December 2023 - Caregiver Stress-Holiday Edition

November 2023 - Long Distance Needs

October 2023 - Stay Connected to Remain Effective - How to Prevent Caregiver Isolation

September 2023 - It's Time for Help

August 2023 - Time to Declutter

July 2023 - Grief and Loss

June 2023 - Self Care

May 2023 - Getting Your Affairs in Order

April 2023 - Dementia Prevention Tips

February 2023 - Rest as a Caregiver

Take the rest quiz and measure how rested you are as a caregiver.

January 2023 - Senior Management Services

Utilizing services and support available through Senior Management Services.

December 2022 - The Holidays and Eldercare

Helping senior loved ones feel important and engaged during the holidays.

November 2022 - Fall Tips for Your Loved One

How to make sure your senior is ready for Autumn.

October 2022 - Managing Long-Distance Needs

Helpful information from Quest Behavioral Health Eldercare Articles for caregivers assisting seniors over long-distances.

September 2022 - It's Time for Help

Signs it may be time to enlist help for your elderly loved one.

August 2022 - What to Look for When Selecting a Home Health Agency

Selecting a home health agency

July 2022 - Self-Care

Self-care for caregivers

June 2022 - My Car Keys are Gone! Now What?

Dealing with the loss of freedom

May 2022 - What is Eldercare Information and Referral?

April 2022 - Ambiguous Loss

March 2022 - Hiring Home Care

January 2022 - Technology in Healthcare

October 2021 - Medical Alerts Increase Independence

August 2021 - Creating an Estate Plan

July 2021 - Alzheimer's Part 3

June 2021 - Alzheimer's Part 2

May 2021 - "Alzheimer's Disease Part 1"

Part 1 on the early warning signs of Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia.

Back to School

Going back to school can be a tough transition, particularly after the relative ease of summer. Whether you’re a family with a college bound student or grade school trekker, taking a few hours to prepare can make a big difference in how you begin your school year.

25 Questions for Concerned Persons

For concerned persons in a relationship with a problem drinker. If you answered yes to some of the questions, it indicates that negative changes may be occurring in you as a result of being in a potentially alcoholic relationship. Stress associated with trying to cope with growing behavioral dysfunction may be affecting your mental health. Help is as close as your EAP.

25 Tips to Beat Holiday Stress

If the thought of upcoming holidays fill you with dread, you’re not alone. Many people get stretched pretty thin this time of year by money and social obligations. Here are 25 ways to keep your sleigh on track this season.

Adult Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD) is one of the most researched health conditions in the United States. You may have heard of AD/HD associated with children who can’t sit still, have short attention spans, or suffer from impulsive behavior problems. However, many adults also suffer from AD/HD. Most of them don’t know it.

After The Holidays

Sometimes when the holidays are over, we experience a letdown kind of sadness and
depression. There are some things we can do to make this time of year easier and prevent some of the post-holiday depression.

Anxiety

Getting stressed out at work is natural - it happens to everyone. Everyone frets or feels anxious from time to time. Anxiety is a normal reaction to stress. Mild to moderate anxiety can be an effective means of helping you focus your attention, energy, and motivation. In general, it can help you cope. But there's a difference between being stressed out by situations like a first date or a business presentation and having an excessive, irrational fear of everyday situations.

Assertiveness Skills

Assertiveness is the ability to state positively and constructively your rights or needs without violating the rights of others. When you use direct, open, and honest communication in relationships to meet your personal needs, you feel more confident, gain respect from others, and live a happier, fulfilled life.

Balancing Work & Family

Take the following quiz to see if you could use some re-evaluation of work and family balance. If you answer “no” to any question, you may benefit from some of the steps that follow.

Checklist to Help You Cope With Caregiving

Codependency

I f you are overly concerned about the well-being of others or live your life to meet the needs of another person, while denying your own needs, you may earn praise from those around you. But if you are unhappy with your relationships and struggle to find more balance, you may be struggling with codependency.

Confict Between Family Caregivers and Their Elders

Frequently, family caregivers experience conflicts over issues involving independence, personal safety, personal values and end-of-life decisions. Some suggestions for dealing with potential conflict situations.

