Category: Stroke

Strokes are scary for the person they are inflicting and for the bystanders like you who witness them. It can be hard to understand how to care for your senior after they’ve experienced a stroke, and it can be scary to allow them to age in place after such an event occurs. Survivors of a stroke suffer damage to regions of the brain that are responsible for cognitive processes. Strokes produce a variety of problems concerning attention, language, memory, and vision. Nevertheless, cognitive activities may also improve performance by activating neurons. If you think your senior needs more help than you can give after having a stroke, it may be time to consider hiring home care assistance to help them out.

There are some things that a senior may not be comfortable asking their adult child to do. Home care assistance can help a senior bathe, change, and eat after a stroke; this may not be something your parents wish you to do or witness. It can be more comforting to have home care assistance help them and encourage them to do the following activities.

Try Playing Board Games With Them

Scrabble, chess, and checkers are examples of games that exercise the analytical and visual brain areas. Players are required to evaluate the board and devise ways to outsmart their opponents. The games also need memory to remember how to move game pieces or properly spell words. Moving little game pieces during a game helps to improve fine motor abilities. Card games are further beneficial for memory, strategy, and visual stimulation.

Art Projects or Crafting

Crafting is an additional means of stimulating numerous brain regions. Playing with modeling clay improves fine motor skills and stimulates the visual and problem-solving centers of the brain. Seniors may also choose to explore painting or drawing. Using a pencil to draw shapes on paper improves visual/spatial acuity. Adult coloring has been an on-going trend in recent years. Consequently, coloring books and pages are widely accessible and may be finished using crayons or colored markers. Home care assistance can offer transportation to craft stores or art studios that provide classes for seniors.

After Having a Stroke, Seniors Should Listen to Music

When a person plays a musical instrument, cerebral activity increases. The activity in both hemispheres is extremely pronounced when a musician plays an instrument requiring both hands. Consider playing the elderly individual’s preferred music. Perhaps promote the learning of something as fundamental as the keyboard.

They Can Try Doing Puzzles

Crossword puzzles are a great way to improve memory and other cognitive skills. Sudoku is another form of puzzle that stimulates memory and strategy. It demands completing each grid’s squares with the numbers one through nine without repeating any rows. Daily newspapers, the Internet, and published books all have puzzles.

Seniors Should Always Opt for Reading

Reading involves visual stimulation and the ability to remember the pronunciation and meaning of each word. It also promotes brain plasticity, prompting neurons to become more active and establish more communication pathways. This is something that can be budget-friendly and a fun outing for a senior. They can go to their local bookstore or a library to find a book they want to read.

Source
https://www.cdc.gov/stroke/treatments.htm

If you or an aging loved one is considering home care assistance in St. Paul, MN, and the surrounding areas, please contact the friendly staff at CareBuilders at Home Minnesota. Call today 612-260-2273.

A stroke can do many things to a person’s body. If your elderly loved one had a stroke, one of the things they might be experiencing is a lack of appetite. This happens to many people who have a stroke. Some of the reasons for this are exhaustion, difficulty chewing, and trouble swallowing. If this is the case for your elderly loved one, you can help them to eat enough. Keep reading here to find out how you can do this.

Focus on Foods that Are Favorites

If your elderly loved one doesn’t have much of an appetite after a stroke, you should focus on the foods that are their favorites. Even though they might not want to eat much, having their favorites in the house might entice them to eat at least a bit throughout the day. However, it is important to note that you or the caregivers might have to cut the food up for your elderly loved one. This way, your elderly loved one can chew and swallow the food.

Create Routines

If your elderly loved one doesn’t seem to want to eat, it might be best to create meal routines for them. This means that you or the caregivers can set up specific times that your elderly loved one will eat throughout the day. This way, your elderly loved one knows what times they are being served their food. For instance, if they know they aren’t going to eat dinner until 6:30 p.m. and it is lunchtime at 1:30 p.m., they may be more likely to eat because they know they will be hungry later on, especially if they miss lunch.

Eat with Your Loved One

When someone doesn’t have much of an appetite for any reason, they are more likely to eat if other people are around. If your elderly loved one had a stroke, but doesn’t seem to have an appetite, you or the caregivers should eat meals with them. If you or someone else is sitting down at the table with your elderly loved one, they will be more likely to eat the food you are giving them.

Conclusion

There are so many different things that can happen when someone has a stroke. While having a loss of appetite might seem like a minor thing to many people, if your elderly loved one isn’t eating well or eating enough, they can get very sick. In addition, their body can’t recover well if they aren’t getting the proper nutrients and vitamins. If you use these tips, you might be able to get your elderly loved one to eat better after their stroke. If you try these things and your elderly loved one still isn’t eating well, be sure to talk to their doctor about this.

Sources
https://www.healthlinkbc.ca/health-topics/zu1321

If you or an aging loved one is considering caregivers in St. Louis Park, MN, and the surrounding areas, please contact the friendly staff at CareBuilders at Home Minnesota. Call today 612-260-2273.