When our loved ones behave in ways that we don’t expect them to, we may get very anxious. It is worse if we are experiencing this bad behavior for the first time. However, experts say that this is very normal and is something that many families all across the United States have to deal with. There are many reasons why our loved ones may behave this way. Some of these can be mitigated, while others are beyond our control. Fortunately, there are ways of handling such bad behavior in a gentle and understanding way. Whether your loved one is at home or in assisted retirement in Naples, FL, here are some of the ways that such behavior can be handled when it occurs.
Reasons Behind The Behavior
It can be very difficult to understand why our loved ones behave the way they do. They may change from people who were generally reasonable to behaving in a way that causes us consternation. What you need to understand is that your loved one may be undergoing changes in their physical and mental state that may cause these problems. For example, issues such as memory loss may cause great frustration to your loved one, and they may sometimes react in a way that we may not understand. Physical discomfort such as aches and pain may also contribute to this behavior.
Sometimes, however, this behavior can be merely an extension of their personality. Regardless of the cause, here are some of the behavioral issues that you may observe in your loved one and how they are dealt with.
Anger Issues
One of the most common behavioral issues that you may observe in your loved one is anger. This is often manifested in temper tantrums, yelling and so on. Whether at home or in an assisted living community, this has the potential to create a lot of discomfort, especially when the tantrums are not accompanied by tangible issues that can be resolved.
How To Handle Anger Issues
When it comes to temper issues, one of the most effective ways in dealing with this is to try to get to the root of the problem. Sometimes your loved one may be able to articulate exactly what is bothering them. Sometimes, however, they may not even be aware of what is making them so angry. At assisted living communities, experts can often help your loved one get to the bottom of their temper issues. For example, if they are related to frustrations caused by memory loss, an effective way in dealing with this could be memory care programs.
Profanity
Sometimes our family members can develop the habit of swearing or using profanities in public. The problem with this is that, not only is this disrespectful to other people, but may also be embarrassing. Sometimes, this kind of behavior may be caused by conditions such as Alzheimer’s whose symptoms include extreme agitation and much more. This is especially the case if this kind of behavior is out of character or appears suddenly.
As always, the first step is to talk to your loved one to ensure that they understand the repercussions of such behavior. If you suspect that your loved one may have an underlying medical condition that is causing this kind of behavior, the best thing to do is to consult a memory care expert to start giving your loved one the expert help they need.