It’s a common fear in this day and age that growing old gracefully will occur with very little funds to grow old with. Numerous worries about Social Security benefits are a real concern, and many seniors simply haven’t been able to tuck away the funds they’ll need for retirement.

If you’re a caregiver or child of aging parents and your parents have no money or have no retirement savings, there are some things you can do to help your parents before it becomes a real problem.

The Honest Conversation When Your Elderly Parents Have No Money

Experts advise that as long as your parents are still cognizant, the best thing to do is to have an honest sit-down talk about helping your parents plan for retirement. Many children report that they simply don’t feel comfortable having this conversation with their parents, particularly when there’s a good chance that the parents have no money for retirement. The best thing for you to do is to push past the awkwardness and have a real conversation about the financial situation of your parent’s retirement. Some key financial questions to ask them include:

• Is their home completely paid off?
• Are there any 401K or savings accounts?
• Is there an updated, legal will?
• How much debt are they in (credit card and otherwise)?

If you are concerned that your elderly parents have no money, these questions are the best way to get a feel for the situation. Depending on their answers, you may want to call in a financial advisor or expert if you feel you can’t provide financial aid for retired parents or the problem is too big for you to handle.

Suggestions When Your Elderly Parents Have No Money

If you’ve had the honest conversation and have come to the conclusion that your parents have no retirement savings, there are a few things you can suggest before you offer financial aid or other types of help. Firstly, you can help your elderly parents become financially responsible. Talk to them about budgeting, if this is something they haven’t been doing, and help them create a usable budget. This includes advising them to make more frugal living choices (perhaps forgetting the vacation this year or not opting for a new set of furniture)—and saving as much as possible.

If your elderly parents have no money and are also deep in debt, they should try to pay the debt off as much as possible. Worst-case scenario ideas also include advising them to delay retirement by a few years, if possible, to save additional funds. Another option for aging parents with no money is to attempt other sources of income, such as a part-time job or even online work. Caring for aging parents is not easy, and you may have to delve more into their financials than you feel comfortable. This is to help them get organized, avoid scams, and not end up as parents with no retirement savings at all.

Offering Aid When Your Parents Have No Retirement Savings

Beyond advice and becoming more involved in your parents’ financials, there are other means to help when it comes to saving for your parents’ retirement. If you are financially able, you can help them save. One of the most responsible things to do if this is your means of help is to open a retirement account for parents—and contribute to it. If you own your own business, you can also offer your elderly parents with no money a part-time position, which can help them save.

If you’re not financially able to help, you can help out in other ways, such as helping your parents around the house or yard, perhaps freeing up their time to explore other financial avenues.

To learn more about saving for your parent’s retirement or to learn about mobility products that can help enhance your parents’ quality of life, such as wheelchair ramps or stair lifts, contact Williams Lift Co. today.

If you or your loved one is someone who is disabled and also a veteran, they may qualify for a VA caregiver through the veterans affairs caregiver program. Just like many other military-related health services, caregivers and benefits must be approved by the Veterans Administration (VA) and there a few rules to follow so the caregiver and the veteran to qualify. Read on to learn more about how to find a caregiver for a veteran, and how to qualify for the program.

Veterans Caregiver Eligibility Requirements

Many returning vets and their families often ask, do VA benefits cover home care? In many cases they do; however, there are some guidelines that must be followed. Also, note that these guidelines only apply to veterans injured on or after September 11, 2011. Injured veterans that were injured before this date may have trouble getting a caregiver covered. There have been recent changes to the Disabled Veterans Caregiver Compensation Act, and all disabled and injured veterans should be eligible for in-home care services by 2021.

Here are the current guidelines for having an in-home, paid veterans caregiver:

• The veteran must have a serious injury. Injuries include traumatic brain injury (TBI), and emotional and mental disorders, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
• The veteran must demonstrate a need for in-home personal care services due to an inability to perform them on one’s own.
• The caregiver can be related to the veteran (spouse, child, mother, father, other family members), but does not have to be.
• The caregiver may or may not live in-home with the veteran.
• The caregiver may not provide any financial support to the veteran to qualify.

