How to Help Your Parents Create a Safe Home as They Age | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Featured

How to Help Your Parents Create a Safe Home as They Age

Aging can make getting around much harder. Make sure your parents are safe in their own home by following these tips.

149603
How to Help Your Parents Create a Safe Home as They Age

There is going to come a time when your parents need a little help to safely live in their home. This is just an inevitable part of life. The goal is to keep your parents as comfortable as possible while also knowing that they will be safe when alone. Luckily, it is fairly easy to make a few adjustments to the house that drastically improve its livability for seniors. These are the four things you must do to help your parents create a safe home as they age.

Eliminate Fall Hazards

Poor eyesight, reduced hearing, and imbalance put older individuals at risk of falling while moving around the house. Falling is actually the main cause for injured seniors. Since this is a dangerous problem, you need to remove all fall hazards from their house immediately. Throw rugs, long cords, and old unused furniture all pose a huge risk. Make the house as open as possible.

Add a Stair Lift

Walking up stairs puts a lot of stress on older bodies. They have to use all of their strength just to go up a flight of stairs. There is also a major injury risk if they fall while using the stairs. Avoid all of these dangers by adding a stair lift in the house. Stair lifts will safely go up and down the stairs whenever needed with absolutely no risk of injury.

Safety Proof Bathroom

The slippery surfaces in the bathroom make it one of the most dangerous rooms in the house for your older parents. There are several changes you need to make to ensure they stay safe. Put rubber mats inside and outside of the tub to prevent slipping. Add grab bars in the shower and next to the toilet. It is also a good idea to lower the temperature on the water heater to stop accidental burns in the shower.

Make Regular Visits

The best thing you can do to make sure your aging parents are safe in their home is by making regular visits to see them. In addition to spending valuable time with your family, you will also be able to access the house and your parent's well-being during these trips. Make sure some of your visits are unannounced to get a true sense of how they are living.

Your parents took care of you your entire life, so it is now time to repay the favor. Making these changes to the house will let your parents have independent lives in their own home for as long as possible.

Report this Content
singing
Cambio

Singing is something I do all day, every day. It doesn't matter where I am or who's around. If I feel like singing, I'm going to. It's probably annoying sometimes, but I don't care -- I love to sing! If I'm not singing, I'm probably humming, sometimes without even realizing it. So as someone who loves to sing, these are some of the feelings and thoughts I have probably almost every day.

Keep Reading...Show less
success
Degrassi.Wikia

Being a college student is one of the most difficult task known to man. Being able to balance your school life, work life and even a social life is a task of greatness. Here's an ode to some of the small victories that mean a lot to us college students.

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

6 Signs You're A Workaholic

Becuase of all things to be addicted to, you're addicted to making money.

161
workaholic
kaboompics

After turning 16, our parents start to push us to get a job and take on some responsibility. We start to make our own money in order to fund the fun we intend on having throughout the year. But what happens when you've officially become so obsessed with making money that you can't even remember the last day you had off? You, my friend, have become a workaholic. Being a workaholic can be both good and bad. It shows dedication to your job and the desire to save money. It also shows that you don't have a great work-life balance. Here are the signs of becoming a workaholic.

Keep Reading...Show less
10 Life Lessons For The Camp Counselor
madison miller

Spending five, 10 or even more weeks in the outdoors leading elementary to high school aged kids for a week at a time is unique, to say the least. You see things in yourself you didn't think were there and experience emotions you can not explain. What you learn is valuable for more than just camp, but extends to life after the summer.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

Things You Can Get Away With Now That You're At College

83% of my trends in college would have been shamed in high school.

1647
college life
Google Images

Transitioning from high school to college can be a stressful experience, especially if you're like me and hate change. Over the past two years I've realized there's many things I couldn't get away with in High School that are typically applauded in college.

1. Eat

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments