With warm, sunny days ahead, there are so many great fun ways to enjoy the outside of the Chicagoland Area. Especially as seniors, the fresh air can break up a monotonous day inside and boost energy and happiness levels. Just being outside and breathing that fresh air can help brighten your day! So what’s one of our favorite outside activities? Gardening. Whether it’s growing vegetables or flowers, gardening can be a great way to keep active and remain healthy as a senior. However, those repetitive actions and staying hunched over for an afternoon can put a strain on your
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Archives for Freedom Home Care
Home Fire Prevention
Every year, more than 1000 seniors die in fires started at home, while 2000 are injured. According to usfa.fema.gov.com, in 2015, incidents with seniors involved in fires were almost 3 times as likely to end in fatality than any other age group in the U.S. And with more older loved ones opting to age-in-place, it’s likely that the number of of fire-related injuries will continue to increase as well. If you have a senior who lives alone or is considering living alone, it’s important that both you and your loved one are familiar with fire safety and are able to
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Choosing Between Assisted Living and Home Care
One in seven people in the U.S. is 65 or older. By the year 2035, experts say that number will jump to one in seven. And an estimated one in three people will be considered head of household. At some point, many seniors will need some form of in-home or assisted living care. This presents a challenge for not only family members residing with older loved ones, but also for the seniors themselves. With more than 31 million people predicted to be living with a disability over the next 20 years, families will need to begin making choices now in
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What You Need to Know About Long Distance Caregiving
Distance makes the heart grow fonder. And in terms of helping out a family member or friend in need, distance can also make caregiving seem more difficult. In a perfect world, we’d be able to instantly be there for a loved one in their time of need. However, location, work, finances, and a number of other factors can often prevent that from happening. The good news? There’s still so much you can do from far away. If you’re new to long distance caregiving, we’re sharing our insights into how you can best support your loved one even from a distance.
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Helpful Tips to Plan for Retirement
Simply put, it’s never too early to start planning for your retirement. For some, this can seem like a stressful task. But the better prepared you are by starting to save early and organizing your paperwork, the easier the transition will be. From fun adventures to unforeseen bumps in the road, we’ve listed a few of our helpful tips to plan for a retirement that can handle anything life throws your way. Get Your Estate Plan in Order While we hope you’ll be happily and healthily traveling the world in your post-work life, it’s just as important to
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Routine Check-ups Are Key: National Women's Check-up Day: May 14th
We don’t have to tell you that getting regular senior check-ups are essential to your loved one’s health. Not only does having a bi-annual exam help treat any underlying conditions, it can also detect any potential illnesses or diseases. But what you may not know is that the type of check-up and how often it’s performed usually depends on the age, health, history and lifestyle choices of your senior. If your loved one is not completely comfortable with the idea of having a routine check-up, here are a few reasons Freedom Home Care came up with to help remind them
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How to Choose a Medical Alert System
One of the most important decisions your loved one will make, is the choice to age in place. But for many family members not receiving around-the-clock care from a home health care agency, the idea of a senior parent or grandparent living alone is a scary thought. But it doesn’t have to be. Today, medical alert systems are offering families real peace of mind, while allowing older loved ones the option of being able to remain safely at home. But investing in a medical device is an important choice. So how do you find the system that’s right for you
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Common Ways to Help Parkinson's Disease
Parkinson’s disease or PD is a nervous system disorder the affects movement. It may start with small tremors and eventually progress to muscle stiffening and a decrease in the range of motion. The cause of the condition is unknown, although research suggests that neurons in the brain break down and die. Over time, there’s a decrease in dopamine levels, leading to abnormal brain activity. Your loved one may be more susceptible to PD if they have family members who have been affected by it or they’ve been exposed to certain environmental toxins. While Parkinson’s can not be cured, doctors are
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Women's Eye Health & Safety Month: Tips for Your Eye Health
It’s likely that many people will experience vision problems with age. By 70, the risk of low vision or serious eye conditions in women significantly increases. In fact, in the next two years, there will be more women living with glaucoma than men. According to modernmedicine.com the number of Americans diagnosed with the disease will jump from 60 to 80 million by 2020 – with women outnumbering and out-living men. Fortunately, many of the changes we experience in eyesight are the result of the normal aging process. But while a slight decline in vision in expected to happen over
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How Stress Affects Seniors and How We Can Help
Ready or not, stress always seems to have a sneaky way of finding us. And while most of the time it comes and goes and we’re able to bounce back fairly quickly, as we get older it’s harder and harder to get a hold on stress—and stress ends up taking a hold on us. Unfortunately, along with the stress comes a boatload of health concerns that are directly caused by it. But there’s good news: there are so many things you, and your home care agency, can do to help manage your stress and take back your life. How
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