Veterans Caregiver Benefits

The veterans caregiver is entitled to certain veterans caregiver benefits, as covered by the VA. While the veteran’s caregiver may be eligible for all of the benefits below or financial support for caregivers, each benefit may have to be applied for separately. Some of these benefits include:

• Veteran caregiver stipend
• Travel expenses (mainly if the patient must travel for care)
• Mental health services
• Respite care
• Personal health care insurance

How to Become a Veterans Caregiver

If you are interested in becoming a veteran’s caregiver because of a friend or family member who needs in-home care, you must apply through the Veterans Administration (VA). Before application, there is a pre-screening questionnaire that can help determine your eligibility before you go through the formal process. Once you are approved to be a veteran’s caregiver, you can go through and apply for each benefit you feel would be of worth to you and your patient.

Dependent upon needs, some home modifications may also be covered under the VA, such as wheelchair ramps and stair lifts. If you are unsure about the process during any step of the journey, you can contact your local branch of the VA to get in touch with the Caregiver Support Program. This program can help guide you through the appropriate channels.

To learn more about VA caregiver benefits, or to determine how in-home modifications such as stair lifts and wheelchair ramps can increase mobility, contact Williams Lift Co. today. We want both caregivers and patients to live their best lives.

Like any other type of insurance, shopping for long term care insurance for elderly parents can be complicated, and it’s not without its pitfalls. Long term care costs can be quite expensive, and a long term care policy can help ensure that your parents don’t deplete their savings, 401k, or retirement fund. There are a few things to know about long term care insurance for elderly parents before you agree to a policy; read on to learn some of the details.

What Is Long Term Care Insurance for Elderly Parents?

The first question most caregivers ask about long term care insurance for elderly parents is, “what does long term care insurance cover?” There is quite a detailed explanation for this, but the bottom line is, long term care insurance (LTCI) covers more than traditional health insurance, and is designed as such to offset all of the health care costs associated with aging and the acquired disability that comes from aging, even if you aren’t technically disabled. If you’re thinking about buying long term care insurance for parents, it’s a financially sound and wise idea.

Why Is Long Term Insurance for Elderly Parents a Good Idea?

The main reason long term insurance for your elderly parents is a good idea is because of the skyrocketing amount of costs for long term care for elderly parents. Some long term care statistics in 2018 indicate that a semi-private room in a nursing home costs upward of nearly $7,000 per month—and you don’t even get complete privacy. Living in independent assisted living communities can also be quite expensive.

When it comes to care in the home, most home care aids charge at least $20 per hour, or more, depending on the level of care. So if you’re asking yourself the question, “can I buy long term care insurance for my parents,” you will pay much less out of pocket in the long run. Of course, there are alternatives to long term care insurance, and it’s wise to talk to a financial planner about some of these options. These might include life insurance living benefits (having a life insurance policy with what is known as accelerated death benefits), having life insurance with long term care, selling your life insurance policy, or tapping into an annuity. So, there’s no reason to feel cornered if you don’t want to purchase long term care insurance for your parents. There are always other avenues.

Shopping for Long Term Care Insurance for Elderly Parents

As with all types of insurance, there are ins and outs when it comes to shopping for long term care insurance for your parents. Cost of the policy will vary, and is dependent on things such as age at time of signing, gender, and current state of health (present health problems will cause the policy to be more expensive). When you’re looking at the fine print, keep in mind the following tips:

• Pay close attention to inflation protection: many policies go up every year with rising costs of inflation
• The certification period: the period you are allowed to receive long term care
• The daily benefit amount (DBA): the maximum amount per day that an insurance company is willing to pay.

There are also hidden benefits to long term care insurance for elderly parents an agent may not necessarily inform you of. Some long term care insurance for your parents allow in-home modifications, such as stair lifts or wheelchair ramps, depending upon your policy. If you believe these are things you need now, or may need in the future, choose a policy with these benefits.

To learn more about navigation policies for long term care insurance for elderly parents, or to hear more about mobility products that can help you live your best life, such as stair lifts or wheelchair ramps, contact Williams Lift Co. today.

There are many, many aspects of being a caregiver. Whether you’re aware of it or not, come tax time, you can take caregiver tax deductions when you’re filing, whether you’re filing as single, married, head of household, or otherwise. While it’s always best to consult a tax professional for legal tax advice, these days many filers do their taxes themselves, online. When it comes to tax deductions for elderly parent care, there are some tips and tricks you should be aware of.

