Time-saving & Helpful Tips for Caregivers

AnnaLeigh

Time-saving tips for Caregivers


I can't wait to hear from the "veterans" on this discussion board and use what they have learned through their experience.

In the meantime, here are a few things I use -



**When you find yourself able to cook a meal, ALWAYS cook extra !! Put those extra, cooked, chicken breasts in the fridge to use later for things like chicken salad.

**Keep a list of medications and their prescription numbers in a log book with the telephone number of the pharmacy. When you are away from home, at work, etc. and realize you need a refill, it can be called in immediately instead of going on the "to-do" list.

**Hang a sheet of paper titled "Grocery List" on the fridge so that every member of the family can make a note when they realize the house is running low on a specific supply or make their special requests. This also makes a ready list on hand for those times when someone offers to do a little grocery shopping for you.

**Post a sheet titled "To-Do List" with a column to designate who is responsible for the job. This will cut down on members of the household not knowing what needs to be done or thinking it was someone else's responsibility. These items can be marked off as needed and will keep the Caregiver from having too much "data" to remember or keep track of.

AnnaLeigh

More tips
**Keep a supply of folded trash can liners in the bottom of the waste basket. When you remove the full liner, the next liner is available at your finger tips.

**A small, inexpensive bookshelf next to the care recipient's bed or favorite recliner will hold more than a bedside tray. There is ample room for all medications, reading materials, drinks, snacks, television remote, cell phone, extra tissues, etc.

**Pill sorters provide a way to be sure your loved one has taken their medications. Even when they are asleep you can pop in to check and make sure their 4:00 p.m. tray is empty, for example. Takes the guess work out of the time and quantity of their daily meds.

**Hang a calendar in a prominent place that has all of the appointments for the entire month. Include any appointments you make for yourself and other family members. Don't forget to designate some time away or relaxation time for yourself on the calendar, even if it is only for a couple of hours.

ruthelizabeth

AnnaLeigh said:

More tips
**Keep a supply of folded trash can liners in the bottom of the waste basket. When you remove the full liner, the next liner is available at your finger tips.

**A small, inexpensive bookshelf next to the care recipient's bed or favorite recliner will hold more than a bedside tray. There is ample room for all medications, reading materials, drinks, snacks, television remote, cell phone, extra tissues, etc.

**Pill sorters provide a way to be sure your loved one has taken their medications. Even when they are asleep you can pop in to check and make sure their 4:00 p.m. tray is empty, for example. Takes the guess work out of the time and quantity of their daily meds.

**Hang a calendar in a prominent place that has all of the appointments for the entire month. Include any appointments you make for yourself and other family members. Don't forget to designate some time away or relaxation time for yourself on the calendar, even if it is only for a couple of hours.

a few from me, not all time-saving
**Make a list of questions for the dr or hospice so you don't forget something when you meet with them.

**Keep a list of phone numbers for friends handy. If you need someone, you may not have time to hunt up a number.

**Keep one ahead -- "one" may be the favorite food or juice, toilet paper, bed pads, box of wipes, etc. Whatever you use a lot of, keep one on the shelf. When you run out, your spare will be on the shelf and you can add it to the shopping list so you never face an emergency without what you need on hand.

**Always keep the car filled with gas. Emergency trips to the store or hospital or wherever will be smoother if you know the tank is always full.

**Some things are an investment. If there are favorite shows that make you and your loved one laugh, buy the DVDs. They will get you thru some bad times. Don't be so frugal that you look back and wish you'd bought that thing they loved, whether it was ice cream or filet mignon or whatever. You can always pay off the credit card slowly, but sometimes you can't go back and make them happy.

**Put up with things. If he loved his kids and they aren't nice to you, put up with them. If she wants Pavaroti on full blast, get ear plugs.

**Learn from the experts. Hospice and other caregivers and the nurse, etc. have all been trained in what they do. Ask them how to change the bed with your loved one in it, how to lift, the best way to give meds, etc.

