Caring for a loved one living with Alzheimer’s disease is physically and emotionally taxing for the caregiver. Alzheimer’s disease is one of the most debilitating and heartbreaking diseases to see right up close and personal. The people living with Alzheimer’s disease aren’t the only one that have a tough time – caregivers responsible for people living with Alzheimer’s also face significant challenges each and every single day.
Thankfully, there are a handful of things you can do to better organize your day so that you are able to give the best possible home care to those you love so much. It’s going to require a bit of focus and some customization to come up with the appropriate plan that suits your needs as well as those of you were loved one. It is possible to streamline the process significantly and give both of you every chance to enjoy your day a lot more than you may have been already.
Here are some tips and tricks to consider.
Break down everything you need to do on a daily basis without organizing (at first)
The first thing that you are going to want to do is write down absolutely everything that you need to do on a day-to-day basis, without worrying about organizing it at all just yet. Just get all of the daily tasks and chores down on paper, making sure to focus only on those that are going to be repeated every single day.
Start to build your “typical day”
Now that you have everything that you need to get done every single day down on paper, you’re going to be able to build your typical day without too much extra effort.
Take all the different elements that you have written down and begin organizing them, starting with what you’re going to do when you first wake up all the way until you go to sleep at night.
Make sure that you leave free blocks of time for creativity, medical appointments, and “me time”
Make sure that you leave sufficient gaps in your schedule. There are different reasons.
One is so that you’re able to have a bit of freedom to play around with your day-to-day life.
Another is that the Alzheimer’s patient usually need plenty of time to make transition from one thing to another. For example, even getting up from a nap to get ready for a walk outside may take an hour.
With some time flexibility, you’re able to spontaneously take your loved one somewhere special. Further, you’re able to fit in medical appointments without tipping your day-to-day schedule up on its head.
You also make sure that you leave plenty of time to enjoy yourself, as this can be a physically and emotionally draining charge that you have taken upon yourself. You deserve it.
For more caregiver tips and support, Choice Homecare is here to help. Give us a call at 613-907-3191 for anything you need.