When your elderly family member is facing fatigue, she needs to start doing something, but what? Big changes may not get her the results she wants, especially not quickly. Smaller changes may not be as showy, but they’re easier to stick with in the long run.
Start Tracking What’s Happening
Tracking what’s going on and what works is really important for your aging family member. This helps her to be able to keep tabs on how the changes she’s making are really impacting her overall well-being. If it’s difficult for her to keep track on her own, having a caregiver assist with keeping a log can be a solid answer.
Narrow Down What Might Not Be Helping
As your senior continues to log what she’s doing, eating, and drinking, she’s going to start seeing patterns. Some of the things she’s doing may help quite a bit. Other things may be working against her. It’s entirely possible that some of the techniques that are not working well are actually things she should consider stopping altogether. Drinking a little more alcohol than is wise or continuing to smoke could be draining her more than she thinks, even if she’s made the switch to other positive habits.
Increase Exercise Levels, if She Can
If your elderly family member is cleared to exercise, that might be an idea to try. Exercise helps to build up strength and stamina, and it also improves lung and heart health. It helps to boost mood also, especially if she’s exercising regularly. The brain releases more and more chemicals that help with balancing mood and dealing with other issues. She may find that she starts to sleep better, too, which can definitely help with fatigue.
Save Naps for a Last Resort
Your elderly family member might feel as if naps are the best solution to help her to battle fatigue. But she might find that naps aren’t doing as much for her as she hoped they would. Short naps might be helpful, but only if she keeps them to half an hour or less and aims for having the nap fairly early in the day. Having a longer nap closer to bedtime is likely to interfere with nighttime sleep.
It’s highly likely that there needs to be a variety of solutions in place for your senior to be able to win the day over fatigue. She may find that it takes longer than she expects but sticking with what works is going to help a lot.
If you or an aging loved one is considering caregivers in Sedalia, CO, please contact the caring staff at SYNERGY HomeCare today at 303-953-9924.
