Mental health covers many aspects of health, including psychological, emotional, and social health and well-being. Aging adults may not have had issues with mental illnesses in the past, but changes in their lives, social isolation, loss, grief, and even underlying health issues can all contribute to worsening mental health. Mental health services/counseling at home that come to your senior can be helpful, but first, you need to recognize the signs of a problem.
Sleeping Issues
It’s possible that your senior is experiencing differences in her sleep habits as she’s growing older. But if she’s suddenly sleeping a lot more or hardly at all, there could be something else going on. Sometimes sleep disturbances can be a sign of mental health difficulties and addressing those concerns can resolve the sleep issues.
Mood Changes
Your elderly family member might also have trouble with mood regulation. This might manifest as irritability or in general moodiness that is more obvious in certain situations. You could also notice that your elderly family member seems to always be down, especially if she tended to have a more positive outlook in the past.
Trouble Concentrating
Another common symptom of mental health struggles can be trouble concentrating. Your senior may even worry that this is a sign that she’s experiencing cognitive changes or developing dementia. It can be difficult for her to follow conversations or to remember important things she needed to do.
Pain, Headaches, or Other Physical Signs
Even though mental health issues are not physical issues, your senior may have physical symptoms when she’s experiencing worsening mental health. Pain is a really common experience, especially if your elderly family member already deals with some type of chronic pain. She may also experience digestive issues or a loss of appetite.
Risky Behaviors
Sometimes mental health issues can cause your aging family member to act in ways that are unusual for her, like taking risky behaviors or making dangerous decisions. If some of her actions or choices are concerning to you, they may be happening because of the mental health issues that she’s experiencing.
Obsessive Rumination
Rumination is a type of repetitive thinking, usually about a problem or a situation that your elderly family member can’t control. Rumination can often be a symptom of another issue, like depression, anxiety, or stress. Sometimes rumination occurs because of an underlying mental health issue.
Hallucinations
If your elderly family member is seeing or hearing things that no one else sees or hears, that could be a hallucination. There are lots of reasons that people can experience hallucinations, and some of them include mental illnesses. It’s important to get to the root cause of what’s causing them if your senior is experiencing hallucinations.
If your elderly family member is homebound for other health reasons, having the ability to access mental health services at home can be a crucial part of getting her the help that she needs. Once she’s got the help that she needs, the symptoms you’ve noticed may resolve on their own.
If you or an aging loved one is considering Mental Health Services/Counseling at Home in Monroe Township NJ, or the surrounding area please contact the caring staff at Max Health & Wellness today. (732) 576-3550
Beth’s inspired her to always desire great care for seniors and has been working and advocating for seniors since 1988. She earned a degree in Special Education from the Pennsylvania State University and a juris doctorate from Hofstra University. Beth became an elder care attorney to advocate for both the elderly and people living with handicaps before started a home care agency in 2003.
Her passion has always been to ensure that her clients receive better care than her grandparents had, and she works tirelessly to make sure that happens. Her motto and belief has always been and will always be that she (and her staff) will care for your family as we would our own!
For years, Beth has “thought outside the box” and imagined a company that could supplement the in-home care that many seniors need. In-home care provides assistance with the activities of daily living, but many seniors are homebound for a variety of reasons: their physical condition, not being able to drive, mobility concerns, or because they believe that being at home (especially during the COVID-19 pandemic) was the safest place to be.
During the pandemic, Beth made the decision to launch Max Health and Wellness. She envisioned the need to provide additional in-home services to those who need them, specifically therapeutic solutions to create wellness and self-care experiences for seniors and others. These services will range from clinical therapy services such as physical, occupational and speech therapy, mental health counselling, non-medical massage therapy and reflexology, nutritional counseling, and at-home salon/spa services such as therapeutic facial and hair styling.
Beth’s goal is that all of the health and wellness services offered by Max Health and Wellness will MAXIMIZE the quality of life and well-being of seniors throughout the state of New Jersey. She looks forward to having you experience our concierge therapeutic services and treatments.
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