One thing that often happens in families is that one parent needs help in ways that are completely different from the other. It can make drafting a care plan difficult. You can’t be in two places at once, and you cannot clone yourself. 
 
If you do have parents with completely different needs, how do you manage your time? What helps keep you from stressing out trying to do it all. 
 
Prioritize Tasks

Prioritize the things that need to get done each day. Those tasks that are low-priority can be skipped if you run out of time. The main tasks to complete should be getting your parents fed and hydrated, making sure they have their medications, and making sure they get outside for fresh air and exercise if they are capable. 
 
On appointment days, missing the appointment isn’t possible so that has to be a priority. However, tasks like dusting, making beds, and vacuuming are okay to skip. If you put them off, it’s not risking anyone’s safety. 
 
Don’t let yourself feel like you’ve failed if you don’t get everything done. Family care isn’t easy. Your parents could be having a bad day, which makes it harder and will put you behind schedule. You may be dragging and just can’t work fast enough. It happens and you shouldn’t blame yourself. 
 
Get Family Members to Chip In 
 
It’s hard to take care of people with completely different needs on your own. Ask your brother/s and/or sister/s to help out, too. It’s easy for a family to leave care to one person, but easy doesn’t mean it’s fair. Ask others to do their part. 
 
You could focus on the help your parents need with meals and personal care while your siblings help with transportation and errands. Ideally, you want at least two people to get everything done each day. What if you don’t have siblings though or they’re too far away to help? That’s when you need to consider hiring someone. 
 
Hire Help 
 
If you haven’t thought about elderly care services, now’s the time. Elderly care aides come to your parents’ home and help with daily activities. While you take your mom to her medical appointments, your dad has someone helping him get showered and dressed. 
 
Caregivers can cook meals and clean the house while you get some work done or run errands. Elderly care agencies can also help you schedule respite care to ensure you have time alone each day or week. That’s important at preventing caregiver burnout. 

If you or an aging loved one are considering hiring elderly care services near Anderson, SC, contact Heart of the Carolinas Home Care at 864-991-3116.  Providing Home Care Services in Greenville, Simpsonville, Greer, Anderson, Spartanburg, Mauldin, Seneca, Laurens, Charleston, Columbia and the surrounding areas. 

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Edward Harrison

Founder at Heart of the Carolinas

Edward Harrison founded the Heart of the Carolinas Homecare in 2007 when he saw there was a need for caregivers that provide non-medical home care services, at a price that most people could afford. It was standard in the industry to require hourly minimums and it was common to be assigned a caregiver, not matched with one based on your individual personal needs. Edward understood that to make a successful relationship between caregiver and client, skills were not enough, personality and compatibility plays as much a role as do skills.

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