Senior Isolation Tips for Managing Anxiety During Covid-19
According to the American Psychiatric Association, there are a lot of Americans dealing with anxiety caused by Covid-19 right now.
A recent poll revealed that about 40% of people are very worried about being diagnosed with coronavirus themselves. It also revealed that about 60% of people are very worried about someone they know being diagnosed with coronavirus.
And being isolated due to the Covid-19 quarantine seems to be making this anxiety worse. Senior isolation, in particular, is leaving many lonely seniors throughout the country feeling more anxious than ever before.
Do you have a senior in your life who is having a tough time with coronavirus-related anxiety? It might be easier than you think to go about helping elderly people during these troubling times.
Here are a few useful senior isolation tips that will help them manage their anxiety throughout the coronavirus pandemic.
Encourage Them to Stay Connected With Family and Friends
It's not easy for many seniors to stay connected with family and friends right now. They aren't able to have guests in their homes, and they also can't go out whenever they want to visit their loved ones.
But that doesn't have to stop them from maintaining connections with the outside world. There are so many ways that they can connect with family and friends. They can:
Call them on the phone or send them text messages
Send them messages on social media platforms
Use FaceTime, Skype, and Zoom to talk to them face-to-face
If they aren't sure how to do these things, do your best to teach them how. They can avoid senior isolation—and the anxiety that comes with it—by staying connected with the people they love most.
Talk to Them About Turning Off the News Every Now and Then
There are a lot of people, including seniors, who are spending hours on end in front of the TV these days. Many of them are tuning into the news to keep up with everything that's going on when it comes to Covid-19.
There's nothing wrong with seniors staying informed on the latest news. But if that's all they're doing day in and day out, it's going to turn into a problem. Their anxiety levels are going to soar through the roof in no time.
Speak With Them About Taking Good Care of Themselves
Even though seniors are stuck inside at the moment, that doesn't mean they should stop taking care of themselves. To stay healthy, they should continue to:
Eat nutritious meals at least three times each day
Bathe every day
Get up and find a way to exercise a few times each week
Spend enough time sleeping each night
By staying on some kind of schedule, seniors can make things feel somewhat normal. That will work to alleviate some of their anxiety and help them get through the Covid-19 crisis unharmed.
Start Putting These Senior Isolation Tips to Good Use Today
It's almost impossible for seniors to avoid feeling anxious altogether. Everyone is at least a little bit on edge right now because of Covid-19.
But by using these senior isolation tips, you can provide help for the elderly and stop them from feeling so anxious. Making their mental health a top priority will work wonders for their health overall.
If you need help caring for a special senior during the coronavirus pandemic, we would love to lend a hand. We specialize in setting seniors up with home health care services and can give you one less thing to worry about during these dark days.
Get in touch with us today to see how we can help you and the senior in your life.