Simplest Tax Deductions for Elderly Parent Care

Depending on how straightforward your taxes are, there are some simple things to consider first, such as claiming a parent as a dependent. If you are filing with income less than $384,000 (single) and you provided more than half of the financial support for your parents over the last year, this is one of the easiest tax deductions for elderly parent care to take. Another exemption to consider is a tax credit for taking care of an elderly parent. This is usually involved when you are paying someone else to take care of your parent while you work (or look for work), however, there are other types of an elderly dependent care tax credit, such as claiming them through your employer’s dependent benefits (similarly to claiming child care). Some of these credits and exemptions can get a bit tricky, but the right tax professional can easily walk you through the steps for itemizing your deductions.

Medical Tax Deductions for Elderly Parent Care

Regardless of how much time you spend taking care of your elderly, ill, or disabled parent, there are also tax deductions for elderly parent care for medical expenses alone. If you’ve paid out of pocket for medical procedures, hospital stays, medications, or other medical expenses not covered by insurance, you likely can deduct these on your taxes and claim them. When it comes to these types of tax deductions for elderly parent care, it’s best to keep records so that everything is in place come tax time.

Other Credits and Tax Deductions for Elderly Parent Care

There are also two separate, distinct credits you may want to research via the IRS or talk to a tax professional about. One is called the Child and Dependent Care Credit, and the other is the Credit for the Elderly or the Disabled. Different tax situations apply to different households, but both of these tax deductions for elderly parent care are worth looking into, if you pay someone to take care of your parent, you take care of your parent, or you yourself are age 65 or older.

Other Supports for Caregivers

“Caregiver burnout” is a real phenomenon, and caregivers should look for means of support and other ways to achieve help or aid, other than itemizing tax deductions for elderly parent care come tax time. Finding a local support group with other caregivers that may be going through the same things as you is a great idea. Also, if you are looking for outside services for yourself or for your parent. The National Family Caregiver Support Program can help caregivers (and their families) of persons age 70 and over. Getting in touch with a support program like this can not only help at tax time, it can point you in the right direction when it comes to other needs and services.

To learn more about support when it comes to being a caregiver, or to learn about products that can help achieve mobility for someone in a wheelchair, such as stair lifts or wheelchair ramps, contact Williams Lift Co. today. We want to help you live your best life.

Caring for someone with dementia is not an easy job. You must have nerves of steel, a heart of gold, and the ability to laugh even when things are at their worst. If you’re providing care to a loved one with dementia, they will likely never be able to express their gratitude to you for doing such an important job. Help for caregivers of dementia patients is not always readily available, and this is where you may need to rely on some helpful tips for dementia caregivers in order to maintain your own health and still feel your best, mentally, physically, and spiritually.

The Most Important and Helpful Tips for Dementia Caregivers

Most likely, you’re not a professional caregiver and this is your first time caring for a parent with dementia at home (or another loved one). Even professional dementia caregivers struggle and have bad days, but the most important of all helpful tips for dementia caregivers is to:

• Keep a positive mood. Just as you would care for a child with special needs, everything from your tone to your body language must be light and positive. Be pleasant and peaceful in all interactions, even if your patient is having a bad day.

If your loved one is indeed having a bad day, there are some more helpful tips for dementia caregivers to remember:

• Redirect and distract. This may be similar to a young child who is throwing a tantrum. Redirection is key—try to get the person’s mind away from the thing they are focusing on, and replace this fixation with something else.
• There is a reason for all behavior. Every form of behavior from every human being on earth, regardless of medical condition, is a form of communication. If what the person is trying to say with their actions isn’t clear to you, do your best to try to figure it out. When in doubt, you can always confer with their doctor. The patient may be on a new medication or may be in pain from a different medical problem.
• Find different strategies. One of the most helpful tips for dementia caregivers is finding different solutions to the same problem. Dementia is hard to predict—something that works well for your patient today may fail tomorrow. Come up with multiple strategies to help get through the tough spots.

