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Top 3 Options for Winter Activities for Seniors

Top 3 Options in Washington for Seniors to do in Washington State for outdoor activities.

  1. Take a (free) bus to Crystal Mountain from Enumclaw to the ski resort. Ride the gondola to the top and eat at the restaurant. Summit House Restaurant. It is simple to reserve and again, all free. You only have to pay for the gondola and the meal. Enjoy winter without having to be an avid skier.
  2. Take the train to Seattle. You don’t have to be a commuter to enjoy what the commuter train has to offer. Ride the train up and eat a lunch and shop. You can catch a cab, uber or a bus to enjoy the city life on a winter day. Wear a heavy coat, carry some change for tips and bus ride.
  3. Ride the ferry to a local island. Bainbridge Island has a nice little town that you can enjoy from the ferry dock. Enjoy a sandwich, buy some treats. Maybe take an art or pottery class.

To learn more about these and other options email us at contact@caycare.com

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Helping Have a Special Dementia Christmas

The holidays can bring their own stresses during the best of times but when you have a family member with dementia things can be even more of a challenge.  Early dementia can mean friends and family may not notice any changes, but later stages of the disease may show signs that are more obvious to those who haven’t interacted with Mom or Dad in a while.  It might be helpful to send a letter or email to those coming for a visit that they may notice some behavior changes caused by the disease and not the person.  Ask them to be patient, not interrupt or correct, giving the person time to finish his or her thoughts.  Try to keep overtalking and noise to a minimum to avoid a stressful environment.

Involve Mom in the preparation of the get together: ask her to help prepare food, wrap presents, decorate or set the table as she is able.  Try to maintain routine as much as possible avoiding things that might be disruptive or confusing.  Focus on things that bring joy and happiness and abandon things that cause stress or are overwhelming for them or you as a caregiver.  Keeping with traditions as a family will bring on fond memories and familiarity.  Talk about those rituals as you prepare and when everyone is gathered.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help.  Gift suggestions for Mom may include favorite things but shouldn’t include dangerous tools, utensils, challenging games, complicated electronics or pets.  If friends or family members ask you what you’d like for a gift, you may want to suggest a gift card for something that will help make things easier, like house cleaning, lawn, home maintenance or laundry services, or restaurant or food delivery gift cards.

Healthy Living, Placement, PrePlanner's Webinar, Self-Care, Top Lists

People are Interesting

People truly are interesting. Every story unique and special. I share these posts to tell you about the people I am lucky enough to meet. Many of these people would be judged as outcasts. To me they are simple wonderful stories of what I get to do as a job every day. To me it is never work. They are an honor to get to know. Here is one such story.

I knocked on the front door in a nice neighborhood of a senior I was supposed to evaluate. I could hear laughter of a child, but no one was answering. I called the family and they directed me to go to the side door, a butler’s entrance of sorts. I could not hear the laughter here, but I called out and knocked. The door opened on its own.

I called out and the owner of the home came out with flour on her face. upon entering I realized what I thought was a child’s laughter was in fact the wife of the patient I was supposed to see. They were a prominent family in the region I worked. The house was a mansion on the outside. It was somewhat frozen in time on the inside. I couldn’t see the patient I was supposed to see at first. The wife started to give me a bit of a tour of her home. “We set him up in here.” She says. “I need your help to get him up, will you?” “Of course” I reply.

He is sitting in the living room. His care was simple and I was able to set up additional services for them as well. As I left the back entrance, which she informed me was their main entrance was piled high with unopen delivery boxes. Some of them so old they were fading in the sun. I couldn’t help but ask when was the last time her children had been to visit. She looked at mean and the boxes and said, “We don’t let them come here anymore. We meet at a restaurant nearby.”

I asked if she would allow me to help. I promised not to judge. She accepted my help with a subtle smile and then gave me hug as the tears flowed. I told her, I would like to think if I ever needed this type of help, someone would be there for me. Who around you could use your non-judgmental help and support? Connect them CayCare. We won’t judge. #gethelp #loveeveryone

Goal Setting, Healthy Living, Legacy Living

Welcome to CayCare!

Last Minute Gift Ideas

Trying to grab a gift that will make those around you smile? Here are a few last-minute gift ideas you can buy.

  • Smart Lighting – This is a surprisingly quick purchase that will delight. It is easy to set up and only needs google, alexa or an application on your phone to work.
  • Law of Attraction Planner – This simple gift will help those you love find their 2022 and thank you for it.
  • Frame an old photo – Take the meaning of a past memory and give it away as a special gift.

Side Dishes for Christmas

Chili Dip (The Founder of CayCare’s personal and quick recipe)

  • 5 Cans of your favorite chili
  • 8 oz of cream cheese

Heat in crock pot. Serve with corn chips

Christmas Cranberry Cake –

  • 3 Eggs
  • 2 cups Sugar
  • ¾ cup Butter (softened)
  • 1 teaspoon Vanilla
  • 2 cups All-Purpose Flour (see note below for gluten-free alternative)
  • 12 ounces Fresh Cranberries

Heat 350 for 1 hour

Care Management, Goal Setting, Healthy Living, Legacy Living, Self-Care

Aromatherapy – What are the benefits?

Aromatherapy – What does it mean to use aromatherapy as part of self-care? On a basic level there are smells that remind you of things. Your brain registers the memory with a scent. I have a distinct “home” smell. There is a specific smell when I have gone to a spa. When I smell it, I am reminded of relaxation and comfort. Our mind registers the smell information into our brain and helps connect it to certain sensations.
Research has shown that certain essential oils will help certain portions of our brain and body.

Dr Brent Bauer from the Mayo Clinc says,

Research on the effectiveness of aromatherapy — the therapeutic use of essential oils extracted from plants — is limited.

However, some studies have shown that aromatherapy might have health benefits, including:

  • Relief from anxiety and depression
  • Improved quality of life, particularly for people with chronic health conditions
  • Improved sleep

Smaller studies suggest that aromatherapy with lavender oil may help:

  • Reduce pain for people with osteoarthritis of the knee
  • Improve quality of life for people with dementia
  • Reduce pain for people with kidney stones

Essential oils used in aromatherapy are typically extracted from various parts of plants and then distilled.

The highly concentrated oils may be inhaled directly or indirectly or applied to the skin through massage, lotions or bath salts. Some essential oil manufacturers have oils that can be taken internally, but research on the safety and efficacy of this method is extremely limited.

Aromatherapy is thought to work by stimulating smell receptors in the nose, which then send messages through the nervous system to the limbic system — the part of the brain that controls emotions.

Many essential oils have been shown to be safe when used as directed. However, essential oils used in aromatherapy aren’t regulated by the Food and Drug Administration.

Risk of allergies – When oils are applied to the skin, side effects may include allergic reactions, skin irritation and sun sensitivity. In addition, further research is needed to determine how essential oils might affect children and how the oils might affect women who are pregnant or breast-feeding, as well as how the oils might interact with medications and other treatments.