Stress is part of life, but when stress becomes too much, it can overpower your senior’s life. She may find that she feels out of control in every single area of her life, which makes it more difficult to rein things in. Here are some of the signs of stress that you should watch for in your senior. Talk to her about what she’s experiencing. 

Over or Undereating

Senior Care Seneca, SC: Seniors and Stress

Appetite changes are a huge indication of stress. Some people respond to stress by literally stress eating, that is eating foods when they aren’t hungry. Often these foods are comfort foods, which can tend to be high in calories and lower in nutritive value. Other people respond to stress by having no appetite at all. Either one can cause problems for your senior’s overall health. 

Sleep Changes 

Like with eating, different people develop different responses. Your senior may start to sleep more, even if she reports not feeling rested. Or she may find that she’s developed insomnia and isn’t able to sleep hardly at all. If your senior feels that her sleep issues are out of control, this can make stress worse for her. 

Irritability or Other Emotional Changes 

Very often people who are under a lot of stress find that it’s much more difficult to regulate their emotions. Your senior might find that she snaps more often or that she is low-key annoyed with everything that’s going on around her. This can affect her relationships significantly. 

Isolation 

Your elderly family member may choose to isolate when she’s feeling extremely stressed. If it goes on too long, though, isolation becomes very difficult to break free from. Everyone else’s life seems to go on as normal, and your elderly family member may feel as though she doesn’t fit in any longer. This can prolong her isolation even more. 

Avoiding Activities She Loves 

Is your senior avoiding activities and events that she used to love? That can be a sign that her stress levels have grown even more and that she might be verging on depressed. It’s important to help her to reconnect with the things she loves to do. 

Managing stress effectively often means utilizing more than one tool. Your senior may benefit from having senior carers on hand to assist with all sorts of tasks from handling transportation for her to making meals for her. The actual tasks may not matter as much as having help when she needs it. 

If you or an aging loved one are considering hiring Senior Care in Seneca, SC,  contact Heart of the Carolinas Home Care at 864-991-3116.  Providing Home Care Services in Greenville, Simpsonville, Greer, Anderson, Spartanburg, Mauldin, Seneca, Laurens, Charleston, Columbia and the surrounding areas. 

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Edward Harrison

Edward Harrison founded the Heart of the Carolinas Homecare in 2007 when he saw there was a need for caregivers that provide non-medical home care services, at a price that most people could afford. It was standard in the industry to require hourly minimums and it was common to be assigned a caregiver, not matched with one based on your individual personal needs. Edward understood that to make a successful relationship between caregiver and client, skills were not enough, personality and compatibility plays as much a role as do skills.
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