When you begin to notice that your elderly parent’s health is declining, it is very common for adult children to become their primary caregiver. While this may work well for a while, it can eventually result in a bit of resentment if you discover you are the one who is shouldering the majority of the burdens and responsibilities when providing care for an aging senior. This can be increasingly true when you have other siblings that live nearby but never try to help out.
You may wonder what it is you can do about this somewhat resentful situation. The first thing to remember is that you should not do, or say something that you may regret down the road, since you don’t want to lose the opportunity of receiving help with the care you are providing.
Even if all of your siblings have not been actively involved from the first day you were providing care, it is still completely possible to change the rules and work to redistribute the responsibilities for care giving. The first step in working to receive help is to open the lines of communication and give them notice that you are asking for their support and assistance.
As providers of in home care service for seniors in Santa Clarita, we here at Comfort Keepers have come up with some tips to encourage help:
- Call a family meeting. This should include all of your siblings. This can be done in person or through a conference call. You should be sure you include everyone, even those that do not live nearby.
- Create a written plan. Once you have gathered everyone together, you may discover that you have forgotten what you want to say. You should have all of the major points written down and provide access to the list for each member, which can be done via email or a piece of paper when they arrive at the family meeting. Some of the things you should plan to discuss include: home health care, cleaning help, in-home care service, transportation and medical attention. You need to ask for suggestions on how each member will be able to contribute to the plan you need to create.
- Talk, but be sure to listen, as well. Make sure you give everyone the opportunity to provide ideas and input. Be sure you let them know how your feel and that you need everyone to pitch in and help with the responsibilities.
- Rather than have a general request for assistance, you need to have a list of specific things that need to be taken care of and allow your siblings to volunteer for what they can handle.
- If there are siblings that want to help but are unable to complete the daily tasks, these may be the individuals to pay for housecleaning or in home senior care.
If you have a sibling who is not in touch with your parent’s needs, then you should request they come for a visit, or provide care for a day so they can see what you have had to take on alone. It may be difficult for them to visualize the actual decline of your parent that is suffering from multiple issues. You have to take action, or you will be responsible for the in home elderly care in Santa Clarita all on your own. To learn more about in home care in Santa Clarita, visit or contact us at Comfort Keepers today.
Comfort Keepers
23900 Lyons Avenue
Santa Clarita, CA 91321
661-287-4200
