What Do You Do if Your Senior Doesn’t Want Help?

By Jessica Ott | February 4, 2021 |

You might be incredibly frustrated if your elderly family member doesn’t want help from you or from other people. This is even more upsetting in situations where you know your senior is making her own life far more difficult than it has to be. There are a few things you can still do when you’re trying to get her to see your point of view.

Be as Patient as Possible

Home Care Services Abbottstown PA – What Do You Do if Your Senior Doesn’t Want Help?

Patience is going to help you and your senior more than you realize. The truth is that she’s not making this decision just to be difficult. There are other factors behind her decisions and being impatient isn’t going to resolve those. If you lose your temper and push too hard, that’s more likely to just cause her to clam up and avoid talking to you.

Find out What’s Really Going On

If it’s possible at all, you need to figure out what the root cause of this refusal is. Talk to your senior about your side of things, but make sure you’re listening, too. Ask open ended questions that allow your elderly family member to elaborate on how she’s feeling and what she sees as the most important issues. If you’re listening openly, that’s going to help to build trust.

Talk about Her Options

Discuss a variety of options with your senior. Is she refusing help from just home care services providers, or is she against help from you, too? Talk with her about different possibilities, like having home care services providers coming in only in certain situations. If she will accept help at specific times, but not under other conditions, that’s progress.

Try to Resolve What You Can

What’s really important is that you’re solving the problems that you can solve for her. If she’s willing to renegotiate after you’ve given your first compromise a chance, that’s a good sign. Some aging adults don’t want to be a burden and that can cause them to turn down assistance that they do know they need. Give your senior a chance to come around.

It’s vital that you don’t just close the door on these conversations if your senior keeps telling you no. You ultimately do have to respect her wishes, but just because she said no today that doesn’t mean that the answer is always going to be no. She can definitely change her mind, especially if she’s been under a misconception about what having help means for her.

If you or an aging loved one are considering Home Care Services in Abbottstown PA, please talk to us. Our friendly staff can answer all of your questions. In-home Senior Care in Adams and York Counties, PA. Call Today: (717) 698-8258.

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Jessica Ott

Owner at A Helping Hand Home Care Services, LLC

Jessica Ott is the Owner at A Helping Hand Home Care Services, LLC.

A Helping Hand Home Care Services, LLC is dedicated to providing our clients with a better quality of life through our support services while maintaining their independence in the comfort of their own home.

As a Home Care Agency licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health, we can provide families with peace of mind, knowing their loved one is in good hands.

We will work with you to prepare a care plan that incorporates your needs, your wishes, and your preferred schedule. Each client is matched with a caregiver who can best meet their individual needs, whether they reside in a house, apartment, condominium, assisted living, or nursing community.