You spent most of your life with your mum and never imagined a time when you’d have to send her into one of the residential aged care homes in your area. But with her condition, you know that this is the smartest option because you can ensure that she’ll be in the hands of capable professionals who can provide the best care for her.
All too often, people talk about how to help seniors settle into aged care. But how about the ones left behind? If you’re one of those struggling to cope with having a loved one move into aged care, here are four tips that you might find useful:
Allow yourself to process your emotions.
You’ve probably had to put on a strong front through all of this because you don’t want your mum to see that this is a hard time for you. But now that she’s in aged care, it’s time to give yourself time to process all those emotions. It could be sadness, anxiety and even guilt. No matter what you’re feeling, acknowledge them because that’s the first step to making sure that you’re able to cope with this transition.
Create a good relationship with the staff.
If you’ve been your mum’s primary carer for many years, it could be hard to give up that responsibility to someone you don’t know. So if you can, make sure to build a good relationship with the staff in aged care. These people are more than capable of taking care of your loved one, and having that relationship with them gives you confidence that you can reach them anytime to see how your mum’s doing and that you know she’s in good hands.
Help your loved one get settled in.
It will take time for your mum to settle into her new home, especially if she has lived in the same house for most of her life. But what you can do to make this transition easy is to decorate her room with things that are familiar to her. It could be her favourite curtains, blankets, picture frames and books. Putting together a comfortable space for your mum will not only be therapeutic to her but also to you because you know that you’re giving her something that she can be happy in.
Maintain your relationship with your loved one.
Finally, seniors often fear that once they move into aged care, they will be forgotten by their loved ones and cooped up in their rooms. If you don’t want your mum to feel that way, you need to make sure that she always feels loved. You can give her daily phone calls, visit her during the weekends and even take her out every once in a while. Maintaining that relationship will not only keep your mum happy, but it will also give you that sense of normalcy in this new setup.
