Bathroom Safety for Seniors

For seniors with mobility issues and other physical disabilities, the bathroom can be a dangerous place. Sometimes creative adjustments need to be made to accommodate the elderly while keeping in mind their safety, ease of use, comfort, and easy accessibility. Bruising, broken bones, overmedication, burnt skin, and other physical trauma can result from negligence in bathroom safety. Most accidents that occur in the bathroom take place while the senior is getting in or out of the bathtub, making this a great place to concentrate our safety efforts.

The following are bathroom safety tips for seniors:

Put in a walk-in shower or walk-in tub: These are much safer, easier to access, and comfortable to use than a standard tub. They allow for easier bathing and washing.

Fitted shower seats: Seniors may need to sit down to allow them to bathe easily

Grab bars: Very important to install inside the shower, along the tub wall, and along the toilet wall

Use rubber bathmats or ones with suction cups to prevent slipping

Install an elevated toilet seat to prevent strain on the back

Install proper bathroom lighting: the elderly may have trouble seeing and may need a brighter light during the day as well as a nightlight at night. Make sure the light switches are low enough for the senior to reach easily.

Keep medications secure; seniors with memory loss can get confused and take something they shouldn't

Keep floors dry and use a non-skid floor wax (if at all); if using a throw rug, make sure it is slip-resistant

Set the temperature on the hot water heater low enough so that the senior cannot scald him- or herself

Avoid keeping sharp objects like razors or scissors in the bathroom

By taking the proper safety precautions, bathing and grooming can be a relaxing and safe time for the senior. Be sure to assist those with balance or mobility issues.


For more information on Senior Helpers and to find out more about local in-home care services, visit www.seniorhelpers.com/wheaton or www.seniorcaredupage.com

Preventing Memory Decline in Seniors

Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of memory loss and mental deterioration. Research has shown that people who continuously exercise their mind through various mental activities can help to prevent memory loss and decline as they age by regenerating new neurons in the brain. A great portion of our brain remains underutilized throughout the lifespan, which means there are a lot of inactive brain connections just waiting to be nurtured and developed. Our mental faculties need exercise if they are to remain useful. Activating underused nerve pathways and brain connections can be an enjoyable exercise!

The following tips demonstrate easy ways to keep the brain active:

•Get plenty of sleep, exercise regularly, and eat a balanced diet. The functioning of the mind is related to overall physical health.
• When someone calls on the telephone, try to guess who it is before they identify themselves.
• When doing an everyday task, involve more than one of your senses: for ex., buttoning your shirt with your eyes closed, showering with your eyes closed
• Reading, doing crossword puzzles/Sudoku, or playing yahtzee, scrabble, or chess are all mentally stimulating. Playing bingo has been found to improve both memory and hand eye coordination in the elderly
• Learning a new hobby or a new language will also exercise your brain.
• Mix things up: take a new route to church, brush your teeth with your opposite hand, shop at a new grocery
• Join a club or organization where you can interact with other people. Discussions activate the mind.
• Work jigsaw puzzles. Then try to rework them in a faster period of time.
• Try to work simple riddle books, word games, or children’s math books to challenge the brain
• Read a lot. This exercises the mind much more than watching tv. After you’ve finished a chapter in a book, write a one or two word sentence about it. Be sure to try new types of books, such as biographies, poetry, or travel
• Wake up nerve pathways in the morning: Before getting up from the bed, start moving your toes…flex them, extend them, stretch them and wriggle them. Slowly rub and massage your toes up the other feet, then do the same with your fingers. Besides stimulating the brain, it will also make you feel cool, refreshed, and energetic.


Practicing mental exercises every day is so important. With a little effort you will find ways to add many similar challenges to your daily routine. If you keep your brain busy, it will not let you down!

Senior Helpers is a professional care-giving company with caring in-home companions to help you maintain independence and assure your family that you have the best attention. See us at www.seniorhelpers.com and www.seniorcaredupage.com.

Assessing the Need for Care

During the holiday season, people who live a long distance from their aging family members often go to visit them. This can be a great time to assess their well-being and determine if additional care is needed. The following are aspects to consider when checking in on a loved one:

• The inside and outside condition of the home: Is it clean? Has it changed? Are the shades drawn and house dark when you arrive?
• Is there food in the refrigerator? Is it fresh or spoiled?
• Are there piles of unopened mail? Are bills being paid?
• Is the laundry being done or is dirty laundry piling up?
• Check the person’s appearance: Are they bathing and grooming? Change in weight?
• Any evidence of incontinence, such as smells or stains?
• Does he or she appear unsteady when getting up or down from the chair?
• Does the senior visit with friends and relatives regularly, or are they isolative?
• Check for increasing forgetfulness, missing appointments, getting lost/wandering
• Is the person still able to drive safely?
• Check for signs of confusion, depression, poor judgment, or poor decision making

Any of these can be warning signs that additional help is needed. Senior Helpers provides companionship and personal care to seniors in the home, and can offer a solution when an elderly loved one is in need of additional care. Visit us at www.seniorhelpers.com for more information.

