Action Step Nine: Make a list of all mom’s medications.

Always keep a list of all the medications your mom is taking. Keep one at her residence and one with you. It is even a good idea to give a copy to a family member in case it is needed when you are out of town and mom cannot find hers. This will come in handy if you ever have to provide a medical staff with this information. You will be organized in case of emergency as well.

The information should include:
1. All doctors names and phone numbers
2. The pharmacy name and phone number
3. The drug prescribed as well as generic equivalent
4. A copy of all mom’s medical records
5. Mom’s blood type
6. A list of all vitamins mom is taking

Lesson Nine: Medications

There comes a time when medications are a necessary way of life. Combine this with being forgetful and there is a potentially dangerous situation. If nothing else, keep the medication out of reach and give her just enough for one day. That way she will still feel in control and able to care for herself. Keep in mind that there will come a time when she will not be able to execute this simple of a task.

Perhaps your mom is sharp enough to put her medication out a week at a time. There are Sunday through Monday pillboxes available to help keep mom organized. What I did for my mom is get three Sunday through Monday pill containers, one for the am medications, one for the afternoon medications and one for the nighttime medications. I clearly labeled each for the respective time of day. I put them out for her weekly and at 87, she keeps up just fine!!

Then there is the consideration of vitamin and mineral supplements. Vitamins A and C are good to take as long as you have your doctor’s permission. Minerals like calcium and magnesium are also good to take with doctor’s permission. This only becomes a problem area when mom tries to alternatively medicate herself with vitamins, minerals and herbs without telling anyone.

When my mom came home after heart surgery, she was taking many medications that included tranquilizers and sleeping pills. Since she felt she could add to this regimen without telling her doctor, she ended up over medicating herself, falling and going back to the hospital by adding some over the counter alternative medications.

Bottom line message here friends are to fine tune mom’s medications with the help of your doctor (s). Everyone on your mom’s health team including all her doctors and yourself needs to fine tune her medicine regimen and stick to it. Keep your eye out for side effects and seek medical personal if necessary, especially with blood thinners and heart regulators.

Action Step Eight: Nursing Home care

If you were thought out about the day you were going to care for your mom, you may have made arrangements for nursing home insurance early on in your planning. This is a form of insurance, which is very affordable when mom is younger and gets more costly the older she gets.

If you do not have nursing home insurance, then you need to get creative on how to pay for nursing home care because it is expensive, and for good reason.
Check your Medicare and Medicaid to see how much they will pay and for how long.

After a hospital stay, many medical insurances will cover some nursing home stay for the purpose of rehabilitation.

Assisted living is an alternative to nursing home care. Assisted living facilities have community living environments for seniors that include regular meals, laundry service, activities, and security in a safe living space. The apartments come in one and two bedroom and are equipped will pull cord emergency systems just in case. They are also staffed with personnel who make sure the facility runs smoothly.

Action Step Seven: Make a change grid for your mom

Action Step Seven: Make a change grid for your mom
This suggestion incorporates several techniques for helping mom deal with change.
Manage a grid or list of all the changes in your mom’s life and associated tools for helping her deal with the changes. For example of the TV channels, you could set her remote control to all of her favorite channels so all she has to do is press one button to surf. Another suggestion would be to make a list of all her favorite channels and keep it by her TV so she can reference it when Watching TV.

Another might be to get her a TV guide magazine so she can see the channels at a glance as well as the programming for each.
Another scenario might be to help her learn how to use a microwave oven; you might get her a microwave cookbook. Possibly sign her up for microwave cooking lessons. Another might be to make a list of settings for associated operations like warming up coffee etc….

Lesson Seven: Dealing with change

Lesson Seven: Dealing with change
Around every corner in life, there is change. What was once a vibrant active young lady is now a senior citizen needing help with day-to-day activities. Change is never easy and this section is designed to help you deal with the change that is occurring and has already occurred in yours and your mom’s life.

One thing we want to communicate is that change is inevitable; it will take place regardless of how we react to it. So we might as well embrace and respect change. It is easier to go with the flow instead of against it. So how do we understand change and cope with it? We feel the best way is conversation. By discussing change with a family member or friend, it takes a bit of the pressure and ramification of change down a few notches. Holding the regret and bad feelings of change inside without discussing it will only fester and make mom feel bad.

Think about the changes that have occurred in your mom’s life. She was once a vibrant young woman and now she looks and feels very differently. Technology has presented many changes also. My mom still has problems with the TV and cable remote controls. When she was younger, there were 5 TV channels. Today, some communities have as many as 250 channels. You would think that is an advantage but it is not always for mom. She looks at it as confusing.

Action step six: Do a weekly schedule for moms care

This schedule should consist of who is visiting her, family, and friends, medical. It should list when she gets her medicines, baths, laundry, and special diet restrictions and be a useful tool for everyone.

If you are fortunate enough to have help from your family, list all the times family members will commit to taking mom out or just visiting her. If Friday is the day her friend will be picking her up to go play bingo, list that too. If your brother is picking her up to stay with his family for the next weekend, list that too. You might even want to make that list available on line for everyone’s conveience. Maybe make a website for mom!! www.grannyannie.com as an example.

By designing a schedule, you will assure that you will get help carting for your mother and know when you can take a break as well.

Lesson Six: Seeking outside help…

Even the caregiver needs time off. Chances are that your family has one primary caregiver, more often than not, it is the youngest sibbling. It is crucial for the caregiver to have a break. There are many places mom can visit to give you a break. How about visiting an out of town relative? Taking a trip with a friend; playing bingo; church gatherings and activity groups; adult day care to name a few.
Earlier we mentioned asking your family for help. In this section we will provide additional solutions to helping take care of your mom.

If mom was just released form a hospital stay, you can arrange for some home care. Check her insurance to make sure the home care is covered. When my mom came home after her heart surgery, we had visiting nurses, physical therapists as well as nurse’s aids to give mom a bath and general conversation. Check with your hospital and ask who takes car of home visits for your moms health care personnel.