**Pay attention to what your loved one is feeling or thinking. They will give you clues about what they want you to say and not say. Don't force a discussion if they don't want to hear about it. You can give them opportunities to talk, but be guided by their response.

**If there is a choice, let them try what they want. If he wants a hamburger and hasn't been able to eat it before, get one anyway and let him try again. That's better than tellling him it's pointless to buy one when he won't be able to eat it anyway. If you think he's going to be disappointed, it's better for him to be disappointed trying, rather than be told it's useless to try.

**If he wants things normal, do all you can to keep things as normal as possible. This may involve ingenuity and a lot of deceit. Do it anyway.

AnnaLeigh

ruthelizabeth said:

a few from me, not all time-saving
**Make a list of questions for the dr or hospice so you don't forget something when you meet with them.

**Keep a list of phone numbers for friends handy. If you need someone, you may not have time to hunt up a number.

**Keep one ahead -- "one" may be the favorite food or juice, toilet paper, bed pads, box of wipes, etc. Whatever you use a lot of, keep one on the shelf. When you run out, your spare will be on the shelf and you can add it to the shopping list so you never face an emergency without what you need on hand.

**Always keep the car filled with gas. Emergency trips to the store or hospital or wherever will be smoother if you know the tank is always full.

**Some things are an investment. If there are favorite shows that make you and your loved one laugh, buy the DVDs. They will get you thru some bad times. Don't be so frugal that you look back and wish you'd bought that thing they loved, whether it was ice cream or filet mignon or whatever. You can always pay off the credit card slowly, but sometimes you can't go back and make them happy.

**Put up with things. If he loved his kids and they aren't nice to you, put up with them. If she wants Pavaroti on full blast, get ear plugs.

**Learn from the experts. Hospice and other caregivers and the nurse, etc. have all been trained in what they do. Ask them how to change the bed with your loved one in it, how to lift, the best way to give meds, etc.

**Pay attention to what your loved one is feeling or thinking. They will give you clues about what they want you to say and not say. Don't force a discussion if they don't want to hear about it. You can give them opportunities to talk, but be guided by their response.

**If there is a choice, let them try what they want. If he wants a hamburger and hasn't been able to eat it before, get one anyway and let him try again. That's better than tellling him it's pointless to buy one when he won't be able to eat it anyway. If you think he's going to be disappointed, it's better for him to be disappointed trying, rather than be told it's useless to try.

**If he wants things normal, do all you can to keep things as normal as possible. This may involve ingenuity and a lot of deceit. Do it anyway.

Greatly appreciate your input
Thanks so much RuthElizabeth, for adding your insights. I started this discussion because I have such a clear memory of how confusing, stressful and helpless I felt after my husband's initial diagnosis and all of the information available on the web was so generalized instead of giving specific help. So..just hoping to give a boost and leg-up to some of those caregivers who come here looking for a place to start.

You very poignantly point out not to force anything on the care recipient. Don't force food, solutions, schedules, or "the proper attitude and emotions". Learning to let the cancer patient adjust, as needed, can relieve so much of the stress that we experience from trying to make everything perfect or provide the perfect care.

Thanks again.

ruthelizabeth

AnnaLeigh said:

Greatly appreciate your input
Thanks so much RuthElizabeth, for adding your insights. I started this discussion because I have such a clear memory of how confusing, stressful and helpless I felt after my husband's initial diagnosis and all of the information available on the web was so generalized instead of giving specific help. So..just hoping to give a boost and leg-up to some of those caregivers who come here looking for a place to start.

You very poignantly point out not to force anything on the care recipient. Don't force food, solutions, schedules, or "the proper attitude and emotions". Learning to let the cancer patient adjust, as needed, can relieve so much of the stress that we experience from trying to make everything perfect or provide the perfect care.

