With the average life expectancy in the United States going up each year, a growing number of older adults are finding themselves in home health care annually.
If you have an elderly loved one that has been needing care for some time now, then you’ve most likely considered signing them up for home health care. Thankfully, this is where services like Gateway Home Health and Hospice’s home-based services come in handy.
Living at Home with Older Adults
With so many people living for two or three decades after retiring, your parents, grandparents, or elderly relatives are bound to need proper care later down the line. Fortunately, professional home-based clinical services will allow them to visit with you and ensure that they get adequate care.
However, the problem is that your elderly loved ones are bound to face mobility issues sooner or later. Although retirement brings about great opportunities to make the most out of their lives, travel, enjoy new hobbies, or take on new projects, their bodies can get the best of them. And you must help your loved one overcome the risk of losing mobility and other physical disabilities.
Improving Mobility in Older Adults with Exercise
For any older adult that suffers from mobility issues, getting around can become especially difficult, or even impossible. Unfortunately, these limitations can dampen the experience your older loved ones have at home and leave them prone to injuries and other issues that may impede their quality of life.
Fortunately, it is possible to help older adults improve their mobility through a proper combination of exercise and healthy habits. To help your loved ones stay active, comfortable, and involved with family and close friends, here are a few tips that can help immensely:
At Least 1 Day of Active Exercise per Week
If you’re looking to help your loved one at home improve their mobility, exercise their muscles, and improve their mental health considerably, exercise is without a doubt one of the best ways to do so.
To give you a better idea of the kind of activities that they can enjoy and incorporate into their weekly routine, here are a few ideas:
- Walking or hiking
- Jogging
- Yoga
- Swimming
- Cycling
- Tai chi
- Ballroom dancing
Work with Home Health Care Attendants to Encourage Daily Activities
When an older person is in home health care, we work to prevent our patients from growing stagnant and possibly compromising their mobility further because they don’t walk around and move as much as they should.
To avoid such an issue, we recommend collaborating with your elderly loved one’s home health attendants to develop a plan that will help encourage daily activities that will get them moving. With the help of a proper exercise regimen, it will be easier to avoid mobility-related limitations through stretching and other simple physical movements.
Conclusion
Although caring for your elderly loved one within the comforts of your home can bring about relief, you must account for the potential mobility hurdles they may end up facing. With this guide, you can prevent unwanted issues from getting in the way.
Gateway Home Health has developed specialized programs that utilize state-of-the-art technology to ensure the highest quality of care and improve the health and well-being of our clients. Our home health and hospice locations in Colorado Springs, Denver, and Phoenix are eager to help. Contact us today!