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Senior Care in Action: 6 Tips for Preventing Outdoor Falls
It has been a long time since we all first saw the television ad for “Help I’ve fallen and...
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October 1, 2012
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Caregiver or Guardian
As a geriatric care manager, I have the chance to work with all manner of caregivers and the elders...
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December 10, 2010
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In the Caregiver's Words

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We all hear the phrase used as an excuse for a bit of memory lapse … that it’s just a “senior moment.” It doesn’t seem to be ageist, because in older adult communities the phrase gets tossed around about as frequently as “hello” or “goodbye.” But it’s wrong. This time of COVID places us all at risk for the “Memory Moments,” because they’re not caused by age. Yes, short term recall issues are something to which we all are susceptible, but they are not caused by age. Memory issues like dementia are not caused by age; they have organic causes. There are steps we all can take to stay more mentally sharp no matter our age and despite COVID. During this time of sustained pandemic quarantine – for those of you following the state and local mandates, that is – memory lapses can seem to become more common. Even these “COVID moments” are not inevitable, however, if you keep your mind engaged and active. Here are six tips to help fend off the cognitive impact of COVID 19:
1. Do Something New – We all have heard about “lifelong learning” as it may describe someone who seems always to be pursuing new knowledge, a new language or a new craft. Your brain still has a lot of room to expand what you know, so keep at it.
2. Don’t Cram – Just like the tests when you were back in school, the best learning cannot happen the night before the exam. Spread your learning of a new language or a new musical instrument over a number of sittings and days, and it will more effectively take root.
3. One More Time – The learning takes place over time, and you need to go over the same ground over and over. Repetition is important so that the new language you’re studying becomes like a new habit.
4. More Senses Make More Sense – When you are working a new recipe in the kitchen, you learn by reading, tasting, smelling, touching, etc. With learning a language, you learn by seeing, hearing, writing, saying, and so on. Use as many senses as you can to maximize your cognitive process.
5. Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff – It’s okay to let your devices or your habits free up your brain to work on the new things you want to learn. Make a written list of your “to do’s.” It will free up the brain space to actually determine how to do what you want to get done.
6. Yes You Can – Don’t ever call it your “senior moment,” because that means you have lost confidence in you. While you are practicing what you wish to learn, practice having confidence in your learning. If you don’t believe in a “senior moment,” you are far less likely to have one.
Charlotte Bishop is an Aging Life Care Advisor, Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Care Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. She also is the co-author of How Do I Know You? A Caregiver’s Lifesaver for Dealing with Dementia.
I have written a lot about dementia over the years as well as other issues that can mimic the losses in cognition that are the hallmarks of dementia. One potential cause of poor recall and attention that does not get a lot of attention is a vitamin deficiency. The vitamin in question is vitamin B12, and the deficiency can occur even among older adults who take multi-vitamin supplements. In fact, it is a common vitamin deficiency in older adults, and it is very common in vegetarians as much of dietary vitamin B12 comes from meat products. Vitamin B12 is important to the body’s function, because it has a hand in creating red blood cells, maintaining healthy nerves and generally regulating the body’s overall metabolism. B12 deficiency can happen to anyone, but older adults are even more at risk for pernicious anemia in general. Their digestive systems become less efficient with age, so even increased consumption of the vitamin will not always result in a proportional increase in effective absorption. Catching B12 deficiency early is important, because some of the effects cannot be reversed if they are allowed to progress too far. The early warning signs of vitamin B12 deficiency beyond include:
- Gradual onset of muscle weakness in the limbs
- Cold or lack of sensation in tips of toes or fingers
- Awkward gait or even stumbling
- Sore tongue or impaired taste and sense of smell
- Low grade fever
- Stomach or intestinal digestive difficulties
- General anemia as diagnosed by a provider.
If you see evidence of any of these issues with an older loved one, it will be important to speak with their provider who can issue orders for a blood test. If caught early enough, normal function can be returned. A question you may be asking is if taking extra vitamin B12 can improve normal memory, and the answer is no. Normal is, well, normal, and vitamin supplements can only move us back to where we have been. So, if you’re asking if this all means that being alert to vitamin B12 deficiency is important for our older loved ones, the answer is a definite “yes.” If you’re asking if it is important for us all to monitor our B12 levels, that’s a “yes” as well. Charlotte Bishop is a Caregiver Coach, an Aging Life Care Advisor, a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Care Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. She also is the co-author of How Do I Know You? A Caregiver’s Lifesaver for Dealing with Dementia.
In the meantime, we invite you to download the below featured FREE white paper - offering both personal and professional advice for those who care for the elderly or people with special needs. Make sure to come back and visit us for more great FREE resources.

