Tag Archives: Total Home Care Supplies

Group Vacations

Posted by Jeanne Lowry on August 27, 2014 under BladderMatters, Caregiver Corner | Be the First to Comment

Summer vacations are coming to a close, but the fall is a great time to travel as well. Lower temperatures and fewer travelers can mean better deals and better experiences.

As a caregiver, you may find yourself longing for a vacation, but wondering how it’s possible to leave your charge. Or, perhaps your charge (your parents, child, sibling or other) has been asking to take a trip. How can you pull off taking a vacation with so many care issues to think about?

One option is to create a group to go on vacation with you. If there are more people than just you to help take care of your charge, there’s less for you to worry about. Are there siblings that can help out with your elderly parents? Can your parents help out with your special needs child? Coordinating times and destinations can be tough, but with the right planning, all parties can find enjoyable activities and alone time.

Another option is to participate in a pre-planned trip. Cruises have always been popular, but these days they are catering more and more to the aging population. Some cruises now provide help to their elderly passengers. Such a trip can provide the perfect setting: you as the caregiver get to make sure your parents’ care needs are being met, and there are opportunities to relax. And leaving the country isn’t necessary: river cruises mean less travel time to the boat and more scenery while on the ship.

Whether you decide on a private or group vacation, make sure to pack all supplies your charge needs in advance. TotalHomeCareSupplies.com has all the incontinence products you need for a great trip! Bon voyage!

National Breastfeeding Month

Posted by Jeanne Lowry on August 25, 2014 under Everything Baby | Be the First to Comment

August is National Breastfeeding Month and to celebrate, the United States Breastfeeding Committee (USBC) is holding a social media campaign. This campaign asks the questions “What does breastfeeding mean to you and how can every one of us play a role in supporting breastfeeding?” Participants are to use the hashtags #NBM14 and #SixWords with a picture to answer. We thought we’d take today to highlight a few of these great pictures and answers:

Find the original post of the above picture here.

And our favorite:

Find the original post of the above picture here.

If you make your own on Twitter, we’d love for you to tag us (with @THCSupplies) so we could see it. And you can find all our baby supplies here, including breast pumps and accessories.

Alzheimer’s and Incontinence

Posted by Jeanne Lowry on August 20, 2014 under BladderMatters | Be the First to Comment

Imagine you’re sitting on the couch, at the end of the day, watching your favorite show. You’re relaxed, you’re in a good place, you’re comfortable.

Suddenly, you experience an unpleasant sensation as warm liquid pools under you, and the liquid quickly cools. How did that happen? You didn’t have to go to the bathroom a second ago, but apparently, your bladder decided otherwise.

This is what it can be like for someone with Alzheimer’s. During the disease, the messages that the bladder sends to the brain to tell it it’s time “go” can get mixed up, misdirected or lost altogether.

Unfortunately, this isn’t the only reason why people with Alzheimer’s can become incontinent. Other factors can include the medications that patients take to deal with anxiety, not remembering the location of the restroom and underlying medical problems that may not yet be addressed.

These issues may not become evident until the moderate to severe stage of Alzheimer’s, but they will have to be addressed. The caregiver can provide support by gently reminding the patient to use the restroom and by making sure the way to and from the restroom itself are easily accessible.

However, sometimes leaks happen. At that point, the caregiver may want to utilize incontinence supplies. These days, adult briefs can be an unobtrusive as the average pair of underwear. Or, if the patient refuses to wear protective underwear, an underpad can be placed on chairs and beds to manage the leak.

Alzheimer’s can be very distressing to both caregivers and patients. Taking the stress of incontinence out of the equation can help.

Caregiving in Other Countries

Posted by Jeanne Lowry on August 19, 2014 under Caregiver Corner | Be the First to Comment

The ways in which older adult caregiving differs between countries depends on that culture’s view of the elderly. Are they respected? Are they ignored? Are there laws in the country that require children to regularly visit their parents? These issues and more can influence how caregivers interact with their charges.

In several Asian countries, the elderly are held in high regard. In Korea, the celebrations for 60^th and 70^th birthdays are a huge event. In China, they recently passed a law that says children of the elderly must visit their parents, or face fines and even jail time. In Japan, most old folks live with their children. Japan has a comparatively large elderly population, meaning most adults have their parents living with them. There is such a huge aging population, in fact, that adult diapers in Japan now outsell baby diapers.

Italy has an influx of Ukrainian caregivers, who may be leaving their own families, that come take care of Italy’s elderly. Because of this, Ukrainians make up the fourth-largest immigrant population in Italy, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

In India, the smaller villages often have few opportunities for young people, who move away to cities or overseas. A company called UberHealth has recently offered a way for the children of India’s elderly to monitor their parents’ health. These long distance caregivers are able to use the software UberHealth provides to keep up with their parents’ medical records and even order cars to take them to doctor’s appointments, all from a computer thousands of miles away.

