With the passage of time, our bodies start showing their age, even as the stress of day to day living makes its presence felt. This holds particularly true for our aging parents and other relatives who suffer from a host of geriatric problems ranging from the physical, all the way to mental and emotional ones. This is why there is a dire necessity for helping senior citizens cope with their day to day lives.

The issues and problems that the elderly have to face on a routine basis are compounded by their longer life spans. Here the key issue is that a relatively longer lifespan can turn out to be a bit of a double-edged sword, as well. The main reason being that even though the elderly may live for far more years than ever before, but nevertheless the ‘waning years’ (as the very term implies) might not necessarily be exactly what they had in mind. As a matter of fact, many new studies suggest that around two-thirds of Americans who have achieved retirement age (over 65) now need help conducting day to day activities. These include such routine stuff as bathing, eating, and getting in and out of bed or even their favorite armchair.

Apart from that, many seniors also go through certain major life changes that dramatically influence their emotional equilibrium. That is, many such changes have the potential to make them far more vulnerable to depression. Sometimes so much so, that their whole lives seem as if they have shrunk into a dark vortex of despair. It can be a heart-rending time not just for the elderly, but also the people who love them, such as their offspring and other younger relatives.

o Coping with depression and loss

After all both, isolation as well as loneliness, are universally widespread amongst the elder members of our society. Such loneliness may be due to the aching loss of a dearly beloved spouse, whose untimely death, after literally decades of companionship can lead to an unfillable void of loneliness, even as the surviving spouse mourns the loss of his or her greatest friend ever, in life.

Apart from that, the enforced isolation can also be compounded by actual physical declines, such as decreased hearing or vision or the mobility that may be a thing of the past, due to the loss of driving ability.

The elderly have to bear the passing of their childhood friends stoically, with little to look forward to beyond, going the same way themselves. There are considerably fewer opportunities for the kind of social engagement that they used to enjoy so much, in their younger days.

Due to numerous such issues many, if not most elderly people tend to prefer to remain in their own homes and deal with their loneliness on their own terms as they progressively age. In spite of caregivers, they still lack the element of fun, of excitement and perhaps most important of all, a feeling of connection to their peers. While family members may come and visit at sporadic intervals, there is often a sense of ‘too little too late’ from the point of view of both the parties involved.

Here is what you can do to help your aged parents and other elderly relatives, make the best of their remaining time:

o You should try and maintain contact as frequently as possible  

When it comes to helping senior citizens cope with their day to day lives, many people think that calling mom and dad once a month is good enough, well think again. For the elderly who have lost their mobility and many of their abilities to function independently on a daily basis, the contact they have with their kids are all that keeps them going. They look forward and cherish such contacts, far more than anyone can imagine.

This aching ‘need’ to maintain contact is increased exponentially on special days such as his or her birthday, the death anniversary of a cherished spouse and so on and so forth. Moreover, such contact should be a fairly regular thing in itself and the call prolonged as much as possible.  This is because they want to hear the most; the voice of their children.

o Take time out to visit them at regular intervals

While calling them is all good and well, but it can seldom if ever, take the place of an actual in-person visit.  This way they will be able to both see you and feel your presence in their lives all over again. They will hug you and hold your hand and thereby “feel” the benefit of your physical presence. If distance and time constraints make it impossible to conduct frequent visits, then consider video calling them as well.

o The benefits of social media

Getting them hooked on social media will not only help them while away their time but will also make them really happy in the bargain. Make FB and WhatsApp groups of your entire family scattered all over the world. This way they will be able to keep in touch not only with their near and dear ones but the rest of the world too, thereby effectively enabling them to keep up with the times. As an added benefit, you will be able to keep tabs on them, discreetly.

o Take a look at the community resource centers for the elderly

Many, if not most urban and suburban areas also have senior centers with really good opportunities that will help the aged to connect and make friends. These centers offer not only a place for the elderly to socialize but also offer both entertainments as well as various interactive social games (such as bingo for instance).

We at Tommy’s Team help many such senior citizens living alone or even in rest homes for the elderly.  We try and ensure that not only are they able to find their bearings in a fast-paced society, but that they remain productive and gainful members of society for as long as it is possible for them to be so. We firmly believe in helping senior citizens cope with their day to day lives. We are ever on the lookout for volunteers who will help us continue our mission to make this world a better place. You can join us simply by registering at http://www.tommysteam.com/