More Important and Helpful Tips for Dementia Caregivers

Part of how you will deal with dementia affecting your loved one is to understand their world. Acceptance of the situation is the first way to relieve dementia caregiver stress. There is currently no cure for Alzheimer dementia, and the most important thing (which is your job as a dementia caregiver) is to make the person’s quality of life more comfortable. This can be difficult when the patient is experiencing an alternate reality. With that in mind, some more helpful tips for dementia caregivers include:

• Don’t argue. Don’t try to win an argument or convince the other person that you’re correct about something.
• Validate their reality. If the patient has “gone back in time” and is now a little girl waiting for the school bus, talk about the school bus. Engage in conversation as if what they are describing is real.
• Try cognitive-based games or exercising. Even in a patient with dementia, it is still possible to get them to exercise their brain and engage in physical activity. Urge them to do both, if possible.
• Slow down and be communicative. Talk as slowly as possible, especially if you’re trying to explain something difficult. Also, if one method of communication doesn’t work, try another, like nonverbal communication.

Take Care of Yourself

The effects of dementia on caregivers can be brutal. You may be tired, lonely, and angry. You may feel frustrated and sad. In addition to helpful tips for dementia caregivers when it comes to interaction with the patient, you should also follow helpful tips for dementia caregivers when it comes to taking care of you. Some of these include:

• Take a day off if possible and do something nice for yourself. Buy yourself something you really like, treat yourself to a spa day, or go for a mini-road trip. If a full day isn’t possible, then take your time off in increments. Even a 20-minute break from caregiving can give you a fresh start.
• Talk to others. Some days, you may find you are only talking to the dementia patient and their other health staff. Get out and be social with other people. This can definitely include a dementia caregivers support group, so you can touch base with other people who understand.
• Pick your battles and choose your priorities. A big part of being peaceful as you perform this job is not to sweat the small stuff. If you’re having racing thoughts or are having trouble prioritizing tasks, write them down and organize them.

It is important to remember that quality of life is still possible for the dementia patient, for you, and for the other members of your family during this time, especially if these helpful tips for dementia caregivers are followed. For more helpful tips on being in a caregiver role, or to learn about mobility products that may even further a patient’s quality of life, contact Williams Lift Co. today.

It is estimated that over 40 million adults care for parents, grandparents, or another adult whom they live with. Being a caregiver is one of the most important and selfless things a person can do, and it can be truly hard on the caregiver. The stress and toll that being a caregiver has on the body, mind, and overall well being often leads to caregiver burnout. Caregiver burnout syndrome is a real thing. Once that point is reached, it may be difficult to be in your role as caregiver, and even more difficult to take care of yourself, your job, and other family needs. Caregiver burnout prevention is a must to ensure your loved one gets the care they need but also requires that you take care of yourself as well.

Caregiver Burnout Prevention: Knowing the Signs

Perhaps you are so busy taking care of your loved one that you don’t even fully feel the stress you’re under. Or, you are feeling levels of stress and frustration, but aren’t even sure how to go about alleviating the pressure you’re under. One of the most important aspects of caregiver burnout prevention is knowing the signs of caregiver burnout. Some of these signs can mimic symptoms of depression, so it may be tough to tell. Family caregiver burnout signs include:

• Loss of interest in things once enjoyed
• Lack of energy/fatigue
• Sleep issues (oversleeping or insomnia)
• Being unusually agitated, impatient, or lashing out
• Anxiety (more than usual)
• Hopelessness and dread
• Weight gain or weight loss (sudden)
• Headaches or GI upset
• A proclivity to catching colds or illness (weak immune system)

If you read through the signs of caregiver burnout and silently are saying in your head, “check, check, check,” then it’s time to learn about caregiver burnout prevention and treatment. If you’re deep in experiencing the signs of burnout, part of the goal is to get yourself out of it, and treat the problem so it does not recur.

Caregiver Burnout Prevention and Treatment

One of the first things to do for caregiver stress and burnout is to ask for help. If you ask family and friends and there is simply no one to help you on a weekly basis for a few hours, respite care is something you should look into immediately. Depending on the circumstances, it is often covered by insurance or Medicare.

You may also often hear, “take care of yourself first.” While this is a top tip for caregiver burnout prevention, you may not even know what this entails. It means that you need to give yourself permission to take breaks, to schedule something nice for yourself once in a while (spa visit, catch a movie with some friends), and to put your needs first whenever possible. If you don’t put yourself first, at some point it will become impossible to take care of someone else. Help for caregiver burnout begins mainly with you putting yourself first

Other Tips for Caregiver Burnout Prevention

No matter where you fall on the caregiver burnout scale, diving feet-first into caregiver burnout prevention is the best idea for you and your family. Another great tip when it comes to caregiver burnout prevention is to join a support group. There are many out there, both online and in-person, that gives you the opportunity to talk about some of the things that bother you most with other people that understand. Recovering from caregiver burnout is much easier with the help of others who understand.

