In 2014, a number of organizations across Canada came together to promote a campaign called Fall Prevention Month. During the month of November, this campaign encourages organizations and individuals to come together to coordinate fall prevention efforts for a larger impact. The goal is to collectively raise awareness about fall prevention strategies and to help everyone see their role in keeping older adults safe, active, independent and healthy.
What are the impacts of falls?
Unintentional falls are the leading cause of injury for Ontarians aged 65 and over.
Recovering from a fall can be very difficult and with an increasing number of falls, it is important we take measures to prevent them.
How can we prevent falls?
The good news is that falls are preventable injuries! There are five key factors that caregivers and seniors should consider in order to prevent falls.
1) Eyesight – vision is an important part of balance and good vision helps to prevent falls. Everyone who is over the age of 65 should have their vision checked every year.
2) Your home – if you have clutter on your floors or stairs, it increases the chance of tripping and/or slipping. Make sure cords, scattered rugs, pet toys, books, etc. are in their proper place. Also, if your home is dark it increases the chance of falling, especially on stairs. Make sure to create a space that is well-lit!
3) Exercise – the most important thing you can do to prevent falls is to stay and remain strong! Walking, fishing, gardening, tai chi. Light yoga – whatever you enjoy! – do it to increase activity levels.
4) Medication – some medications cause dizziness on their own, or when mixed with others. It’s important to properly manage your health! Always take medication as directed and ask your pharmacist to review them if you are taking more than 2 medications.
5) Eating a healthy diet – Vitamin D and calcium help to keep strong bones. A diet to include more greens, lean protein, and less sugar will help you in remaining strong. You may want to talk to your doctor about supplements or other alternatives.
Most of all, don’t do it alone! It takes a community to prevent a fall and we all have a role to play. Here at Warm Embrace, we have a wonderful team of caregivers who can help you and your loved one to remain safe at home.
Autumn is a wonderful time of year filled with fall colours, harvest crops, hearty comfort food, warm fuzzy sweaters, and long walks rustling your feet through the leaves. Really, all the sights, sounds and smells of fall time are lovely! This season why not try a fun and festive activity with an elderly loved one.
Here are Five Fun Activities to try this Fall Season!
1) Prepare Homemade Treats
Baking, mixing and preparing treats are fun activities that many older adults enjoy. You can follow a family recipe or flip through some cookbooks to discover new recipes. You can make something as simple as apple crisp or a no bake pumpkin cheesecake. Another idea is decorating sugar cookies with your loved one! If baking is too messy, you can always pre-bake the cookies and just decorate them with your elderly loved one.
2) Pumpkin carvings and painting
Pumpkin carvings are a must tradition every fall season. You can carve all sorts of patterns on pumpkins but if carving is too much strain on wrists and hands you can always introduce painting on pumpkins to your elderly loved one. You can have an assortment of paint colours to design a unique pumpkin and then you can put them on display so that everyone can see.
3) Enjoy the natural scenery and fresh air
Bundle up and breathe the fresh autumn air! You can go on a short walk in the park to admire the beautiful coloured leaves that fall brings. You can go to a local park like Victoria or Waterloo Park and walk a scenic trail hearing the crunch of the fallen leaves under your feet. If you can’t take your loved one out too far why not go somewhere nearby? You can relax in the backyard, front porch, or go on a short walk to pick up the mail. If it’s too cold outside for your loved one – you can always go on a relaxing country drive to see all the colours or simply open up some windows and blinds to let the fresh air inside.
4) Get festive with fall decorations
Crafting and decorating are always fun activities! You can help an elderly loved one to decorate their home with fall colours. You can introduce neat craft ideas with dried up fallen leaves, such as collecting them to make cards. If they live in a retirement home you can help them decorate their front door so residents that pass by can admire their festive décor.