Seniors and the Internet

Learning to use the Internet can help seniors to stay more connected to their friends and loved ones. It can be a nice hobby for those with a lot of free time. And learning something new can give the senior a great sense of pride and accomplishment. However, many seniors do not see a reason why they should learn to use the Internet, and may need encouragement to do so.

There are various ways that seniors can learn how to use the Internet:
• Classes- These may be found at community colleges or senior centers. There are often classes geared toward seniors and generally charge a very low fee.
• Grandchildren- They often have the most knowledge about computers and can be surprisingly patient with their grandparents.
• “Dummies” books about computers- Easy to read and understand.
• Experimentation- Seniors will likely benefit from some simple instruction, and time to play around and explore the computer on their own.
• Explanation of the basic parts: a) websites and servers; b) email: how to send, open, and use the address book and attachments; and c) web browser and getting from website to website
• Allow time for questions from the senior, to ask about anything they don’t understand

Be sure to tailor the instruction to the senior’s experiences and interests, and show them how they can use the Internet to stay connected and to find out more about their hobbies & interests.

Some notes on Safety on the Internet are also important:
1. Never click on a link sent to you by someone you don’t know
2. Never respond to an email asking for personal or account information
3. Don’t believe that someone you don’t know is going to give you money. Especially beware if an email asks you to “help transfer funds” or “help transfer your prize money”. These are scams.
4. Also be cautious about filling out online quizzes or surveys; the information can be shared by many companies and can have negative consequences (ex. Making it harder to get insurance).

The Internet can be a fun and useful tool for seniors. While it takes some effort to learn something new, many seniors have done just that and are pleased with what they have accomplished and what they are now able to do. Keep the learning sessions fun and give the senior plenty of time to practice. Using the Internet (safely) is a great way to expand our loved one’s interests and broaden their world.

For more information on Senior Helpers and to find out more about local in-home care services, visit www.seniorhelpers.com/wheaton or www.SeniorCareDupage.com

Helping Seniors Enjoy the Holidays Again

The holidays can bring mixed feelings for many seniors as they may remember holidays of the past and realize how much their lives have changed. Many seniors are dealing with the loss of loved ones and that feeling of loss can be magnified during the holidays. Also, many seniors face the loss of certain capabilities they once had. But with a little effort, families and caregivers can find many ways to make the holidays a special time for their loved ones. Creating new traditions can be enriching and enjoyable for the elderly as well as other members of the family.

In planning a holiday celebration, be sure to include your senior and ask them how they would like to celebrate. It is important to keep the senior’s rountines and preferences in mind; too much change can contribute to anxiety so we need to be careful about not overwhelming them.

For family members who provide care for seniors, please consider encouraging seniors to participate in the preparations as much as they are able. For example, even if they can’t cook, they can contribute recipes and suggestions for the holiday meal. Contributing to the planning and preparations can help all family members fulfill their sense of purpose and belonging. Seniors might help decorate baked goods, put stamps on outgoing holiday cards, set the holiday table, or pass out gifts to open. If there are dexterity or vision problems, the caregiver can help address envelopes or write note cards.

The following activities are great ideas for all families that include senior members:

Get children and teens involved with their grandparents. The caregiver can provide holiday and craft materials for the senior and children to help make up centerpieces for the holiday table. Scrapbooking is also fun; use family pictures or take candid shots of the loved one. These kinds of activities can go a long way to strengthening those family bonds.

During a holiday dinner, shine a "spotlight" on each person at the table, with each guest offering a story that demonstrates why this person is special. You could write the comments on 3x5 cards and give them wrapped in ribbon or mounted in a collage.
Encourage the giving spirit by helping the loved one go through pantry, linens, and clothing to find things to donate to a shelter or charity.

Gather loved ones and rent “The Nutcracker” musical; serve with some special holiday treats. Another idea is to take the senior on an outing to a local church or school to see a holiday choir perform.

Senior Helpers can help those seniors who need some assistance with holiday preparations by providing companions who are screened, bonded, and insured. We want our seniors to have the best holiday season possible! Contact us at www.seniorhelpers.com.

Get Grandma on SKYPE

SKYPE is one of the best resources available on the web and provides the ability for users to video chat with each other! Imagine the joy grandma would feel when she can not only talk her far-away grandchildren but also see them at the same time. What could be better than that! Well, it does get better because it is free!

To use SKYPE, grandma would need a computer with an internet connection, a microphone, and a webcam. The SKYPE software is available for free from www.skype.com.

If you are even a little techie, please consider donating some of your time at a local nursing home or assisted living facility and help them get SKYPE working on one of their computers. And, they may need some help getting started using the service.

It is such a wonderful technology and it could bring such joy to the lives of a lonely senior!