THE CURE FOR ALL DISEASES
only chills them, but brings filth in dust that blows in the air
currents. Bacteria and viruses are soon to follow.
Being comfortable, knowing you are there to care for them,
brings out the best in your elderly person. They might get well
enough to long for a genuine relationship again. And put you to
the test. The test of listening. This can be very rewarding if they
are still able to communicate and distill their life experience into
wisdom for you. If you can listen and be interested in their dis-
tillations or their ramblings their longing for relationship will be
fulfilled. There's just one catch, if the new found interest in
communication can't be expressed. If they haven't communicated
much for a long time, it would be easy for you to miss a simple
fact. They can't hear!
Hearing Loss............................................................
The hearing deficit in an elderly person is always much
greater than they or you realize. Try to understand these com-
munications:
What you
(caregiver) say
What the eld-
erly person
hearsWhat they think What they
respond“Look at the sun-
shine, isn't it a
nice day?”
“Look at some-
thing, isn't it a
nice bay?”What a stupid sen-
tence. But she wants
an answer. So here
goes,“MmmHmmm”
(Meaning,
“yes.”)“We'll have such a
nice walk.”
“Have a...rock.” Rock what? I'm not in a
rocking char. I better
not say anything.
“What kind of soup
should I make?”
“What kind of
hoop should I
make?”I haven't used a hoop for
embroidery for a long
time. Why is she
digging that up. I better
say I don't know.“I don't know.”Don't let this ruin your relationship. It takes the fun out of
their life as much as yours. Get hearing aids.