An Extra Hand for Your Loved One During the Holidays
Homemaker services can help seniors manage the extra events, decorating, and shopping of the holidays.
It’s a holly, jolly, hectic time of year. It’s often called the most wonderful time of the year, and it is! With all the festive events happening, holiday-themed decorations, decadent meals, and family get-togethers, it can be truly magical. But if your elderly loved one is living alone, even if you or homemaker services step in and help her with daily living chores, adding on the holiday festivities can be overwhelming.
Five Tips for Reducing Holiday Stress
While it’s inevitable that there will simply be more to do this season, you can take a bit of time with your elderly loved one and set realistic expectations before all of the hullabaloo begins. By chatting beforehand, you can reduce the stress and anxiety of having these conversations right in the middle of the holiday chaos.
Tip #1: Set Realistic Expectations for Home Decorating
Maybe when the kids were little, your elderly loved one and spouse lined the house with holiday lights and put up inflatables in the yard to celebrate the holidays. Perhaps people even made special trips to see how nicely decorated their homes were.
But if your loved one lives alone now, talk to her about paring it down this year to something more manageable (and less dangerous to put up).
Tip #2: Reduce Activities
During the holidays, it can seem like a new invitation comes through every week to attend a “special” holiday event, and they all look wonderful! Unfortunately, trying to do them all can not only break your budget, it can also cause exhaustion.
Talk to your elderly loved one early about one or two extra events she’d like to attend, and then stick to those. By just doing a few, she’ll enjoy them more.
Tip #3: Make Shopping Easier
Driving through crowded streets, fighting packed stores to get the right present, and then getting it all inside, wrapped, and ready to deliver can be exhausting for your elderly loved one. Help her discover how to shop online when it makes sense.
For families far away, she can have presents sent directly to them, so she doesn’t need to worry about wrapping, bringing them to the post office, and paying for shipping. For items for herself, like groceries, a local delivery service or homemaker services provider can reduce the stress of navigating a crowded grocery store filled with holiday shoppers.
Tip #4: Set a Budget
As alluded to in points 1-3, the holidays have a lot of “extras” that can add up not only in time and stress but financially as well. If your loved one is on a limited budget, it’s important now to help her determine how much she’s going to spend so she doesn’t overdo it. It’s not only presents to consider, it’s entertainment, travel, and décor.
Tip #5: Hire Homemaker Services
If your loved one feels overwhelmed by all she needs to do this holiday season but doesn’t want to miss out on any special events, perhaps having someone provide homemaker services during the holiday season is just what she needs. Homemaker services providers can help with cleaning chores around the home, keeping her home guest-ready. They can also step in and help with meal preparation.
When the holidays are over, your loved one can still use homemaker services to help her clean up from the holidays and put everything away until next year.
If you or an aging loved one are considering Homemaker Services in Glenview, IL, contact the caring staff at Companion Services of America today at (847) 948-0860. Our home care service area includes Northbrook, Highland Park, Deerfield, Glenview, Buffalo Grove, Evanston, Des Plaines, Skokie, Lake Forest, Wilmette, and the surrounding areas.
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