(ARA) – “My body aches and my head is throbbing. Do I have the flu or is it just because I’m stressed or tired? Do I need a flu shot? Do I need the H1N1 vaccine, too?”

Millions of Americans, including the elderly, will be asking themselves these and more questions this fall and winter as news reports and health care providers continue to warn about seasonal influenza and novel H1N1 influenza, otherwise known as swine flu.

The flu symptoms self-assessment tool on MayoClinic.com can help you assess whether you or your loved ones have some form of flu, or just a cold. If you possibly or likely have the flu, you’ll also learn whether antiviral medication is an option. And you can check a concise list of high-risk groups who should seek medical attention for the flu.

Flu – influenza – is caused by a virus that attacks your respiratory system. Health experts agree that if you’re generally in good health, the flu – either seasonal or H1N1 – will likely do no more than make you feel rotten for a few days. You probably won’t develop complications or need to go to the hospital. If, however, you have an already weakened immune system or are among those considered high risk – such as infants, young children, pregnant women or the elderly – the flu can be a serious and even fatal illness.

Common symptoms of both the seasonal and swine flu include:

* Sudden onset. Colds usually develop over a few days and are only a nuisance. Flu hits you quickly and hard.

* Chills, sweats, headache and body aches, especially in the back, arms and legs.

* Fever higher than 101 F in adults and up to 103 or 105 in children.

* Nasal congestion but a dry cough.

* Overall weakness and fatigue.

* No appetite in adults and children, and diarrhea and vomiting in children.

* Worsening of chronic ailments like asthma, diabetes and heart disease.

Most healthy adults will only need to treat the symptoms and let the illness run its course. Infants, young children or adults at risk of complications, however, should see the doctor right away. Antiviral drugs, taken in the first 48 hours that symptoms develop, may trim the length of the illness and help prevent the development of serious complications like pneumonia.

Ultimately, getting vaccinated is the best way to protect yourself and your loved ones from contracting the flu. Talk to your health care provider about getting vaccinated. Visit www.MayoClinic.com for more information on managing your health.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

Visit us at  www.berkenseniorcare.com  if you need help for a senior loved one in the area.

By WARREN WOLFE

Minneapolis Star Tribune

Across the nation this holiday season, thousands of families will slam into the reality that life has changed for aging parents — dad is far more frail than relatives thought, mom forgot to prepare the holiday feast, the house is filthy, the refrigerator is bare, or a stack of bills has gone unpaid.

This is known territory for many of the 46 million Americans who help frail, aging relatives and friends. But for some, it comes as a shock, and they often have little notion of what help is available, or even what is needed. 

Services for caregivers know that their phones will light up as worried adult children begin sorting out disturbing discoveries and seeking advice and help.

“Sometimes they just want basic information, but sometimes people are very worried about a parent’s driving, or falls, or ability to keep living on their own,” said Annette Peterson, help-line coordinator at the Alzheimer’s Association Minnesota-North Dakota chapter in Bloomington, Minn.

It’s common for families to disagree about what they’re seeing, Peterson said. Those arguments sometimes are sharpened on old family disputes, and neutral care advisers can help mediate disagreements and figure out what is needed. Good advice is don’t panic. If you try to address your dad’s driving and he slams the door in your face, that’s not a failure, that’s the start of a conversation.

Getting help is critical for most caregivers “because we always think we ought to be able to handle this stuff on our own, and we can’t,” said Beth Gale, who works full time and has a husband and three sons at home.

In 2007, she flew to Arizona for Christmas with her mother and found her filthy, confused and with infected scratches from her dog. She took her mom to the hospital, then to a nursing home, then to live with her family. That lasted only a couple of days before her mother fell, broke her pelvis and ended up in a nursing home with a troubled history.

“If I’d known how to get some help, I could have avoided some big mistakes,”Gale said. Her mom — who had Alzheimer’s disease, heart problems and other illnesses — is living in a small and much better assisted-living facility “and she’s happier than I’ve seen her for years.”

“My advice is, get help right away,”Gale said. “When you’re up to your neck in a crisis, you don’t know what to do, you don’t know what’s most important and you don’t know the system or the jargon. Find somebody who does.” 

For just such assistance, or additional information, you can visit us at www.berkenseniorcare.com.

Original content found HERE:

Should Mom Be Living Alone? 

