If you have an elderly loved one that can’t safely be living on their own anymore, one option before you consider moving them into an assisted living facility is to move in with them to help take care of them. Especially in today’s economy, it often makes sense for people to live with family from different generations in order to offer each other both financial and emotional care. But before you take this step, there are a few things that you should figure out first.
To help you with this, here are three things to do as soon as you move in to care for an elderly relative.
Set A Precedent For Honest Communication
For many people, their relationship with their parents or their grandparents isn’t as open and honest as it could be. But when you’re going to be living with someone and taking care of them and some of their intimate needs, it’s vital that both parties learn how to effectively and honestly communicate with each other.
Part of this includes having a thicker skin when it comes to things that you discuss with your loved one. To get to this point, share with your elderly loved one that you want to do everything possible to make this situation work for everyone. And as part of this, you both need to be able to share what you’re thinking or feeling as far as things that are bothering you or changes you’d like to see made. Commit to having these conversations with respect and being determined to find a solution that will work for everyone while being able to come back together in love afterward.
Talk About Finances
When you live with someone who has separate finances from you, financial matters can get a little sticky. So to help ensure that this doesn’t become something that grates on your relationship, talk about the financial aspect of your arrangement as soon as you can.
Discuss who will be responsible for what regarding the home and the associated costs. And if additional financial issues come up later, create a precedent that you’ll figure things out together as fairly as possible.
Figure Out How Everyone Can Maintain Independence
Because you will now be living with your elderly loved one, it can begin to feel like neither of you are able to get the independence that you likely want.
To ensure that this doesn’t lead to resentment for either of you, try to find ways that you can both do things with other people. If you have family that can continue to take care of certain things for your loved one so that you can take personal time, this is great for both parties so that you can both get a break from one another.
If you’re going to be moving in to care for one of your elderly loved ones, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you start off on the right foot with this.
