Home Care Services: The Best Activities For Seniors With Low Vision

Home Care Services: Seniors often develop low vision as they get older.

Some estimates are that as many as one in three seniors has low vision by the time they are 65. Home care services may be something to consider to have help with this. Low vision symptoms vary among seniors but some common symptoms of low vision include:

• Trouble recognizing people’s faces
• Inability to see printed words clearly at a distance
• Being able to read shop names or signs but not price tags, receipts, or other printed materials
• Complaining about the lights seeming dim in the home
• Not able to drive at night

Home Care Services: Low Vision

If your senior parent is exhibiting any of these symptoms you should suggest that they get their vision checked by an eye doctor. If you have a senior loved one that has low vision there are still plenty of activities that they can do to stay engaged, although some may require the assistance of an elder care provider. Some of the most popular activities for seniors with low vision are:

Audiobooks and Podcasts

-Podcasts and audiobooks can keep your senior parents engaged and entertained for hours. If they have a home smart speaker an elder care provider can help them create playlists of the podcasts that they like so that can just tell the speaker to play that podcast. Audiobooks are easily accessible to seniors through apps on smartphones and tablets, through home smart speakers, or through some MP3 players.

Knitting

Knitting engages the brain as well as the hands and it can help seniors maintain their grip strength and flexibility in their hands. Once seniors learn the stitches by heart they will be able to knit anytime and their vision shouldn’t cause any problems. Seniors who are just learning to knit may need a helping hand from an elder care provider when they need to change a color or work an intricate stitch. Many senior centers have knitting and crochet groups for seniors where your senior loved ones can find other people who share their passion for yarn crafts.

Board Games

Many board games are senior-friendly with large brightly colored game boards, easy to hold pieces, and large printed cards and other materials. Playing board games with you or with a home care provider can be a fun way for a senior parent to pass the time. Board games are also fun for seniors to play with their grandchildren. When your children visit with your parents encourage them to play board games with your senior loved ones.

Home Care Services: Making Collages

Seniors with low vision may have trouble reading the articles in magazines, but the large glossy ads in magazines are fantastic for making art. Pick a theme and help your senior loved one make some collages are using ads from magazines, poster board, and glue. Your senior loved one will enjoy looking through magazines to find ads and photos that they like.

If you’re running low on magazines ask the local library if you can have theirs. Often those magazines just go into the recycle bin when they are outdated and the library may let you have them to cut up when the new editions are out. Home care services can also be a good option to help keep your senior active.

If you or an aging loved one is considering hiring Home Care in Southfork, NY, call the caring staff at Artful Home Care today at 631-685-5001.

Sources:
https://visionaware.org/your-eye-condition/eye-health/low-vision/
https://www.aafp.org/afp/1999/0701/p99.html