Recently I received a call from Michelle, an exasperated adult daughter asking if there was any legal way to get her elderly father to stop yelling, screaming and berating her, and to accept a caregiver so she could move out of his house. She had moved in to help him after her mom passed, but was now trapped as he refused to move to assisted living or accept live-in help. 

Michelle started to cry, saying she had just called an agency where a man “laughed at me,” saying her father could do whatever he wished in his own home short of physically abusing her. Since I have survived the same situation with my own father, I knew the misery she was going through.

Continue reading HERE:  

As always, visit us at  www.berkenseniorcare.com  if you need help caring for an aging parent in the area.

How to Find the Right Home Health Care Agency

by Marlo Sollitto, Editor 

Marilyn is a 72-year-old widow who recently underwent heart angioplasty surgery. She is preparing to leave the hospital soon. But recovering from open-heart surgery is a long process, and her family knows she will need continued medical assistance once she gets home. The family must find a reputable home health care agency that can provide licensed nurses as well as aides to tend to Marilyn on a daily basis.

Finding the right agency can be a daunting task, but not impossible, says Tilly Gambill, Manager of Marketing and Communications for the American Association for Homecare. 

Continue reading HERE:

Holiday Visits: A Time When Adult Children May Notice a Decline with Their Aging Parents

As the holidays approach, many long distance caregivers are now planning visits to their aging loved ones – perhaps the first opportunity in several months to personally observe older relatives.

And the number of caregivers considered long distance is significant. According to a study conducted by the National Alliance of Caregiving, in collaboration with AARP, 15% of the estimated 34 million Americans who provide care to older family members live an hour or more away from their relative.

Continue reading HERE:

What It’s Like to Have Dementia

Understanding dementia symptoms from the inside can make you a better caregiver – and bring you closer to your loved one.

You know how frustrating and heartbreaking dementia symptoms are from the point of view of a caregiver. You know the pain of slowly seeing a loved one slip away. But what is it like for her? What is it like for a person to slowly — or sometimes quickly — forget almost everything she ever knew? 

Continue reading article HERE.

(ARA) – Americans are taking a closer look at their own personal health and assessing changes they can make, as the topic of health care remains front and center. More and more, people are paying attention to the cost of prevention and care for chronic illnesses such as diabetes, as they have a high risk for health complications.

Diabetes now affects nearly 24 million people in the United States, an increase of more than 3 million in approximately two years, according to 2007 prevalence data estimates released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). If not controlled, diabetes in particular can lead to serious health complications including heart disease, blindness and kidney failure. That’s why it is extremely important to manage the disease on a daily basis.

To stay healthy and avoid potential consequences, people with diabetes can take steps every day to manage the disease. In addition to eating a balanced diet and exercising, this also involves monitoring blood glucose levels each day and seeing their physician regularly to check in and monitor their A1C levels – a test that provides a two to three month indication of average of blood glucose.

Fortunately, medical advances have made it easier for people with chronic illnesses, like diabetes, to closely monitor their health and better manage the disease, along with their healthcare providers. For example, years ago, people with diabetes relied on laboratory obtained tests to get a clinical measure of their A1C levels – a process that required a wait time.

Now patients can, for the first time, test their A1C at-home and get results within five minutes with Bayer’s A1CNow(R) SELFCHECK in between regularly scheduled doctor visits. This allows them to take a more active role in their diabetes over the long term, like modifying their diet and exercise, and have an informed discussion with their healthcare provider based on the results.

By working with their doctors on appropriate disease management, patients may see a reduction of their A1C level and subsequently reduce their risk for complications associated with diabetes. A 1 percent point reduction in A1C can reduce the risk of serious complications by 40 percent.

The A1CNow SELFCHECK allows patients to further participate in their diabetes care by monitoring their A1C levels in between physician visits. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) recommends performing an A1C test at least two times a year in patients who are meeting treatment goals and have stable glycemic control. The ADA recommends quarterly testing (four times a year) for patients whose therapy has changed or are not meeting glycemic goals.

Clinical research and advancements in technology are helping people with diabetes manage the chronic condition to achieve long-term success until a cure for the disease is found. People with diabetes are encouraged to visit www.SimpleWins.com for more information on the tools and resources that can help them properly manage the disease and invest in their health.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

If you need help for an aging senior, visit us at www.berkenseniorcare.com.

Contrary to what we’ve been led to believe, senior living isn’t always the way it’s portrayed in glossy sales brochures and magazine advertisements. Rather than being a carefree period of life spent on the golf course and traveling around the world, for many of today’s seniors those “golden years” are incredibly stressful times.

