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Sometimes
frustrated caretakers respond with violence to the behavior
of the elderly person who depends on them for care
According to the Department
of Health and Human Services Administration on Aging, each
year more than half a million Americans over the age of 60
experience abuse, neglect, and/or self-neglect. Ninety percent
of the known perpetrators were family members. Each year,
one-third of Americans over age 65 fall*. Twenty to 30% of
those who fall suffer injuries that reduce their independence
and mobility. Falls also increase the risk of premature death.†
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Reasons for elder abuse
The Michigan State police include in their fact sheet
about elder safety a summary of causes of elder abuse in families.
Financial, time demands, and social concerns can impact and
challenge those caring for elder family members at home. At
the top of the list is the inability to deal with the stress
that can be involved in caregiving. As the Irish Working Group
on Elder Abuse expresses it, "Old people are often stereotyped
as being gentle, kind and easy to manage. Who would want to
ill-treat a 'dear old lady'? However, this is not always true.
Old people, like everyone else, can be demanding, unreasonable
and provocative. Others can be emotionally or mentally disturbed.
Sometimes, their behaviour can elicit a violent reaction from
those who are meant to care for them."
Stress reduction
There are as many relaxing, stress reducing activities
as there are individuals to enjoy them. Reading, gardening,
listening to music, walking, biking, a warm, watching a move,
taking a fragrant bath – sometimes the most difficult
stumbling block is simply commiting the time to engage in
what appeals most.
Though some stress helps us to move forward with life, too
much actually damages the brain. The research conducted by
Stanford University neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky, PhD, has
demonstrated that high levels of the stress hormone cortisol
damage the hippocampus – a region of the brain responsible
for memory and learning. In fact, the greater the stress,
the greater the memory problems that result.
One promising stress reducing activity that can be done anywhere
and only takes 10 to 20 minutes a day is meditation. Alzheimer's
Prevention Foundation's medical director, Dr. Khalsa says,
"I call meditation a suit of armor against stress, because
it releases trapped energy or garbage from the subconscious
mind that causes anxiety and excess cortisol production."
According to Dr. Khalsa, the purpose of meditation is to give
the logic-driven, thinking part of our brains a break once
or twice a day. The only requirements are a positive attitude,
a quiet environment, a comfortable position, and some type
of repetitive mental device(such as observing the breath,
repeating a mantra, or even counting your steps.
Sources:
The Michigan State Police
http://www.michigan.gov/som/0,1607,7-192-29941_30590-10267--,00.html
The Irish Working Group
on Elder Abuse
http://www.sote.info/
Vegetarian
Times, August 2000, Author Katy Koontz, reported by findarticles.com
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0820/is_2000_August/ai_63902653
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