Living: the ultimate team sport

Tips for helping a caregiver

Posted on October 23, 2015 Updated on October 22, 2015

The latest AARP Magazine had a fabulous article providing helpful ways in which to make a caregiver’s life just a wee bit – or quite a bit – better.  Here are a few tips for you to adopt in your life.

1. Bring her a low-maintenance houseplant
2. Take in his mail
3. Do yard upkeep, whether raking leaves, mowing the lawn, shoveling snow
4. When you’re heading out to buy groceries, ask him if you can pick some things up for him
5. Take her kids or grandkids to the park or to a movie
6. Stop by with a board game or a movie to watch – a perfect way to get his mind off things
7. Visit her with a pet that has a sweet disposition
8. Take his dog on a walk – maybe on a daily or weekly basis
9. Do some light housework or repairs: dishes, vacuuming, dusting, ironing, smoke alarm battery and light bulb changing, fixing a leaky faucet
10. Return her library books
11. Volunteer to stay at home to wait for the cable technician, repairman, etc. while he attends to other more pressing needs
12. Bring him a week’s worth of meals in freezable containers
13. Send her a greeting card on an ongoing basis. Who doesn’t love to receive real postal mail?
14. When visiting, let the person vent, without passing verbal judgment on what they may say
15. Do an item or two on her To-Do list – I promise you, her list is extraordinarily long
16. Offer to make a photo album with him, using photos that mean a lot to him and the rest of the family
17. Give him a gift card to a restaurant he may enjoy, or better yet, take him out to dinner
18. Help him decorate for the holidays
19. Drop off or pick up a prescription
20. Keep in touch with her, even after her loved one passes. Too often, the grieving one has more attention than she can handle immediately after someone dies, then when she could really use some TLC, no one can be found.