Alzheimer’s and
Memory Loss

Senior Citizen Scams

From our Care Blog

No one is immune to scams, but it seems the elderly are particularly targeted. My Dad  was a very savvy 75-year-old accountant. His mind was extremely sharp before he passed away, but his financial judgments were slightly slipping. He was extremely charitable, donating to many causes – he was always taken in by sad stories. Therefore, I was not surprised when he told me he had “adopted a family” in Nigeria. Every month he sent them a set amount, but then the disasters started and they needed more money for hospital and medical bills. How could he not help a...

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How to Deal With the Stress of Aging Parents

From our Care Blog

Each day, millions of Americans deal with the task of caring for their aging parents.  If you are a child of an aging parent that requires care, you already know how stressful this situation can be.  The stress of financial burdens, time constraints, and lack of help can all build up to the point where you can no longer perform your responsibilities to the best of your abilities.  Worse yet, your personal and family life will suffer as well.  Whether your parents are of good health or no longer able to live on their own, you must find healthy ways to...

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Five Tips To Effectively Communicate With Seniors

From our Care Blog

In his book How to Say It to Seniors, author David Solie, who specializes in geriatric issues, describes the developmental tasks that the elderly face, and explains how these “tasks shape their behavior -- whether they're aware of it or not”. Solie describes the “crises of the elderly as a conflict between control and legacy issues. And while he writes in universal terms, it's important to remember that every individual is different, and each person's experience of aging will have a lot to do with personal and environmental factors, as well as developmental ones.” While communication is extremely important with your parents, it can also...

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How to be the Best Long-Distance Caregiver

From our Care Blog

Caring for loved ones from far away isn’t always an easy task. Many times, they need stay-at-home care that can’t be given from miles away. Sometimes you can feel helpless not being able to provide personal home care for those in your life who need it the most. Know that these feelings are valid, and you are not alone. In fact, there are about 7 million Americans providing long-distance home care to their loved ones. Like you, they are in charge of arranging doctor appointments, coordinating all the healthcare and insurance, working full time and taking care of their own families....

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Three Early Signs of Dementia

From our Care Blog

So, it’s a Saturday and you have just taken your mom out for a nice lunch.  Your elderly mom however cannot remember where she put her checkbook.  And, she tripped a couple times as you brought her back to her house.  You also noticed that she seemed distant at lunch, and you caught her staring off into nowhere several times. None of these things should be a cause for alarm, right?  Geez, even I misplace my car keys about once a day.  However, as our parents and loved ones age, the occurrence of these events could be early signs of...

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Keeping A Thankful Journal

From our Care Blog

It is an annual tradition in our family to go around the Thanksgiving table and have everyone express one thing they are thankful for. One of my favorites is when my nephew said he was thankful he didn’t have to clean up the mess! But too soon, Thanksgiving is behind us, the stomach ache from eating too much turkey is long gone and the rat race begins anew. We get caught up in the stress, the negative feelings the holidays can elicit and we forget about all the good things. For instance, this is my first holiday season without my...

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Prevent Type 2 Diabetes

From our Care Blog

November is National Diabetes Month and FirstLight Home Care would like to bring your attention to an illness that impacts millions of Americans every day. According to the National Diabetes Association: Nearly 26 million children and adults in the United States have diabetes. Another 79 million Americans have pre-diabetes and are at risk for developing type 2  diabetes. The statistic that is most startling is: Recent estimates project that as many as 1 in 3 American adults will have diabetes in 2050 unless we take steps to Stop Diabetes. Although Type 1 diabetes is not preventable, Type 2 diabetes is....

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Alternatives to the Traditional Funeral

From our Care Blog

Guest blogger: Julie Grannan My mom passed away on August 2, 1997.  Only 54 years old, she had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer a short six months prior.  Being “younger” I don’t believe that she and my dad had really discussed their funeral/burial preferences.  But when terminal illness comes knocking on your door, this often times awkward conversation has to be had. I was 18 years old at the time, and I remember being quite surprised and unsettled in my emotions when I heard that my mom wished to be cremated.  However, over time and definitely as I fully entered...

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Tips For Communicating With An Alzheimer’s Patient

From our Care Blog

Here at FirstLight Home Care, we work with lots of families caring for loved ones with many different diseases and disabilities.  One disease that is particularly heart wrenching to watch and personally endure is Alzheimer’s.  I have asked myself this question many times…as I get older “would I rather lose my physical capabilities or my memory?”  That’s definitely not a fair choice to make.  And, unfortunately we don’t get the choice.  Life happens as it’s going to happen, and then in order to move on, we have to learn to adapt to a “new normal.”  But, after talking to many...

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Men Are Caregivers Too

From our Care Blog

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about a long-time friend of mine who had been caring for his elderly mother.  My blog entry was also about how FirstLight Home Care is meeting the needs of aging America, and an unfortunate lack of awareness surrounding caregiving options. This week however, I want to circle back to the fact that my friend Dave* (a male obviously) was in a caregiver role for his mom.  Dave* is not alone in having that title.  According to a National Family Caregivers Association (NFCA) survey, 44% of caregivers are men.  Yes, I said 44%, and...

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