12 Tips to Improve Mental Health of Elderlies

This is a collaborative post.

Many seniors go through significant life transitions that may put them at risk for depression. During the pandemic years, many lost their mental health over stress, panic, and extreme anxiety. It is painful to watch elderlies struggle alone with despair or loneliness.

Sharing 13 amazing tips that can reduce stress and anxiety and improve the mental health of seniors:

Stay Away from Negative News

With increasing corruption and disputes between countries, it is harmful to your brain to bear so much negative news. There can be news like disasters, communal disputes, women’s humiliation, etc. These can easily hamper seniors’ mental health. It is recommended to keep them away from such bad news.

Practice Gratitude and Gifts

Gratitude always develops a positive thought process, it helps seniors to feel appreciated and give significance to their existence. Gifting is another way to show them how important and valuable they are in our lives. Check out beautiful father’s day gifts for seniors to shower them with love and gratification.

Incorporate Nutritious Diet

Nutritions and fibres help in our physical health. Incorporating more green vegetables and fruits can increase your internal body health improvement. You feel good when you eat clean. Avoid the intake of junk, fatty, or greasy food and beverages. Also, keep a check on your calorie count, your appetite should be enough to keep you healthy.

Keep Check on Hydration

Drinking at least 8 to 10 glasses of water is very necessary for seniors. Water helps fight depression and anxiety, it also helps in detoxifying your body which eventually helps in reducing overall stress and you start to feel lighter and happier. The link between dehydration and sadness was greater, with researchers finding that people who didn’t drink enough water had higher anxiety.

Join a Community

You may encourage and help your senior volunteer at a local community group, visit a senior centre, become more engaged in their church or temple, or enrol in classes at a nearby gym or adult education centre. These activities enable them to make friends of the same age who share similar thoughts and struggles, reducing loneliness and fostering a sense of belonging in society.

Participate in Craft and Art

Focus and concentration are improved by engaging in creative activities. It is an excellent approach to exercise and excite the brain by engaging in new hobbies. Painting, crocheting, pottery making, and other arts and hobbies can help seniors maintain their cognitive function.

Play Brain Games

The degree of game complexity that a senior with dementia can handle will vary depending on his or her health. However, chess, checkers, Domino, Monopoly, Scrabble, and other games are likely known to most seniors, are simple to set up, and enjoyable. This also increases interpersonal interactions amongst them.

Take Care of Plants

Gardening is a healthy and engaging physical activity that elderly adults may enjoy. Gardening, equipment, and tools may all be adapted to meet the requirements of senior citizens. Gardening boosts physical exercise while also preserving mobility and flexibility.

Listen to Podcasts

A podcast is an online audio recording show that works similarly to a radio broadcast but is always available. This is fantastic since it allows seniors to listen whenever it is most convenient for them. Ted talks, guided meditation, crime shows, and health-related podcasts are enjoyed by seniors.

Do Mild Exercises

Every week, seniors 65 and over should engage in at least 2.5 hours of moderate aerobic activity (such as brisk walking). On most days of the week, that amounts to around 30 minutes. Alternatively, you should obtain 1 hour and 15 minutes of intense activity each week, such as jogging.

Look After a Pet

Pets can assist older people to decrease stress, lower blood pressure, enhance social contact and physical activity, and even help them learn if they live alone or in group settings. They will feel less lonely, can keep themselves busy by cuddling and taking care of them and they can have a sound sleep in their pet’s company. Dogs are a good choice for them since they are loving, loyal, and protective by nature.

Engage in Social Work

Volunteering is a significant approach to improving older adults’ social inclusion and hence their well-being. This encompasses both volunteering for elderly persons and volunteering by senior citizens, referred to as “silver volunteering.” Volunteers can help older folks maintain an active social life by visiting them regularly, taking them out to events, or exchanging letters and phone calls.

Meditate on Daily Basis

Focusing on one’s breathing is a simple approach for seniors to meditate. Inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth for five deep breaths. This approach might help you relax and slow down. When we’re overwhelmed and have to wash away the tension of the day, many of us resort to a hot bath.

The Final Word

Request advice from friends or family on how to enhance the mental health of elders. They might be able to provide you with some useful suggestions for activities. Reach out to elders whenever you can to assist them in living a better life.

If you found this helpful please share!