No matter which country caregivers and their charges are living in, there needs to be more support for caregivers, and there are several international organizations who are trying to provide that support. We here at TotalHomeCareSupplies.com would love to hear about any experiences you may have with caregiving outside of the US.

Baby Diaper Issues: Wiping

Posted by Jeanne Lowry on August 18, 2014 under Everything Baby | Read the First Comment

Last year, I helped out a neighbor every so often by babysitting her two-year-old. She quickly filled me in on the basics: the child’s food allergies, TV rules and diaper changing specifics. The mom mentioned something I hadn’t heard before, but a quick Internet search told me she was not alone in her thinking. She asked that I only wipe the child if there was poop, but if the child had only peed, to just change the diaper and move on. Wiping after just peeing, she suspected, caused her child diaper rash. It was just a theory she had developed over time, but does it have some validity?

Logically, yes. The idea of wiping as an adult is to keep the area dry. But when a baby is wearing a diaper, that moisture gets whisked into the fluff of the diaper. Urine is sterile at first. Bacteria only start to develop over time. Most of the time, when changing a diaper with only pee, the child’s skin will be dry.

Another issue with wiping causing diaper rash can be the wipe itself. Wipes with perfumes or alcohol can irritate the baby’s sensitive skin. Check to make sure the wipes you’re using are perfume and alcohol free, such as Cuties Premium Baby Wipes. These wipes also have the added advantage of being hypoallergenic and having aloe and vitamin E in them.

An Internet search reveals that many doctors believe wiping after changing a pee diaper is unnecessary. Does this mean it’s always harmful to wipe a child after changing a pee-filled diaper? No. Every child’s skin and PH-balance is different. If your child is developing diaper rash, first pay attention to the diaper changing regimen, and see what changes need to be made.

Veterans and Caregivers

Posted by Jeanne Lowry on August 14, 2014 under Caregiver Corner | Be the First to Comment

Caregiving is difficult no matter your relationship to the charge or the reason why the person needs caregiving. But different challenges face each of those relationships and reasons. Veteran caregivers have a specific set of challenges, hardships and rewards.

One of the challenges is trying to understand the mountains of paperwork it can require for a veteran to get care. Of course, this can be a challenge for all caregivers, but as the news has shown over the last couple months, the VA system is a particularly rough road to travel these days. This trouble can be mitigated by keeping a close and organized watch on all paperwork related to the veterans care. But that still doesn’t mean that they’ll be able to get an appointment any faster than otherwise.

As for the hardships, there are many. Again this is true for other individuals with disabilities, but oftentimes veterans have problems that are not apparent on their body. PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) or a TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) often don’t leave outside marks. This means that the veteran and their caregiver have to deal with outside people treating them like everything is fine, even when it isn’t. That can be a blessing, but also can mean having to explain more to strangers than one would like.

But being there for a veteran can be tremendously rewarding. As the parent, spouse or friend of a veteran, that person is taking part in an effort larger than themselves. They are part of what makes that veteran function every day and they should be thanked, just as veterans are thanked.

So thank you, from us here at TotalHomeCareSupplies.com, for your service as either a member of the armed forces or as a caregiver of one. We are grateful for you.

National Health Center Week

Posted by Jeanne Lowry on August 12, 2014 under Caregiver Corner | Be the First to Comment

It’s National Health Center Week (August 10-16). A health center is generally a clinic that serves areas that have less medical care than the community needs. What can a community health center do for you?

Health centers provide immunizations, vaccinations, primary care and dental care.
Health Centers focus on more than just the health of your body! They also provide services like job training and housing assistance.
Free health fairs and other events are hosted by health centers, especially during Health Center Week.

At TotalHomeCareSupplies.com, we’re committed to keeping you as healthy as possible, so we encourage you to learn more about the services available to you. To find a health center in your area, see what events are happening this week or learn more about health centers, you can visit http://www.healthcenterweek.org. And check out the infographic below!

Quality of Care Provided by Health Centers

Different Types of Caregivers

Posted by Jeanne Lowry on August 11, 2014 under Caregiver Corner | Read the First Comment

There are as many types of caregivers as there are types of charges. Are you a caregiver? What type are you? We’d love to hear from you – let us know in the comments! Here are three main categories:

Family:
Family caregiving brings with it numerous rewards and stresses. The satisfaction that you are “taking care of your own” is very unique. But family also knows you well. They know that the facial expression you’re making now might mean you’re mad, but trying to cover it up. With someone outside your family, they may not notice it or know what it means.

