Don’t Let Your Ageing Parents Get Lonely
– Whatever the reasons may be, you don’t want your parents to feel this way. There are a number of things that you can do to avoid this – here’s how.
Keep in regular contact.
Picking up the phone and giving your Mom or Dad a call shouldn’t be hard to do, and they will benefit from hearing your voice. Ask them how their day is going, and then tell them all about yours. Remember that now they’re older, they may not be doing anything with their day, so tell them stories about yours. What did you see? Who did you talk to? What made you laugh? By doing this, they will feel included.
Visit in person.
Show your face, give them a hug, and just let them enjoy your physical presence. If they live alone now, they may miss out on the important benefits of chatting with people in person. So go round and put the kettle on, make a nice cup of coffee, and talk about the good old days and the memories that you have of growing up as their child.
Give them company.
If it’s difficult for you to visit them as regular as they might want you to, have a look at companies like seniors for seniors. They offer a service where they look after your loved one, whether that be helping them with their home life, or taking them out for the day. But unlike other care services – all the staff are within a similar age group, so they have a lot of common ground and can share stories with one another about what life used to like in their time.
Take them to events.
Sure, they’re older now, but that doesn’t mean they can’t go out and enjoy things anymore. If they have something that they really adore, like the theatre, or a love for classical music – book an evening out at a show. Get them all dressed up and feeling good, and then spend a wonderful time together watching something they love. They may never get another opportunity to do things like that unless they are offered. No one wants to feel like a burden, so unless you ask them, they will most likely never ask you.
As you can see, there are many ways that you can avoid your parents from feeling lonely. It’s just about being aware and taking a little extra time out to get in contact and visit them. Sometimes it can be a little harder to do so if your parents are ill, and it can take its toll on you if you are having to look after them by yourself, but just know that it’s okay to ask for help – it’s not a sign of weakness or lack of love. – It’s simply a helping hand.
