One of the few things that was well known about the novel coronavirus right from the beginning of the pandemic was that it hit older individuals a lot harder than it hit younger ones. Because of this knowledge, nursing homes and assisted living facilities across the country put visitation restrictions in place to help prevent people from entering nursing homes and needlessly endangering lives.
It was a good practice in theory, but the reality is that it has taken a big toll on seniors. Although many are physically safer, a whole string of mental health concerns have manifested. It is a frustrating situation all around.
No one deserves something like this. Even if you are not particularly close with an elderly loved one, they don’t deserve to feel like they have been cast off. And honestly, none of us really go out of our way to try and create this feeling in someone. But with everything that goes on when it comes to the senior care process, and especially now, with all of the COVID-19 restrictions that are in place limiting interactions between one another, it is easy for an elderly individual to feel expendable.
Being aware of this is the first step toward correcting it. Being deliberate and taking action to prevent it from happening is the next step. None of us believe that seniors are expendable, but unfortunately, the reality of what a lot of elderly folk are going through right now. With all of the restrictions, talk that is going on in the news from our leaders, plus the fear of getting sick itself, isolation is very real. And because it is being imposed at the governmental level it can easily seem like seniors are not as important as the rest of society. Even as things start to reopen, nursing homes and senior centers are not yet receiving the same traffic from visitors that they once were. This might not be the intent, but the feeling of being cast off is there.
It doesn’t have to be like this, but it’s going to be tough to overcome. We all need to make a conscious effort to let the elderly folk in our lives know that we care about them. If you’re unable to visit or be with the senior loved ones in your life, this is going to take some creativity. Sending cards, calling more often, video chatting, and other gestures are nice and can really go a long way. It can be tiring to keep doing these things when all we’d rather do is just go visit them. But this is the world we live in now. We need to think outside of the box when it comes to how we used to show we care and be a bit more adaptive.
It’s tough, but it is possible. Please feel free to get in touch with us if you’re looking for ways to connect with the seniors in your life during this tough time. We’d love to help out in any way we can.
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