According to the CDC, the typical caregiver is a woman in her 40s, providing care for her mother. This is an incredible act of love, and reciprocation to the woman who brought you into this world. But she may also be the person who’s able to say just a little remark that can bring up decades of past issues. These are stresses many caregivers of their own parents’ experience, and knowing you’re not alone can help (and you’re not, with 34 million unpaid caregivers out there!).

Friends:
The Internet abounds with stories of people who accidentally become part-time caregivers to their friends and neighbors. Often times, the caregiving begins incrementally: picking up some groceries here, dropping off the mail there. It may stop there, or continue on. These people know that they get along with their charge, which can be a help (who doesn’t love visiting a friend?) and a hindrance (when one person is unhappy, it can be awkward to let their friend know).

Hired:
Caregiving professionals are part of an industry that is growing and will continue to grow as the baby-boomers age. These individuals have devoted their careers to helping others. The satisfaction of that does not lower the stress that can come with the job, but it may provide comfort at the end of a long day. They may be temporary or long-term. Either way they are bringing both help and joy to their charge.

TotalHomeCareSupplies.com honors all the caregivers out there, and hope that they know we’re thinking of them. We’d love to hear about your caregiver experiences, past or present! See you in the comments!

What Is An Ostomy?

Posted by Jeanne Lowry on July 30, 2014 under Ostomy Care | Be the First to Comment

On June 21^st, 2014 the charity organization Crohn’s and Colitis UK posted a picture of one Bethany Townsend. As of this writing, the post has received nearly 250,000 likes, easily catapulting it to the status of viral. What was Townsend wearing in this popular photo? A bikini, an ostomy bag and a stoma cap.

Other sites, including Huffington Post picked up on the photo and the short article about Townsend, but failed to go into an explanation of what these items she’s wearing are and what they’re for. This led to a huge uptick in searches online for the word “ostomy” as people strove to understand why it was that Townsend needed bags to survive.

So here’s the short and sweet explanation: Ostomy bags are the term for any bag placed over a surgical opening on a body, generally in the abdomen region (you can see some examples of new bags here). The uses for these bags are to help with the work of organs that aren’t functioning properly or have been removed, such as all or part of the large intestine or the bladder. In cases such as Crohn’s disease, colitis, cancer or other issues, a surgeon will create a direct connection from the working parts to the outside of the body – creating a stoma (aka opening). Waste from the small intestine (or part of the large intestine or bladder) is dispelled through that opening, generally into a bag.

Ms. Townsend appears to be wearing an ostomy bag, and a stoma cap. The ostomy bag is there to capture the contents being emptied from her small intestine. The stoma cap, the smaller of the two items, is likely there to capture any small output from that particular stoma. As that stoma likely doesn’t produce waste on a consistent basis, it doesn’t need a full-sized bag. This is an assumption, of course, and everyone’s experience with stomas differs, but that’s a basic explanation of bags and caps.

It’s great to see such a positive response to Townsend’s photo, and to see so many people reply with proud pictures of themselves sporting ostomy bags.

“Joy Sessions” Photographers Capture Treasured Moments With Terminally Ill Pets

Posted by Brooke Phillips on February 11, 2014 under Caregiver Corner | Be the First to Comment

There is little question that professionally-trained service animals, such as therapy dogs or guide dogs, offer invaluable assistance and therapeutic benefits to the elderly and disabled. But the therapeutic and health benefits that pets provide aren’t just limited to service animals. The American Heart Association recently announced that pet ownership may help lower your risk of heart disease. Pets also provide psychological benefits, including easing loneliness, increasing physical and social activity, and boosting mood. The presence of pets in nursing homes has been shown to reduce the need for medication, improve vital signs and nutritional intake, and help people cope with depression and stress-related disorders, even among older adults with dementia.

A recent Fox News article discussed how to cope with the loss of a pet. More than 164 million U.S. households enjoy the benefits of pet ownership, so it’s no surprise that when a cherished family pet is approaching end-of-life, many families mourn the loss of a strong emotional bond.

One Minnesotan photographer found a way to help people cope with the impending loss of a terminally ill pet by celebrating life through photography. Sarah Beth Ernhart began offering “Joy Sessions”, or reduced-rate photography sessions for elderly or terminally ill dogs and cats, after capturing a joyful relationship between a woman in hospice care and her service dog named Joy. Since her first “Joy Session” in 2009, Sarah Ernhart has performed more than a hundred reduced-rate photo sessions with elderly or terminally ill pets. Her website also lists photographers across the country and worldwide who perform similar sessions. For more about Joy Sessions, visit www.joysession.com, or stop by the Joy Sessions Facebook page.

Just like people, many elderly or terminally ill pets struggle with loss of bladder or bowel control. For products to help keep your pet’s bed dry, visit TotalHomeCareSupplies.com.