Thanks again.

mottoes to live by
Life is too short to make all the mistakes yourself. Consult with others, even if you don't normally talk about personal things. Often the people you least expect help from have gone through what you're just beginning to experience. Their suggestions and experience will save you a lot of mistakes and grief and struggle.

Remember that the big things in life are things you have no training for or experience in. You can expect to be confused and make mistakes because of that. Don't be too hard on yourself. Nobody does new things perfectly. However, see the first paragraph. There are people out there who can help.

AnnaLeigh

Trouble swallowing or taking pills
If you are caring for someone who has trouble swallowing pills, look into getting a Medi-straw. These glass straws allow the care recipient to drink hot liquids through a straw without melting and are large enough to allow a pill to travel through. So the patient will get a pill with plenty of liquid behind it which makes it much easier to swallow.

AnnaLeigh

Wheel chair back ache
Medical supply stores and on-line suppliers carry push-handle extensions for wheel chairs that will give you extra leverage while pushing someone and relieves the strain of having to "put your back into it" in order to get the chair rolling in difficult places.

There are also "Bar Tenders" for wheel chairs. This is a horizontal bar that connects to the two handles on the back to create one long pushing surface like the back of a baby stroller.

AnnaLeigh

Light switches that are night lights
Home improvement stores sell light switches that are back lit and act as a night light so when our loved ones are making all of those nightly trips to the bathroom, they are able to have a light to guide them to the doorway and can easily find the switch in a dark room.

AnnaLeigh

Keep a medical journal
Keep a medical journal to list questions for the next doctor's visit. Be sure to leave ample space between questions in order to write down the answers. This will become an invaluable tool later when you want to review what the doctor, surgeon, or technician said. Under these stressful times, our memories are not always reliable.

There are free websites where you can download a journal or you can use a spiral notebook. Anything that lets you keep a permanent record and enables you to look back at dates when certain events occurred.

We even wrote down the sequence the chemo drugs were given in. It really came in handy when one of the new nurses almost skipped the pre-meds before giving one of the infusion drugs. It saved my loved-one an enormous amount of discomfort from not having the pre-meds administered at the right time.

onhold

AnnaLeigh said:

Keep a medical journal
Keep a medical journal to list questions for the next doctor's visit. Be sure to leave ample space between questions in order to write down the answers. This will become an invaluable tool later when you want to review what the doctor, surgeon, or technician said. Under these stressful times, our memories are not always reliable.

There are free websites where you can download a journal or you can use a spiral notebook. Anything that lets you keep a permanent record and enables you to look back at dates when certain events occurred.

We even wrote down the sequence the chemo drugs were given in. It really came in handy when one of the new nurses almost skipped the pre-meds before giving one of the infusion drugs. It saved my loved-one an enormous amount of discomfort from not having the pre-meds administered at the right time.

journals
I agree with AnnaLeigh!

We used a journal daily to keep track of everything. I made up a grid and listed all the things he needed to track daily on the left, then the time across the top. That way we knew when the last dose was taken, the next one due, when his temps were rising, when he wasn't getting adequate nutrition/liquids, etc. It was one huge group of things I didn't have to remember since it was written down.

Always have a 'to-go' bag ready with books, crosswords, a variety of snacks, water/juice bottles, goodies (sometimes chocolate is essential!), daily meds (for nausea, hiccups, etc), an 'airline bag', thermometer, wipes, music player & headphones. Anything that will help when sitting in the hospital for hours (for BOTH of you). We even have the small 'blue ice' things in the freezer and a small insulated lunch bag to throw food into.

Cell phones are great for storing information in. Put in all the phone numbers you can think might possibly be useful, email addresses, everything.