What causes seniors so much stress? Change is a huge trigger for stress and seniors definitely experience plenty of change. It can be in the form of declining health, death of friends and loved ones, moving, a bad financial investment, and the list goes on. Here are some other reasons why senior living is stressful.

Continue reading HERE.  Visit us at www.berkenseniorcare.com if you need help with an aging loved one in the area.

Baby Boomers and Aging Parents – Six Tips to Prepare For Their Care

By Katie B. Marsh

Although there is some debate over the exact age range of the Baby Boom generation, the US Census Bureau identifies most Boomers as those who were born between the years 1956 to 1965. In any case, whether you were born within that time frame or fairly close to it, chances are you are beginning to deal with end-of-life issues regarding your elderly parents. Your many considerations run the gamut from the practical to the spiritual and everything in between. So, where do you begin?

Caregivers. Imagine if we ended our lives as babies, completely dependent on a caregiver tending to all of our needs: loving us, feeding us, changing our diapers. Imagine now that we are not as cute as little babies but still have the same need to be cared for gently with love and respect. Who would you want to take care of you in this situation? Who do your parents want to care for them? This question should be posed directly to your parents. Don’t assume you know the answer. What they may have said 10 to 15 years ago may not still hold true today as they are closer to facing their mortality.

Finances. As we know, in our society it’s considered impolite to ask someone about their finances. Many adult children hesitate to inquire about the exact state of their parents’ finances for fear that their parents will think that the real questions is about potential future inheritance money. But it’s extremely important to have an honest discussion about finances at this point in life. First of all, you need to know if your parents have long-term care insurance. This is the only type of insurance that pays for future assistance that may be needed in the performance of activities of daily living. And, as the name implies, it helps cover the cost of long-term care usually for an undetermined length of time. Long-term care insurance combined with your parents’ net worth, any financial assistance from family, and personal preferences will all factor in to determining where and how your parents live out their final years.

Memoirs. The written word is a way for us to live on beyond this lifetime. Encourage your parents to share their unique stories on paper. My great grandfather actually typed his life story and had it bound in leather and embossed in gold leaf. My brother, sister, and I cherish it and each wish we had our own copy.

Legal Instruments. A living trust is a very important instrument for any family with assets to bequeath. Its main purpose is to avoid probate. Much of a family’s estate can be lost through probate; setting up a living trust is a way to prevent such a loss. It is best to hire an attorney to set up a living trust tailored to your family’s specific needs.

The next consideration is to find out to whom your parents have given or intended to give power of attorney. Power of attorney assigns power to an individual to act on your behalf to handle all of your legal and business matters in the event that you are unable to do this for yourself.

Lastly, an advance directive is a legal instrument prepared in advance by an individual. It gives health care instructions to your care providers in the event you are unable to conduct such matters on your own. A living will, power of attorney, health care proxy, and Five Wishes are all forms of an advance directive.

Possessions. A Last Will and Testament is the instrument to be prepared by your parents to assign care for their dependents, if any. This can include pets as well. Also, this is the legal mechanism through which they can identify one or more persons to manage their estate and provide instructions for the distribution of their personal possessions. This includes everything from real estate and expensive jewelry to the simplest sentimental items. Funeral and burial instructions can also be outlined here. Although this is a legal document, completing one can give great comfort to your parents, giving them control and certainty over one aspect of their lives.

Final Messages. Encourage your parents to write letters to each of their children if they feel comfortable doing so. Some families even make audio or video recordings of their elders. It can be about anything – a full life story, funny anecdotes, family stories, or loving good-byes to each of their children. My husband’s grandmother came to this country from Armenia and she recounted her tumultuous life on CD. He cherishes it and plans to share it with our children when they are older.

Your parents are entering a time of life where many people feel particularly vulnerable. This can be especially difficult for parents who are used to being in charge and may not be comfortable at all with the reversal of roles. Please keep that in mind as you gather information from them and help them create a plan for the future. If done tactfully and respectfully, this time of life can bring you closer to your parents than ever before.

Katie B. Marsh is co-author of The Birth of Dying: A Sensitive Workbook to Help You Broach and Explore End-of-Life Issues with Your Terminally Ill or Elderly Loved One http://BooksForSharing.com/

(c) Copyright – Katie B. Marsh. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

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