A Caregiver's Guide for Changes & AgingCoping with change can be difficult. It often involves tough decisions and conversations with the person you care for. Discover strategies to help you and your loved one feel more comfortable with transition.Download
Gregory Peebles is a Certified Senior Advisor (CSA), Certified Dementia Practitioner (CDP) and trained Medicare Counselor, whose work focuses on helping aging adults and folks with limited independence by providing resources and support to help them discover and lead their best life. Gregory has been a key member of the CCM team for over a decade. – Charlotte This is the second installment in a three-part series to help clear up some common misconceptions about Medicare. Medicare isn’t intentionally confusing, but with all the cross-talk surrounding Medicare, even if understanding it isn’t as intuitive as “1,2,3”, it’s at least as easy as “A, B, D.” In the last post, I discussed the structure of Medicare, and its division into two main parts (A & B) and a supplemental part (D). In review, the major portions of the program look like this:
- Part A – “Original Medicare”, covers in-patient stays (including hospital stays, or stays in rehab facilities, etc.)
- Part B – “Original Medicare”, covers physician visits (including Primary Care Provider visits, or referrals)
- Part D – added under the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003, covers select prescription drugs.
Let me start with some of Medicare’s surprising omissions of coverage. Again, the way the public thinks that the service works and how the service functions in practice are not the same. For example, Part A is designed for stays in medical facilities, but not all stays, and not all facilities are covered. The same can be said for Part B, which does not cover all physician office visits. How does this work? While most traditional, scheduled physician visits are covered, you shouldn’t expect to be covered by Medicare Part B for:
- Most dental care
- Eye exams related to prescribing glasses
- Dentures
- Cosmetic surgery
- Acupuncture
- Hearing aids and exams for fitting them
- Routine foot care
Which facility stays are not covered under Medicare Part A?:
- Long-term care
- “Custodial” care
It may come as a shock to many, but Medicare does not pay any part of the cost for permanent residence in a Skilled Nursing Facility (commonly called a Nursing Home). Without long-term care insurance, many aging adults find themselves unsure how to manage to pay for extended, custodial care. Next week, we’ll talk about options to close the “gaps” in coverage and how folks covered by Medicare are planning for themselves with the help of Medicare Counselors. Charlotte Bishop is an Aging Life Care Advisor, Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Care Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. She also is the co-author of How Do I Know You? A Caregiver’s Lifesaver for Dealing with Dementia.
If you’re old enough to remember 1969, then you are old enough to remember this bold addition to the packages containing cigarettes that year: “Warning: The Surgeon General Has Determined That Cigarette Smoking Is Dangerous to Your Health.” It was supposed to alarm consumers enough to quit smoking, but it was reinforced even more with the 1984 rule that let potential consumers know more specifically what kinds of terminal illnesses smoking was known to cause. By the way, nicotine is addictive. What would your take be if you were to see this on your next frozen dinner or cereal box or other processed food product: “Warning: The Surgeon General Has Determined That This Processed Food Product Is Addictive.” The Surgeon General may or may not point to the poor nutritional value of many of these food products, but addictive? Well, that’s precisely what a number of recent clinical studies have shown. Clinical investigators in both Southport, UK, and the University of Michigan here in the states have demonstrated that highly processed foods and fat have the unique ability to rapidly metabolize leading to an addictive outcome in line with nicotine-based products. While the diet does not inexorably lead to bad outcomes, the addictive potential means that they become the slippery slope toward either obesity or diabetes or both. The rest of the story, the doctors note, are in step with addictive behavior:
- Poor control of intake among those who are addicted;
- Major cravings among those who are addicted;
- Continued use despite bad health outcomes;
- And all the other hallmarks of addiction.
When you consider what finally led to all the boxed warnings on tobacco products, you will see the parallels. Tobacco products, researchers found,
- Were triggers to not just continued, but compulsive, use;
- Were able to create cravings that were psychological; and
- Were repetitive behaviors that encouraged more and more.
Remember also that cigarettes used to be in the checkout lanes of grocery stores like…well, like the candies and other snacks that include highly processed carbohydrates. While there is no labeling of such commodities yet, that time will come. Don’t wait for the label to give a mindful consideration to the foods you label as your favorites when they may actually be your addictions. Charlotte Bishop is an Aging Life Care Advisor, Geriatric Care Manager and founder of, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. She also is the co-author of How Do I Know You? A Caregiver’s Lifesaver for Dealing with Dementia.
I promised in my last posting to talk more specifically about what can be made safe for seniors who wish to age in place – room by room. I am going to start with the room in the home where most accidents happen, the bath. The bathroom for most elders represents the perfect storm of a confined space with potentially slippery surfaces. Nearly one-third of seniors over age 65 fall each year, and the majority of these falls happen in the bathroom. With basic planning and potentially some retrofitting, however, the bath can be made more safe and accommodating to an older person’s limited mobility and range of motion. Let’s start with surfaces.