Collect business cards from every doctor, technician, social worker, etc. that you come in contact with. That way you will be able to track who you talked to and what they said, or to send a thank you note or compliment, or give their information to someone who might need it. They have plastic sheets you can put the cards into and keep in a 3 ring binder if you want.

david54

I gave a few of my own
I gave a few of my own (Please excuse my rank humor, its how I cope)

When your spouse is watching “CSI for the 100th time because she is infatuated with Tony Dinozzo, have your Xanax with Scotch nearby so you can detach from the script you know by heart.

Cook the road kill you ran over last week outside on the grill. Possum tastes better and is more easily digested than skunk. Your loved one will swear its chicken if you marinade it long enough!

Keep that handy cell phone number nearby for “Wanda wants to talk with you while she does it in the dark with chocolate” for the nights you need a little fantasy of your own.

Ensure mixed with prune juice, lactulose, protein shakes and Acai may not always just benefit your spouse, it can actually help you lose 10 pounds in short order and put a healthy dose of hair on your chest at the same time!

For those nights with only two hours of sleep, a fork in a light socket added to a cup of cappuccino will give you the jolt you need to more than prepare you for the “Honey-do” list.

“The Clapper” can be modified to “The Crapper!” Just be careful not to clap your hands in the middle of the living room-makes it a little embarrassing.

Just my tidbits from a veteran who has been there.

AnnaLeigh

onhold said:

journals
I agree with AnnaLeigh!

We used a journal daily to keep track of everything. I made up a grid and listed all the things he needed to track daily on the left, then the time across the top. That way we knew when the last dose was taken, the next one due, when his temps were rising, when he wasn't getting adequate nutrition/liquids, etc. It was one huge group of things I didn't have to remember since it was written down.

Always have a 'to-go' bag ready with books, crosswords, a variety of snacks, water/juice bottles, goodies (sometimes chocolate is essential!), daily meds (for nausea, hiccups, etc), an 'airline bag', thermometer, wipes, music player & headphones. Anything that will help when sitting in the hospital for hours (for BOTH of you). We even have the small 'blue ice' things in the freezer and a small insulated lunch bag to throw food into.

Cell phones are great for storing information in. Put in all the phone numbers you can think might possibly be useful, email addresses, everything.

Collect business cards from every doctor, technician, social worker, etc. that you come in contact with. That way you will be able to track who you talked to and what they said, or to send a thank you note or compliment, or give their information to someone who might need it. They have plastic sheets you can put the cards into and keep in a 3 ring binder if you want.

Thank you - Great input !!
With all of the different specialists that can be involved, it becomes so important to keep up with which doctor you saw and what their specialty is; how to contact them in emergencies, and not be stumbling around wasting precious energy and time trying to find their telephone number.

Thanks

AnnaLeigh

david54 said:

I gave a few of my own
I gave a few of my own (Please excuse my rank humor, its how I cope)

When your spouse is watching “CSI for the 100th time because she is infatuated with Tony Dinozzo, have your Xanax with Scotch nearby so you can detach from the script you know by heart.

Cook the road kill you ran over last week outside on the grill. Possum tastes better and is more easily digested than skunk. Your loved one will swear its chicken if you marinade it long enough!

Keep that handy cell phone number nearby for “Wanda wants to talk with you while she does it in the dark with chocolate” for the nights you need a little fantasy of your own.

Ensure mixed with prune juice, lactulose, protein shakes and Acai may not always just benefit your spouse, it can actually help you lose 10 pounds in short order and put a healthy dose of hair on your chest at the same time!

For those nights with only two hours of sleep, a fork in a light socket added to a cup of cappuccino will give you the jolt you need to more than prepare you for the “Honey-do” list.

“The Clapper” can be modified to “The Crapper!” Just be careful not to clap your hands in the middle of the living room-makes it a little embarrassing.

Just my tidbits from a veteran who has been there.

Bulk purchases - LOL
Boy, can I relate to your post David! - we buy kleenex tissues, Advil PM, coffee, chocolate, hormone replacement therapy supplements, vodka, and scotch in truckload quantities at my house.

These are for me - the Caregiver.

LOL