Are You Asking the Right Questions About Your Dad’s Daily Routine?

By Shanele Healy | December 21, 2020 |

How does your dad spend his day? Does he have a routine or do things as he pleases? After retirement, many people love the relaxed schedule of staying up late and getting up well into the morning. This is fine if it doesn’t interfere with daily routines like prescription medications. If he has a pill he’s supposed to take at a certain time, does he do it or frequently miss doses?

When it comes to aging at home, you need to support your dad’s goals. You also need to make sure he’s taking the right steps to stay emotionally, mentally, and physically healthy. You need to ask these questions to make sure his daily routine isn’t jeopardizing his well-being.

Does He Take Medications?

Senior Care Statesville, NC: Daily Routines

What prescription medications does your dad take? If he has blood pressure medications, beta-blockers, antidepressants, or other common prescription medications, he needs to know how to take them. Some may require him to take them on an empty stomach. They may need to be taken at the same time of day and not when he gets to it.

Is He Lonely?

Loneliness is common when older adults live alone. If your dad is alone and you can only visit once or twice a month, he may be lonely. You need to ask him. It’s not the easiest conversation to have, but it’s an important one.

What Does He Eat?

When your dad gets up, what does he like to eat? Does he skip breakfast and only have a cup of coffee? How about lunch and dinner? Use his answers to decide if he’s eating a balanced diet or starving his body of essential nutrients. If he has coffee for breakfast, fast food for lunch, and frozen pizza for dinner, his diet needs attention.

What Does He Like to Do for Activity?

Everyone needs at least 30 minutes of exercise each day. Ideally, your dad is getting 30 minutes of exercise all week long, but experts highly recommend meeting this goal five days a week. How much exercise is your dad getting? What activities does he enjoy? If he rides his bike, you should make sure he puts on a helmet and is visible if it’s dark outside.

If your dad is in the early stages of dementia, it’s important to consider how safe he is walking alone. He may know his home now, but months or years from now, he may go for a walk and not recognize the house when it’s time to return.

Talk to your dad about the benefits of senior care. He ages at home, doing the things he enjoys, but he has a little help with daily tasks that are hard for him to do independently. He’s supported to ensure he’s able to live alone without risk or loneliness. Call a senior care agency to make arrangements.

If you or an aging loved one are considering in Senior Care in Statesville, NC, please call the professional staff at Caring at Heart today at (704) 379-7510. Serving Charlotte, Statesville, Ballantyne, Mooresville, Huntersville, Matthews, Concord, Gastonia, Pineville and Indian Trail

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Shanele Healy

Owner at Caring at Heart

Caring for others has always been a passion for the owner. She joined the healthcare field while still in high school believing that every health provider had the same intentions at heart. While working as a nurse assistant,Gloria quickly realized that those whom needed us most were being neglected and not receiving the best quality of care they deserved.
Knowing in her heart that families deserved better, she started Caring At Heart in 2008 with two key goals in mind: To provide clients and their families with an experience that was personable, easy, and reassuring and to create a working environment that employees were excited and proud to be a part of.