 

Cognitive Function 

Cognitive function is the ability to learn, remember, and think clearly. There are many activities that promote and even improve cognitive function. 

  1. Engage in meaningful conversation. Don’t just talk about the weather- have an actual conversation of depth and purpose.
  2. Use the opposite hand for simple tasks such as brushing your teeth or for more difficult tasks such as writing or drawing. 
  3. Play puzzles and word games. Make sure to choose new or more challenging options! 

Emotional Function

Emotions are responses to environmental signals. There are many activities that can help improve our emotions or avoid negative ones such as frustration, boredom, or sadness. 

  1. Exercise increases “feel good chemicals” and can improve confidence with improved fitness.
  2. Good nutrition supports emotional function. Check with your local nutritionist if you think your nutrition could use a boost. 
  3. Heard of “waking up on the wrong side of the bed?” Healthy sleep habits also support emotional function. Make sure to get enough of quality sleep. 

 

Sensory function

Sensory function refers to the senses of touch, pressure, temperature and pain. Balance is controlled by our sensory functions. Learn more about how our sensory functions affect balance as well as what you can do to improve it in this article by Elder Gym. https://eldergym.com/elderly-balance/ 

 

Motor Function

Motor function is defined as “the ability to learn or to demonstrate the skillful and efficient assumption, maintenance, modification, and control of voluntary postures and movement patterns.” Fine motor refers to using the small muscles in the hands and wrists. Gross motor refers to the large muscles of the body for walking, running, sitting, crawling , etc… It is important to improve both fine and gross motor functions. 

Fine motor activities

  • Squeeze a tennis or stress ball
  • Sort coins or bills into denomination stacks
  • Open bottles, food containers, medicine bottles
  • Lace beads, sort jewelry or other small items 

Large motor function activities- chair exercises

  • Chair Exercises
  • Resistance Band Workouts
  • Walking
  • Swimming or Water Aerobics

As always, ensure you get cleared by your doctor before engaging in new exercises or making changes to your diet. Almost Home is here to help families by offering quality & affordable Adult Day Care, Assisted Living & Family Consulting Services, including information and resources on how to keep yourself well. Contact us if you have any questions on how we can help you and your family.

Jul 23
1
caregiving

What Specific Caregiving Matters Do I Need to Know?

By | Resources for Seniors | No Comments

What Specific Caregiving Matters Do I Need to Know?

As I was writing this chapter of my book on caregiving, I realized that I could go on and on. There are so many things that we need to worry about with our loved ones. I am mentioning some of the most important matters to preserve the Quality of Life of your family member.

The Soul 

As we know, all our experiences in life have made us who we are. Imagine, if you no longer had your memories or the ability to care for yourself, what would be important for you to know that would make your soul feel good? Now, write three things down that would be important to your loved one if they could not express themselves. There are no wrong answers. My mom wanted me to make sure she had cute, expressive and comfortable socks on her feet. I have to say I always agreed.

Things to Look For

Some things to look for as a caregiver are losing weight, not feeling well due to a urinary tract infection (UTI), medications, behavior disturbances, driving ability and fall risks.

Safety First

The foundation of my philosophy of care is always Safety First. It is a necessity that you as the caregiver make decisions and care for your loved one who can no longer care for themselves. Once you know that someone has memory deficit, whether a physician has tested and told you, or you know from experience with your loved one, they really should not be left to care for themselves. Simply going out the front door to the edge of the driveway to pick up the newspaper can lead to a crisis. Instead of turning to go back into the house, one turns to the left instead and starts walking down the street. Now they are lost.

We must watch out for, and over, them. Your loved one may be frustrated and sad that you are hovering, so you learn to do it gracefully and quietly. All this is done while protecting their dignity and self-esteem.

This caregiving experience does have a lot of puzzle pieces to put together and keep glued.

Highlights from the book Simply Caring: Putting the Alzheimer’s Puzzle Together by Almost Home CEO Jamie Glavich.

Almost Home is here to help families by offering quality & affordable Adult Day Care, Assisted Living & Family Consulting Services, including information and resources on how to keep yourself well. Contact us if you have any questions on how we can help you and your family.

 

Jun 21
1
Art Therapy for Seniors

How Art Therapy Can Create a Calming Environment

By | Resources for Seniors | No Comments

How Art Therapy Can Create a Calming Environment

Art therapy is more than just crayons. Alzheimer’s patients are able to express their feelings on paper when they may not be able to with their words. Parts of the brain that deal with colors and composition can still be used and developed by those with Alzheimer’s. It is amazing that people are able to continue to create art. Working with art can be calming to someone with Alzheimer’s. It may help create a period of sustained concentration that will improve their mood for the day.