Another good idea when it comes to caregiver burnout prevention is to learn to communicate effectively. If you are taking care of someone who also has staff attending to them (such as visiting nurses, therapists, and other family members), you may want to consider a site such as CaringBridge or PostHope to post updates about the patient’s progress. This way, you are not relying on long texts and phone calls that tie you up and prevent you from doing other things. For instance, if your dad’s surgery went well, you can post a quick update to CaringBridge and everyone following the page immediately has the information they need. While this sounds like a minor detail, a big part of caregiver burnout prevention is eliminating the unnecessary things from your day. Some days, you just won’t have the time to talk to everyone.

As a caregiver, if you’re looking for even more ideas to make your life simpler, there are many mobility products that can help. Contact Williams Lift Co. today for more information about stair lifts, ramps, and other needs that can make your role as caregiver less of a burden.

Whether you’re dedicating your time to someone in your family or are a professional caregiver, caregiving can be stressful. “Caregiver burnout” is a real issue, and many caregivers hit the wall after months or years of dedicating themselves to another person’s care. It’s extremely important for caregivers to be able to recognize and identify the challenges that lead to burnout. And it’s equally important to learn strategies to cope with and combat  the challenges of being a caregiver, so that you can continue to give care at all.

Specific Caregiver Stress Levels and Stressors

If you’re just embarking on caregiving, you may feel a sense of “I’ve got this,” or “How bad can it be?” Depending on the amount of care a disabled or elderly person may need, caregiving takes not just a physical toll, but also an emotional and mental toll, particularly if someone close to you is in poor health. There are many challenges of being a caregiver.

Some specific caregiver stress points include:

• Time management: There are many challenges in caring for the elderly, and this is at the top of the list. It can be incredibly difficult to take care of yourself and your own family (such as your children) when much of your attention is directed elsewhere. If possible, try to write out a weekly time plan and adhere to it.
• Taking care of your own self: Self care is one of the main challenges of being a caregiver. Beyond scheduling “me” time (spa, gym, date night, weekend getaway), you have to remember to put your own health first. You can’t take care of someone else if you’re emotionally or physically sick.

The reality of depression: The fact is, many caregivers hit caregiver burnout because they’re depressed, and there isn’t always a lot of caregiver support out there. Just as if you broke a leg or had a cold that wouldn’t go away, make an appointment to see your doctor if you feel symptoms of depression, or have symptoms that are worsening. Don’t be afraid to ask for help yourself.

How to Avoid Caregiver Burnout

You may have all of the best intentions of making weekly schedules and allowing time for yourself, but sometimes it just doesn’t happen, and that’s okay. There are still steps you can take to avoid burnout,

Try to get as much sleep as possible. Getting enough sleep is one of the many challenges of being a caregiver, and it should be one of your top priorities. Even if you find yourself giving up some “fun” things to catch up on sleep, your body will thank you. And with a good night’s sleep, you’ll have plenty of time and energy for fun things later on.

Try meditation or find ways to relax. You may have caregiver stress ranging from financial problems to sadness over seeing a loved one very ill. Realities like these can disquiet the mind and compound any existing anxiety or depression. The problem itself may not go away, but how you look at the problem can be altered. In addition to finding caregiver support  groups in your area, it’s also a great idea to find a group that practices mindfulness and meditation (or both).

Look for support. One of the many challenges of being a caregiver is going it alone. Right now, you may be the sole person providing the majority of support for your family, and that means you will need support, as well. Look for caregiver support groups in your area. If you come up empty-handed, look for social media or other online groups, so you have a private place to vent and speak your mind.

Caregiver burnout can happen to anyone, whether you’re a professional or you’re caring for a member of your family. But, it’s also good to remember that a separate challenge of caregiving is going through all the stages of grief. As you find yourself experiencing denial or anger, just remember that it’s okay to feel these feelings, and it is completely normal to go through the process. There are many challenges of being a caregiver, but many rewards as well.

For mobility products for the elderly and disabled that can help make life easier as a caregiver, contact the company who cares, Williams Lift Co. With over 71 years in the mobility products industry, we understand your needs.