Home for the Holidays (Part 1)

Once again the holiday season is upon us, a time of joy but also stress.  I’ve written about this issue in the past but it bears repeating.  We often visit family members we haven’t seen in some time and that’s when changes in older loved ones become more noticeable.  Some of the changes that may indicate your loved one needs some extra help:

1. Weight loss
2. Deterioration in personal hygiene
3. Unusually dirty or messy home
4. Unusually loud or quiet, paranoid or agitated behavior
5. Local friends and relatives noticing changes in behavior
6. Self-imposed isolation, stops attending activities
7. Signs of forgetfulness such as unopened mail, piling newspapers, missed appointments, unfilled prescriptions
8. Signs of poorly managed finances, such as not paying bills, losing money, paying bills twice
9. Unusual purchases

So what should you be doing if you see any of the above? Next week I’ll share that with you.