5) Prepare for Halloween Trick-or-Treaters
If you are planning to hand out treats to children in your neighbourhood, your elderly loved one might enjoy a little bit of prep work. You can enlist the help of your elderly loved one to sort candy into different bowls and/or containers. You can even prepare small goody bags with lots of sweets to hand out to trick-or-treaters
This autumn season introduce a new activity to your elderly loved one – it may be cooler weather – but it’s a lovely season to spend quality time with friends and family.
This past September 10th was World Suicide prevention day (WSPD). On September 28th, in honour of WSPD, a play written by Catherine Frid called “AfterWhys” followed by discussion will be held at Luther Village from 9 am – 11 am. Suicide is often perceived as a problem among young people but did you know that men over the age of 80 have the highest suicide rate in Canada. This event is to encourage the message of hope and resiliency to everyone who experiences difficulties with mental health. We look forward to learning more about seniors’ mental health with you. We hope to see you there!
Well-being is all about having a positive outlook on life, maintaining a purpose despite stress or loss, having a realistic sense of control over one’s life, and having a strong sense of self. These conditions are not constant but instead fluctuate constantly. It is possible to achieve a sense of well-being even amidst declining health!
But how is well-being achieved?
Some practical ways to achieve well-being would be eating well, exercising, drinking less alcohol, not smoking, and stimulating your mind. But there are also other ways to achieve well-being!
1. Being Optimistic
Optimism is about taking “the sourest lemon life has to offer and then turning it into something resembling lemonade.” Optimism is often associated with happiness or with a positive person but it is much more than that! Practicing optimism has shown to build resiliency, increase goal achievement and increase overall well-being.
2. Being Grateful
Dr. Peter Naus – an advocate for positive views on aging – says to be sure to “count what you have, and not what you lack,” and by doing so you are one step closer to achieving well-being. Gratitude impacts well-being positively because it has shown to reduce anxiety and increase positive emotions. It is a powerful experience to count what you already have rather than focusing on what you don’t have!
3. Seeking Adventure
Believe it or not, old-age can be a time for adventure. In the midst of an adventure, you can discover new insights and experiences! Simply having a vision and a dream can inspire you to experience new adventures – big or small – these memories will hold value, novelty and positive emotions. Dr. Naus encourages us to live well at every stage of life and remember that it is never too late for change!
4. Sharing Wisdom
Sharing wisdom creates a sense of purpose and meaning for many retired seniors! Wisdom is developed over time as you gain insight, practice good judgment and most of all live through varying experiences.
There are pervasive negative connotations throughout Canadian society regarding aging. There is a strong market for “anti-aging” products and services, but the term alone is problematic. By deeming a product or service “anti-aging” it is suggestive that there is an inherent problem with aging.
However, the wisest group in our Canadian society is our aging population! As wisdom is passed down to younger generations, the experience of aging becomes purposeful and meaningful.
Even though abilities may change, health may fluctuate and loses may occur, prioritizing your personal well-being can truly lead to you living your best life.
Seniors are valued for the wisdom they can share with others. They are living proof that aging is not synonymous with being sick and helpless. Instead, old age can be a time for deep fulfillment and pleasure, a time for personal well-being!
There are over 5.9 million seniors in Canada right now and that number will double in the next twenty years. Today’s retirement is certainly not synonymous with passivity. Rather, most retired people will tell you that they wonder how they ever had time to work! Today’s seniors are actively involved as both formal and informal volunteers, caregivers for their grandchildren, hobbyists, part-time employees, travelers, and many other roles.
Seniors month is our opportunity to recognize and celebrate these seniors and their contributions to our community. The consistent volunteering of our seniors—often in behind-the-scenes, unacknowledged positions—contributes to the maintenance of our major institutions. For example, St. Mary’s hospital has over 300 regular volunteers, and Grand River Hospitals has nearly 1000 volunteers. Many of these volunteers are dedicated seniors who wish to help others. You will find countless seniors engaged in volunteer and mentorship capacities across the city, and their contribution is vital to the success of our growing community.