Art Therapy Ideas

  • Creating a scrapbook with photos and artwork can help relive old memories. It is something that can be looked at over and over. This is a great memory for the caregiver and family as well.
  • Using items such as pipe cleaners, tissue paper, buttons, or sponges can be combined with paint or crayons to create memorable works of art!
  • Glue sand and shells on blue construction paper to make a personalized beach scene.
  • Paint plastic pots or rocks to add color to an outdoor garden
  • Modeling clay provides an opportunity to get creative and exercise hand and arm muscles
  • Combine music and doodling for a fun and mood improving experience

Sharing these moment of happiness is what we all strive for in life. Remember – anyone can be considered an artist! Consider using Art Therapy for creating a calm environment for your loved one.

Almost Home is here to help families by offering quality & affordable Adult Day Care, Assisted Living & Family Consulting Services, including information and resources on how to keep yourself well. Contact us if you have any questions on how we can help you and your family.

May 11
1
assisted living jacksonville

Fitness Health

By | Resources for Caregivers, Resources for Seniors | No Comments

Fitness health and healthy lifestyle is important for everyone, especially seniors. Incorporating fitness into a daily routine can improve health as well as quality of life. There are several forms of exercise that are appropriate for seniors, such as Tai Chi, Chair Exercises, and Pilates.

Tai Chi

Tai Chi is an ancient Chinese exercise that was originally developed for self-defense. Over time, it has evolved into an exercise practiced by both young and old. Tai Chi is a type of meditative movement which includes a flow of standing physical postures and breathing techniques. When practiced regularly, it can reduce stress as well as promote balance and stamina.

Chair Exercises

Chair based exercise (CBE) was created for seniors with compromised mobility. It enables anyone to participate in an easily accessible form of exercise. Grab a chair and you can add fitness to your daily routine!

Pilates

Pilates was designed for bed bound hospital patients in the early 1900s by Joseph Pilates. These exercises are designed to build core strength and stability. For those who have  trouble getting down on the floor, there are pilates routines that can be done on a bed or a chair.

 Before trying anything new to improve your fitness health, make sure to check with your doctor first. Almost Home is here to help families by offering quality & affordable Adult Day Care, Assisted Living & Family Consulting Services, including information and resources on how to keep yourself well. Contact us if you have any questions on how we can help you and your family.

Apr 15
1
adult day care assisted living jacksonville

Optimism is the Foundation of Courage

By | Resources for Caregivers | No Comments

This all takes optimism, and courage. I don’t think any of us really knows how we will come out of this Pandemic in 6 weeks, 6 months or 6 years from now.  The reality is that life for all people changed overnight and will never be the same. We who have been labeled as essential services workers are thankful for still being employed and have (or feel) an obligation to continue serving our community. Those of us leaving the safety of our homes, leaving our school children behind to attend classes via internet and those unable to see our family members that we are isolating from, are all heroes. For it takes courage to leave our home, don our masks and give up the normal human contact we are accustomed to. However, courage can be short lived if not held strong with optimism as a foundation. 

Those of you who know of my “Jamisms” have heard me say, “this too shall pass.” If you look at facebook or watch the news, you can see that humanity has stepped up and are doing major acts of kindness. Simple things like sending a note of hello to someone, sending door dash to a neighbor you know has been caregiving at home, just walking someone’s garbage can to their garage shows kindness. Do you have someone in your neighborhood that needs a grocery run or a dog walked?  People want to help. So, if someone asks you if they can do something, give them something to do. People need to be needed. Good deeds reflect on the goodness of humanity. Kindness and goodness breeds optimism. 

I have a challenge for you. Every morning when you start your day, look in the mirror and say what you are looking forward to when this Pandemic is over. Visualization is powerful. You must know and feel what you are looking forward to. When you open your courage up, know that it is still strong because your optimism has made it so. And “this too shall pass.”

We all have a story of what we have given up these past weeks going on months. Every morning I leave my daughter with the dog, at home to attend virtual school. This past month has left disappointments for so many High School Seniors. They have worked hard and want to celebrate. We are all ready to live outside of our cocoon again. Find a way to Celebrate. It will also help breed optimism. Optimism is the foundation of Courage. 

 

Apr 15
0
assisted living jacksonville

Keeping Up With Spiritual Health

By | Resources for Caregivers | No Comments

Spiritual health has a different meaning to everyone. For this month’s blog, we will be focusing on spiritual health being defined as “a purposeful life which creates a balance between physical, psychological and social aspects.” We’ll also be sharing our favorite ways of keeping up with spiritual health.

When a loved one needs extra care, it becomes especially important to take care of ourselves. There are many ways to practice spiritual health.

How to Keep up With Your Spiritual Health

Almost Home is here to help families by offering quality & affordable Adult Day Care, Assisted Living & Family Consulting Services, including information and resources on how to keep yourself well.  For more Caregiver resources, visit our Resources page. Contact us if you have any questions on how we can help you and your family.

