How Occupational Therapy Can Help Your Loved Ones Age

If you're helping a loved one as they grow old, you may be familiar with the different therapies and programs that can help them do so gracefully. Physical therapy and speech therapy are self-explanatory, but occupational therapy may give you pause. Today, let's take a look at what an occupational therapist (OT) does and how they can help you make life easier for the seniors in your life.

Occupational therapy as a field involves helping the patient gain or regain abilities to do specific tasks. Rather than focusing on exercising muscles or using specific stretches, the OT will help the person learn to live their life normally and accomplish tangible goals.

The scope of occupational therapy is vast, as any activities of daily living can disappear in an accident or illness. The OT will help determine what your loved ones will be able to regain and what they will have to learn to work around. If an ability is lost permanently, the therapist will be able to recommend adaptations to help their patients continue to live the life they want.

Geriatric occupational therapy isn't necessarily about regaining lost abilities. Arthritis, diabetes symptoms, and other issues serve as a reminder that bodies age and won't get their youth back. Instead, an OT who specializes in geriatrics will help them retain their capabilities as long as they can and help them work around challenges as they occur. 

Specifically, the OT will help your loved ones go about their everyday lives with autonomy as long as it is safe to do so. They may have to learn to do things differently, including dressing, bathing, and using the bathroom. The therapy will help them continue to function on their own or with limited help, rather than relying on others for tasks they find belittling or embarrassing.

Even when your elderly family members can no longer live independently, occupational therapy can still be a useful service. Having a medical professional that they trust can go a long way toward easing transitions that happen in this time of life, such as retirement or moving into an assisted care facility. Hiring a therapist they trust can give a sense of constancy in a time of change.

You may find that as your parents, siblings, or other elderly loved ones continue to age, they become more set in their ways and unwilling to change aspects of their lives or behaviors, even when they are causing themselves harm. While the OT's primary task is to encourage independence, they can also help you have difficult conversations with their patients.

You may notice that your loved ones are losing weight unhealthily or that their homes are in constant disarray, but they turn a deaf ear if you bring it up. As part of their duties, an OT can hear your concerns and discuss them with the patient, suggesting nutritional plans or aids that can help them stay healthy or ways to keep the place clean without hurting themselves. 

If the person in question is fiercely independent and doesn't want outside help to perform these tasks, the opinion of a medical professional can go a long way when a concerned relative's fears don't make an impact. The OT will find a way to work with their patient that helps everyone feel confident that they will be safe and well taken care of in their living situation.

Whether your elderly parents, siblings, or friends need an occasional therapist's visit or in-home medical care at irregular hours, a visiting Redi-Nurse may be the solution you need. Contact us today to see how Redi-Nurse can help you make your loved one's later years some of their best.