(Adapted from American Senior Communities blog, Oct 13, 2016)
For a family caregiver, feeling guilty when the need to move a loved one into an assisted living community arises is a common, natural response. Along with feeling guilty about moving your loved one from his or her home, you might also feel residual guilt from your caregiving duties – feeling like you could have done more, you should have asked for more help, or that you didn’t ask for help – all of these doubts lead to a sometimes debilitating feeling of guilt.
It’s important to remember, though, that the decision you’ve made did not come lightly. Caring for elderly parents, especially when you’re also caring for your own family, can involve duties that leave you with very little time to attend to your own needs. Not only that, but sometimes you might not be entirely qualified to perform some of the daily tasks for which your loved one needs assistance, which can possibly lead to dangerous situations for all those involved.
Alleviating Guilt
It’s important to remember that the decision to move a loved one to an assisted living community is made because he or she needs full-time care in a safe, comfortable environment. Your reasons for this decision could be due to your loved one’s continued decline in health, or maybe because of the toll that caregiving is taking on your family’s resources. Many family caregivers put their careers on hold in an effort to provide the amount of care their loved one requires, which can lead to stress that threatens their own health.
Sometimes caregivers feel as though they should have made a different decision, especially when they know their loved one may want to age in place in his or her home instead. However, it’s important to focus on the positives of the move and how assisted living offers your loved one the safest environment possible for his or her needs.
Assisted Living Improves Your Loved One’s Quality of Life
In an assisted living community, all your loved one’s healthcare needs are attended to by a caring, professional staff. You have peace of mind that help is available around the clock, especially should a fall occur.
In time, your loved one will adjust and flourish in this new way of life. Many assisted living residents even report that they should have made the move sooner, and that they feel healthier and stronger than they have in several years. That’s because in an assisted living community, residents enjoy healthy meals, a variety of social events and activities, help with housekeeping tasks, access to fitness classes and lifelong learning opportunities, and so much more above and beyond the help they need with daily living activities. These additional benefits offer physical, emotional, and social benefits that improve residents’ quality of life on a regular basis.
Once caregiving duties have transferred to the assisted living staff, caregivers can focus on enjoying their relationship with their loved one. Sharing quality time when they visit, a cup of coffee, and some nice conversation. In this way caregivers can shed their guilt and use this valuable time you have with your aging loved one to build even more wonderful memories together.
Learn more about personalized care and the quality assisted living options available at The Terrace Assisted Living Community. Contact us today to request more information about our thriving community of active seniors!
