Caregiving is a rewarding experience, especially when it comes to ensuring that your parents are taken care of. However, it can also come with challenges. Stress, lack of self-care, and other obstacles can contribute to emotional and mental health issues.

As an only child, caring for aging parents can be especially hard. You don’t have siblings to rely on for extra help, and you might find yourself serving as the sole caregiver. Part of Brickmont Assisted Living’s mission is to provide resources regarding senior caregiving so that families know where to begin when providing the right care for their loved ones. 

If you are an only child, our assisted living team in Georgia is sharing senior care tips to help you create a strong care system to support you and your parents.

When the ball drops on New Year’s Eve, it signals the beginning of a brand new chapter; a clean slate for everyone to refresh their daily routines, improve upon themselves, and start on their New Year’s resolutions! Resolutions are personal goals to set for yourself, whether you want to improve your health or make new strides in your career, friendships, or happiness. 

There’s nothing like spending the holiday season with those you love. This is even more special if you live far away from your relatives, as it might be one of the only times of the year you get to visit them. 

For most of the year, the average temperature is in the mid-80s, which makes Georgia one of the most beautiful environments in the south!

The holidays are the most wonderful time of the year when families come together to connect, make memories, and celebrate! But the season can also come with extra stress when it comes down to planning, coordinating with relatives, meal prepping, gift-shopping – the list goes on.  

This time of year is full of opportunities to bring families together to celebrate the holidays, partake in family traditions, and enjoy connecting over food and drink. But for many families, celebrating the holidays can cause mixed feelings when someone they love is living with dementia or memory loss.

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, caregiver is defined as “a person who provides direct care.” But anyone who has ever taken on the responsibilities of a caregiver can affirm this role means so much more than that.  

Everyone’s heard of the yo-yo diets that are often advertised on popular television shows and social media or the frantic “crash diets” that promise to help you drop those pesky extra pounds. Celebrity-endorsed health cookbooks and shows like Dr. Oz haven’t made the issue any better. Unfortunately, not only are these so-called “diets” inaccurate in many ways, but some can pose a dangerous threat to how our bodies break down food to provide nutrition and energy to our systems.

As children, our parents are our number one support system. They raise us, teach us right from wrong, and love us unconditionally as we grow up and become self-sufficient adults. However, when your parent starts to grow older, the tables begin to turn: you might notice that they require extra help with their daily routines. 

Our bodies are constantly changing as we get older, and one aspect of the aging process is how our scent changes. For instance, infants are often known for having a specific “newborn smell,” which is described as distinctly fresh. 

The “older person smell” is a particular scent, and as the aging process continues, it gets somewhat more difficult to avoid. In fact, the Japanese have their own word for this smell: “kareishu.” In Japan and other cultures, there are skincare lines dedicated to preventing or covering up this specific smell.