Mar 26
2
Coronavirus - Safe Senior Centers Jacksonville, Florida

Covid-19 & Coronavirus – Safe Senior Care

By | Adult Daycare, Assisted Living, Jacksonville, Resources for Seniors | No Comments

Covid-19 Updates & Precautionary Measures

At the present time, Almost Home Senior Services, continues to remain open and provide services for those who need our support. 

In Our Daycare Facility:

  • We are taking temperatures of clients and staff. 
  • Anyone with a temperature will not be able to stay.
  • Our daily procedures will remain in force, sanitizing all surfaces, including bathrooms.
  • The staff will wear face masks during this time.

In Our Assisted Living Facilities:

  • The Assisted living facilities remain on restricted visitation. 
  • Only medical personnel, individuals from state agencies and staff can come into the building.
  • We are mandated to ask questions regarding where they have been and their wellness.
  • Staff will continue with sanitation efforts and will wear face masks.
  • Staff are monitored for wellness

Our Recommendations:

These are the questions we are asking anyone that we come in contact with and encourage you to be aware of those you are around.

  • Have you been diagnosed as being infected with COVID-19 and have not had 2 consecutive negative results, 24-hours apart?
  • Do you have any presenting signs or symptoms of, disclosing the presence of a respiratory infection, including cough, fever, shortness of breath, or sore throat?
  • Have you been in contact with any person known to be infected with COVID-19 within the past 14 days?
  • Have you traveled through any airport within the past 14 days?
  • Have you traveled on a cruise ship within the last 14 days?

Stay well. Please check the Duval County Health Department website if you would like additional information on the COVID-19 virus.

Take Care and WASH YOUR HANDS with SOAP AND WATER FOR 20 SECONDS, frequently.

If you have questions on how to help your loved one during this time, please contact us.

Read Our Guide on Safety First »

Mar 11
0
adult care jacksonville

How to Improve Your Mental Fitness

By | Resources for Caregivers, Resources for Seniors | No Comments

In March, our word of the month is Mental Health, or more specifically, Mental fitness. Mental fitness is important for many reasons. Engaging in a variety of activities can keep your brain in tip-top shape, assist to decrease stress, increase self-confidence, promote better sleep, and boost brain function.

Just like physical fitness, there are many different activities that improve mental fitness. Start now by choosing a variety of activities. Make sure you are doing them consistently, and over time, you may begin to notice improvements in things like mood, memory, creativity, and problem solving.

Mental Fitness Activities

  • Get outside.
  • Eat a healthy diet including fruits and vegetables.
  • Exercise regularly and try new exercises.
  • Practice good sleep hygiene.
  • Read often and choose new subjects.
  • Challenge your intellect and memory with games such as Sudoku or chess.
  • Make time to relax.
  • Daydream.
  • Take up a new hobby.
  • Engage in stimulating conversations.
  • For the technologically savvy, download brain training apps such as Words With Friends, Lumosity, or Duolingo.
  • Learn a second language.

Our team at Almost Home is dedicated to keeping our friends engaged and active in a variety of activities that are good for the body and the mind. Do you have a Mental Fitness activity you’d like to share with us? Would you like to learn more about the services offered at Almost Home? Contact us and we will get back with you shortly.

 
 
Feb 14
0
heart health jacksonville

3 Tips for Heart Health

By | Resources for Seniors | No Comments

 

February is National Heart Health month. Creating heart healthy habits is not just important for increasing the longevity of your life, but for improving the quality of your life. Here are three tips to incorporate at any age to promote heart health. 

1 Increase Your Activity

There are many ways to increase your activity. From reaching a daily step goal to participating in an exercise program- there’s enough variety for people of every age to find something to enjoy!

  • Find walking or running difficult? Do chair exercises
  • Join a water aerobics class
  • Offer to walk the dog- it’s good for both of you!
  • Park farther away from the front of the store
  • Take the stairs
  • Use your arms 
  • Play your favorite music and dance- shoot for 10 minutes 
  • Use your core- try Pilates 

2 Eat More Fiber

Fiber may not sound fun, but increasing your daily fiber intake can be both delicious and beneficial. According to Harvard Medical School, “Fiber’s role in preventing heart disease is thought to stem from its ability to lower both blood pressure and cholesterol. It also fills you up, which helps you eat less and perhaps lose weight.” Check out their list of delicious high fiber foods! 

3 Choose Plant Based Protein 

Did you know there are many ways to get your protein without the cholesterol? Try something new! Find a delicious, simple, affordable, quick, heart healthy recipe to try this month! 

We care about your heart health. This month, focus on improving the heart health of those you love (including yourself) by trying out our useful tips. Looking for more ideas or guidance on caring for a loved one? Contact us for information on Adult Daycare, Assisted Living Care and Caregiving.

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