What to Do When an Elderly Relative Refuses Help

It’s not easy to deal with seniors when their stubbornness gets the better of them and they become unwilling to cooperate. This comes from the large amount of pride they take in maintaining independency, and will hold on to it even if it threatens their own well-being. Because of this they might refuse to move to assisted living or hire a professional caregiver, spend most of their time at home instead of engaging in an activity at the community center, or won’t follow the instructions given by the physician. They might even oppose the idea of having a hearing aid or a walking cane.

Tips for convincing them

Forcing an idea onto a senior to improve their health or lifestyle might actually lead to terrible consequences as the aging relative could end up ceasing all interaction with you but may even shut themselves off completely, leading to self-neglect and depression. It’s best to approach the situation with patience and consideration. Don’t just bring up the conversation out of nowhere, instead start on a positive note to make sure that they are in the right mood. While trying to convince them, present multiple choices to give the senior the feeling that they are in charge, just make sure that each of the options are all possible and beneficial.

Senior monitoring systems

When the aging relative refuses to cooperate, family members tend to become desperate and install surveillance cameras inside the house, a move naturally encouraged by home security companies. From a medical alert perspective this move is rather foolish, since the expensive electronics would make the senior feel like a prisoner in their own home, which would further fuel their resistance.

If your relative is suffering from an illness or their health is deteriorating, then it’s imperative to convince them to subscribe to a medical alert system. This might be hard to do if they are being resistant to help, but since the service comes with an emergency pendant or wristwatch even tech-hating person will have no issues handling it and the benefit is that operators will immediately notify you if an emergency happens. Certain medical alert companies also allow their operators to be called in non-emergency situations. These services come with a number of useful products, particularly of interest being the fall detection pendant or a medication reminder that can contribute to keeping the senior healthy.