There may already be a rug near the shower or bath area, but make certain it has a sticky, non-slip back to minimize falls when an elder enters or leaves the tub. If your older loved one uses a floor mat in the tub area when showering, make sure that the suction cups still offer good sticking poser. You may consider adhesive decals that stick to the porcelain tub surface with soft gripping rubber top surfaces. In the shower area itself, consider having a bath bench or chair with non-slip feet if your elder has difficulty standing for protracted periods or is at all unsteady on their feet. If your elder loved one is challenged by lifting their feet over the tub edge to step in for a shower, it may be time to refit their bath with a stall shower with a low or minimal curb in place of a tub/shower combination.

Having a non-slip, moisture-absorbent surface near the tub is a safety assist, but any other loose rugs should be replaced or eliminated. Look for uneven floor surfaces or thresholds and consider eliminating them, beveling surfaces or highlighting them with paint or tape. Loose cords from radios or hair dryers should be removed from walkways, and other floor level clutter like magazine racks should also be eliminated.

Just as in hallways, consider installing grip bars at strategic points in and around the tub or shower as well as either side of the commode. For seniors with difficulty getting up from chairs, consider also a raised seat for the commode as well as grip bars that flank the sides of the seat like arms on a chair. There even are hydraulic assistive devices that can be installed on the toilet seat with a lift that can help ease the senior into a seated position and then boost them slowly back up as they rise from sitting.

Lighting is as important in the bath area as it is in the rest of the house. If the present circuits allow, it may be as easy as upgrading to a higher wattage bulb in all the fixtures. In old houses, however, it may be safer to refit with new fixtures that can offer more lighting. And also as with other parts of the house, have a night light that automatically goes on when ambient lighting fades.

Finally, make sure that everything that your elder may need with any frequency while in the bathroom is within easy reach. Remove actual glassware or ceramics from the bath and replace with plastic, especially cups that have gripping texture on the outside. And while you are outfitting the bath, keep in mind bright colors and pleasant decoration. Just because your bath is now safe does not require that it look institutional. Next week, I will talk about what’s cooking in the kitchen.

Charlotte Bishop is a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Case Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families throughout metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to Charlotte Bishop.

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