Senior Home Health Care Denver - My Journey to Understanding the Challenges of our Seniors

The transition from a normal, independent middle-aged person to one with incapacitating Guillian Barré Syndrome is not a pleasant one.  A three-week hospital stay and countless diagnostic tests resulted in my GBS diagnosis.  This is an insidious immune system disorder that causes severe nerve and muscle damage.  My case is much less severe than many who are afflicted with it, but it still caused a paralysis that made me fall numerous times ultimately resulting in a broken ankle.

I’m glad to finally be home, but I  currently have to rely on a walker to move around.  Daily mundane tasks like running the vacuum, driving a car and watering plants are still out of my ability range.  My feet and hands are not working properly;  the broken ankle is the least of my problems.

On a positive note, this experience has given me a new appreciation for the challenges that so many people face every day.  I’ll never look at a person using a walker or a cane in the same way again; I will always wonder what chain of events led them to that predicament.  Severe illness can take you to a dark place.  I have been fortunate, until now, to be a very healthy adult and never visited this very frightening place before—one that forces you to realize that circumstances beyond your control can result in a loss of your independence.

Even though very little is known about the causes of GBS and there is no cure for it, the nerve damage generally reverses itself.  The time frame for the reversal varies from individual to individual.  There is hope for full recovery; many other illnesses do not offer this hope.  This experience has taught me to “empathize” with those who are dealing with severe health issues.  I have a better understanding of their fears and their hopes for recuperation.

Gerri Tyber, Operations Manager
Barton Home Care

Late-life depression may affect about 15% of older people at any given time.  This complex problem exists throughout the year, but seems to be more perceptible during the holiday season.  A logical explanation is that the holidays may be the only contact that the elderly have with many of their family members and friends.  The depression goes unnoticed until such reunions take place.  Elderly relatives may seem different than they did in the previous year—more irritable or nervous, quieter, focused on people who have died.  The joy of the season may be noticeably lacking.  This is particularly common among people who have suffered serious physical challenges like a heart attack, cancer or personal loss.  Social networks diminish.  All of these types of things combined with pressures of the season and changes in normal routine can trigger depression.

The generations who grew up in the Great Depression are often of a mindset that lets them ignore obvious symptoms like mood swings and appetite loss as just something they need to deal with.  Their natural stoicism prohibits them from seeking help.  Left unattended, depression can become debilitating.  Depending upon its progression, dealing with it can be as simple as reconnecting with people or getting out of the house.  If family and friends are unavailable during most of the year, there are other options to help increase social interaction. In-home senior care can help fill this void.

If the depression is more advanced, counseling may be needed or even antidepressants to help the individual cope with daily living.  It is important that families closely monitor their older relatives for signs of depression.

Gerri Tyber

Operations Manager, Barton Home Care

Recent studies suggest that daytime brightness in care facilities and in homes in general may modestly improve symptoms of dementia.  Bodies regulate how much melatonin, a hormone that is produced while sleeping, to produce based on how much light is perceived.  The body uses light levels to determine when it is daytime and when it is nighttime.

People usually spend more time inside, where it is darker, as they age.  This makes it more difficult for the body to know when to sleep and when to be awake.  That affects the amount of melatonin in the system, which in turn affects our circadian rhythms.  These are internal rhythms that result because of repetitive biological processes—those that recur every 24 hours.  Circadian rhythm can be influenced by a number of factors including the presence or absence of daylight.

Sleep/wake cycles are typically disturbed by dementia which can cause deterioration of mood, cognition and behavioral organization.  Research by the University of Sunderland in England has found that regular exposure to safe, low-level infra-red light can improve learning performance and jump start the cognitive function of the brain.  In addition, symptoms of depression are reduced.  Low levels of infra-red light are totally safe and occur naturally in sunlight.

A prototype cognitive helmet has been developed and is currently undergoing human testing in early stage dementia patients.  Experts say that early-stage dementia patients should see an improvement in cognitive function within a month by wearing this lightweight helmet in their homes for ten minutes a day.

In studies performed in the Netherlands, melatonin supplements in combination with bright light reduced aggressive behavior by 9%.  Simple measures like increasing illumination in both care facilities and homes can positively impact cognition, behavior, moods, sleep and functional activities with no adverse consequences.

Gerri Tyber, Operations Manager
Barton Home Care