Seniors Month in June is not only about formal government recognition through specific awards; it is also about truly appreciating all of the seniors that you personally know! Take the time to acknowledge their contributions to your life and your community.
Here are a few ideas for how you can celebrate a senior in your community!
1) Nominate seniors for local awards.
If you know a senior who is contributing to the fabric of your community, why not brag about their achievements to others by nominating them for an award?! You can nominate them for the Ontario Senior of the Year Award, the Ontario Senior Achievement Award, the Ontario Medal for Good Citizenship, or any other award in your local community.
2) Listen to their stories and oral history.
Many seniors are natural story-tellers! They have years of wisdom, knowledge and experience to share with younger generations. So, why not take some time to listen to these incredible stories?! You can always share a cup of tea with a senior in your community and engage in a conversation filled with storytelling.
3) Write a simple thank-you card.
These days the only mail people seem to receive are bills and statements, so sending a thoughtful thank-you card could brighten up a senior’s day! Simply writing a thoughtful and heartfelt letter could make a senior feel celebrated and appreciated.
4) Take your appreciated senior on an outing.
You can plan a fun outing to the theatre, a church service, a senior’s dance, a strawberry social, or even just out for a nice dinner together; to demonstrate your thankfulness and appreciation for their contributions to your community.
5) Plan an event in honour of your senior loved-one.
Maybe there’s a milestone to celebrate like a 90th birthday or a 60th wedding anniversary; an event honouring them would be perfect! You could even host a family reunion that would allow you to recognize many loved ones at once.
6) Spend quality time together.
The simplicity of spending quality time together can demonstrate your care and appreciation. The way that you choose to demonstrate your gratitude is up to you and allows you to be as creative as you wish!
People appreciate recognition at every stage of life and you can never offer too much praise. You may be surprised at what you can learn about the seniors in your life and discover some of the activities with which they are involved. So, this June, take the opportunity to encourage the seniors in your life by acknowledging their accomplishments—you, in turn, will be inspired.
June is Seniors’ month, and it’s the perfect time to recognize and appreciate seniors! Seniors prove that aging doesn’t need to prevent anyone from leading fulfilling lives, instead they outline that aging enhances life experiences.
Every day seniors are breaking the mold by leading fulfilling lives! So, let’s put to rest those negative stereotypes when it comes to aging. Instead, we should all celebrate and appreciate the contributions that seniors are making in our communities.
Seniors are an important part of our community because they contribute their wisdom, friendship and experiences. As a community, it is our responsibility to ensure that we create an environment where all citizens are valued and respected throughout the life process.
How do we create that environment?
The key to creating this environment is prioritizing intergenerational opportunities, between the young and the old. When we create intergenerational opportunities, we are creating this space where seniors have the ability to pass along their wisdom and advice to generations. This environment then breaks down barriers between generations and puts to rest negative stereotypes that surround aging. When those barriers are removed, open and honest conversations are shared between different generations. When founded upon mutual respect, intergenerational learning can be deeply impactful for everyone involved!
Why is celebrating our Seniors so important?
When we celebrate our seniors, we are affirming that their contributions are ever so important to the fabric of our communities. Without our seniors’ accomplishments, our communities would not be what they are today!
This June, in honour of Seniors’ month, make an effort to spend time with someone who is from a different generation than you—or maybe even two or three generations! Pause, and truly listen, and learn from each other and you will reap the rewards of intergenerational sharing.
Here at Warm Embrace Elder Care, we want to thank all of the wonderful seniors that we see on a daily basis. We are continually learning from you and are enlightened by your viewpoints. It is an honour to serve you!
On Thursday May 31st, a one day conference for family caregivers, and health care professional, will be held at Conestoga Place from 9-3pm. You'll be able to view community displays, engage with experts, and enjoy lunch! We are looking forward to be participating at this event, so we invite you to come! We hope to see you there!
