Productive Activities to Increase Quality of Life

You and your family may be worried about your loved one’s overall wellbeing as they learn to cope with a dementia related disease.  You may fear that because they are frailer or have simply lost the ability to physically exercise that their life will deteriorate quicker.  There is no need to fear.  You can rest assured that studies have proven that social and productive activities that involved little or no enhancement of fitness offer the same benefits as fitness activities do.  Productive activities are as effective as fitness activities in lowering the risk of death.   Enhanced social and productive activities may help to increase the quality and length of your elderly loved one’s life.

A sense of purposelessness is one of the worst feelings any person can have, so as a caregiver, it is important to help your loved one know that they are valued.  One of the ways to help them feel this way is to encourage productive activities.  Productive activities are divided by ability level.  Many productive activities are household chores.  These activities are usually something that can be tackled with the assistance of a caregiver or other family member or friend.  Not every activity is suitable for every client.  The caregivers from Senior Helpers of Memphis understand that every case of dementia or Alzheimer’s is also unique and can even change from one day to the next.  Some activities that are relatively easy to handle include rinsing, wiping, putting laundry in drawers, putting away unused dishes, and other low energy household activities.  If your loved one is still relatively active and can perform more complex activities, you can look to assisting them with getting the mail, setting the table, wiping windows and mirrors.  Some families find that recommending that their loved one volunteer to be very beneficial.  Volunteering helps seniors stay involved in their communities.  In most cases, volunteering helps seniors to maintain mental well-being.  According to a recent study, seniors who volunteer in social programs not only maintain good brain function, but their brain function and cognitive ability may actually increase.  

As the Alzheimer’s disease progresses, some productive activities will require more and more assistance and supervision.  Senior Helpers of Memphis, 901-753-7520 can walk you and your family through the many productive activities available for your loved one that can be specifically geared to their personal ability level.  While these vary by age, stage and personal interests, these productive activities will help your loved one to feel motivated to get up and get going in the morning.  These are the activities that give a person the sense that they have value and purpose in life.  For as long as possible, keep an eye out for productive activity opportunities that will benefit your loved one.  The senior care specialists from Senior Helpers of Memphis are experts in dementia care and will work with you and your family to create the most effective care plan for your elderly loved one.  By working with Senior Helpers of Memphis your loved one can remain independent in the comforts of their own home and community in Memphis, Germantown, Bartlett, Collierville, and Cordova, Tennessee.

As our loved ones age, we may begin to wonder how we can improve and possibly even extend their lives.  If your loved one is experiencing difficulty with performing some of their daily tasks without assistance, or if they are struggling with their limited abilities in physical activity, there is no need to worry that they are not getting the stimulation they need.  If your loved one is too frail or is suffering from a physical ailment that makes physical activity and exercise difficult, you can count on Senior Helpers of Memphis to provide a list of productive activities that will enhance your loved one’s life.  Studies have proven that there is no need to vigorous activity to extend or enhance a loved one’s life.  Productive activities have been shown to have the same effect on the now elderly, the soon-to-be-elderly, and the emerging baby-boom-elderly health as physical activity such as exercise and may even slow the aging process in seniors.