Integrity Point of View Articles

5 New ‘Holidays’ to Celebrate for In-Home Care Patients—Why Celebrations Are More Important Than Ever

By: Integrity Home Care + Hospice

Here we are, just over a year into “14 days to slow the spread,” and if we’re being frank—we’re all a little stir-crazy. Humans are social creatures by nature, so the lack of gatherings, celebrations, and traditions has definitely added a few bruises to our already fragile emotional and mental health. Perhaps those most affected by the decrease in social gatherings are those who are unable or unwilling to leave their home due to underlying health issues or fragile immune systems—like many who receive in-home care services. 

At Integrity Home Care, we are determined to help our patients live their best lives, right where they call home, and one way we can do this is to never stop celebrating! While it may look different today than it has in the past—with a little creativity and a pinch of extra effort, we can work together to keep that celebration train chugging right along.

Moments of Joy

We continually look for ways to help our in-home care patients experience moments of joy and happiness because we know these moments elevate their quality of life. Recent studies have shown that people who regularly make an effort to recognize positivity in their daily lives or create events and celebrations to look forward to, experience “reduced pessimism, negative affect, and emotional exhaustion.” Celebrations like cultural and religious rituals can also provide structure and comfort in a (very) unpredictable world by making things seem ‘normal’ or ‘still,’ if even just for a moment.

New Celebrations for 2021 

With that in mind, Integrity Home Care is happy to help brainstorm some new celebrations to consider for your older loved ones this year—and if you’d like to add to the list, just start by identifying achievements that are attainable within a couple of weeks to one month, make a ‘holiday’ out of them, put them on the calendar (if applicable), and start counting down the days! 

Some ideas to give those receiving in-home care a reason to celebrate could include:

1. A ‘century’ of steps (requires the use of a step-tracker, like this one and your doctor’s green-light after fall-risk assessment). Celebrate when your loved one takes 100 steps at a time!
2. Two weeks of 100% medicine adherence.
3. Celebrating your ‘grandparent birthday’ (the day you became a grandparent!)
4. Guilty Pleasure Go-For-It-Day! (After getting the nod from your family’s medical team/doctor, of course), give your loved one several strips of paper and ask them to write down 4 or 5 food items that are true ‘guilty pleasures’ just like the cookies you get when your family send cookies with Chocolate Shipped Cookies. Every other week, on a pre-specified date, draw one slip of paper from their jar, and deliver those guilty-pleasure goods!
5. Celebrate the changing seasons—On each season’s solstice or equinox, plan a mini ‘going-away’ party for the exiting season, or a mini ‘welcome’ party for the incoming season. Acknowledging these normal transitions in nature can also help to acknowledge and affirm the transitions your loved one may be experiencing as they begin new in-home care routines.

Celebrating Milestones at Home With Integrity Home Care + Hospice

Remember—the more milestones one has to look forward to, the more positive their outlook tends to be, so don’t be afraid to pack that calendar with ALL the little things in life—whether your senior loved one receives companionship care at home, hospice care in a skilled nursing facility, or in-home care services wherever they call home—celebrating milestones has never been more important. 

So, get celebrating! And if you have questions we can help to answer about in-home care (or just need some help eating that summer solstice cake), give us a call and our friendly team will be happy to help!