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Challenges in Elderly Care: How Does Aging Impact a Person's Life?

Oct 25, 2022

Aging Parents

Impact of aging

Aging can have a physiological, psychological, and social impact on people's lives and their caregivers. Aging doesn't follow a certain timeline; it can differ for every individual depending on genetics, lifestyle, health condition, and gender.

In recent years, the life expectancy rate has improved tremendously. One of the reasons for this is the advancement of medicine and technology that has helped people better manage and eliminate long-term health conditions. 

Even with these advancements, some seniors face many life challenges as they age. They require proper attention and timely elderly care to manage their daily routine. 

In this article, we will discuss the challenges that arise due to aging and how caregivers can solve these challenges. 

How Does Aging Impact the Life of a Person?

Aging is an irreversible life process. With the advancement in age, there might be many physiological, psychological, and social changes.

1. Physiological Impact

As the person age, their organs and body aren’t working like when they were young. This can result in problems like hearing loss, cataracts and refractive errors, diabetes, high and low blood pressure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart diseases, and osteoporosis.

2. Psychological Impact

Depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, or dementia are some of the common psychological impacts that aged people face. Alzheimer's disease, the most common type of dementia, is diagnosed very commonly in people aged 70 or older.

3. Social Impact

A person's physiological and psychological changes can also impact their social life. Some seniors may face more loneliness if they are aging alone or have physical challenges that prevent them from going outside their homes.

As discussed earlier, aging impacts the life of the elderly along with the lives of their family and caregivers. Let's discuss the everyday challenges faced by seniors.

Everyday Challenges Faced by Seniors 

The challenges vary from person to person because the aging process is not the same for everyone. The family’s caregiver has to play a vital role in helping their older loved ones with their daily routine. Below are a few challenges that many aging seniors face:

  • Difficulty in Performing Everyday Tasks: Your loved one may find daily chores like eating a simple meal, bathing, dressing, and grooming more challenging. If left unchecked, it can lead to serious oral and health conditions. 
  • Remembering Their Appointment Dates: This difficulty is related to psychological aging. Psychological aging affects the brain, and, in some cases, underlying psychological issues or changes in cognitive capabilities could affect several points like emotions, problem-solving and subjective reactions to situations. According to WHO, approximately 15% of adults aged 60 and over have a mental disorder.

People often forget that family caregivers face challenges when caring for their senior loved one. Let's discuss the everyday challenges faced by the family.

Common Challenges Faced by the Family Caregivers

Caring for your senior loved ones who help raise you can be a great honor and might seem easy at first. It can be quite challenging to comprehend the emotional and physical challenges the elderly face throughout the caring process. 

There are a few challenges that family caregivers can seek assistance with while providing care. Our well-trained caregivers can help assist you and your senior loved ones in the best way possible. 

Continue reading to learn about the everyday challenges that family caregivers face:

  • Time Management: Managing time can be challenging as a caregiver because it takes a lot of mental and physical effort to provide the care your loved ones require. Sometimes, you must compromise ongoing schedules like socializing, hobbies, trips, etc. Some also struggle to balance caregiving with their full-time job. 
  • Emotional Burnout: It is common to meet emotional burnout because you constantly feel swamped due to prolonged mental and physical stress. A study reports higher mental and physical health problems among family caregivers.
  • Need Time to Recharge: It’s natural for the family caregiver to feel exhausted, but many do not take time to rest and recharge. Family caregivers may be worried that their loved one won’t get the care they need, but professional caregivers can help with that!

See Also: What Should You Know About Healthy Aging?

Need In-Home Care? Contact Our Team at Newport Home Care

At Newport Home Care, we provide 24-hour home care services at affordable rates. We also offer a complimentary in-home care assessment to match your loved one with the most suitable caregiver. We have professionally trained staff who can provide post-surgery care, respite care, companion care, and more. Contact us today to learn more!

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