Dealing with Debt and Credit Problems

The EAP can refer you to services in the community where you can obtain help for problems with debt. The EAP has information on where to find budgeting and money management help, debt repayment services, and financial counseling programs. These services can help you develop budget, spending, and debt payment plans.

Dealing with Difficult Coworkers

Difficult coworkers exist in every workplace. Do you know how to handle them?

Developing Resiliency

How quickly you are able to bounce back from setbacks is a trait called resiliency. People who are highly resilient tend to be happier and more successful both in their careers and in their personal lives.

Disciplined at Work

To manage performance, disciplinary measures (or adverse actions) exist in nearly all organizations. When discipline affects you, it’s important to know what it means and how to respond constructively to it.

Getting It All Organized

These are files that should be at the forefront and also ones that you, as the caregiver, may want to keep copies of, so you will have them, if needed.

Getting Started - Caregiving Issues

Some advice for families on caregiving issues.

Giving Couples Counseling a Try

Could couples counseling (marriage counseling) help you beat the odds when the going gets tough? Couples counseling can improve your relationship and communication, and maybe get you back on the road to a happier future.

H1N1 Influenza Update

Due to continuing concern about H1N1, we have compiled this special edition of Balanced Living for you.

Humor in the Workplace

There are few better ways to break out of a funk than with a deep belly laugh. As it turns out, the “medicine” that laughter provides is very real. Research proves that laughing not only lightens your mood by releasing pleasure-inducing endorphins, it also inhibits stress hormones and lowers blood pressure.

Making the Holidays More Positive

Take the following quiz to see if you could fall victim to the holiday blues. If you answer “yes” to any of the questions, you may heed the following tips.

Managing Your Anger

The following is a simple intervention tool to help you gain control over your anger in response to a recurring provocative event. Try it to see if it helps.

My Car Keys are Gone

Knowing the resources can certainly help to problem solve those transportation needs, but offering a listening ear and supportive presence, can sometimes mean the most. Older adults are experiencing losses sometimes weekly if not daily. Acknowledging the limits that losing a license can bring can help open the door to a continued full life for your loved one.

Problems of Polypharmacy

Polypharmacy is simply a term used to describe any patient who is taking multiple types of prescribed or over-the-counter medications and supplements. The following precautions should help both patients and caregivers alike with managing the use of such medications.

Resolving Coworker Conflicts

Coworker conflicts can be one of the most difficult forms of workplace stress. Understanding the nature of conflict, examining myths, and learning simple, conflict resolution skills can reduce conflicts and their negative toll on your job satisfaction and productivity.

Respect & Civility at Work

Many behaviors commonly exhibited by employees can be detrimental to the wellbeing and productivity of coworkers. A lack of respect in the workplace, if left unchecked, will drag down morale, create higher turnover, and increase risks to the employer. Do you contribute to a respectful workplace?

Reverse Mortgages - A Quick Financial Fix?

Reverse mortgages are a touchy subject. Intended as a monetary tool to help Americans over the age of 62 age in place, the loan releases home equity to cover expenses. 5 questions clients should ask before considering a reverse mortgage.

Should Your Parent Move In With You and Your Family?

The decision to move in with an adult child can be an emotional roller coaster for the parent as well as the child and his/her family. Therefore, before making such a determination, think through the following questions.

Signs of Depression Checklist

Everyone gets down from time to tie, but sometimes it’s more than just “the blues.” Sometimes, it can be clinical depression. Clinical depression affects more than 19 million Americans each year. It is a real illness that can be treated effectively. Unfortunately, fewer than half of the people who have this illness seek treatment.

Small Steps Toward Health Lead to Big Rewards

Take a minute to consider some of these tips for healthier living.

Spring Break: Keeping Safe & Sane

Do you think of yourself as a savvy parent when it comes to teen and college age partying? If so, you may want to check your reference point. Today’s Spring Break scene is much different – and far more dangerous – than it was thirty years ago. Here’s what’s happening after the sun goes down on the beach.

Thinking About Psychotherapy

If you are thinking about making positive changes in your life, but are concerned about how difficult those changes might be, you may want to consider psychotherapy.

Thinking About Your Drinking

If you drink alcoholic beverages, even occasionally, you need to know the facts about alcoholism. The American Medical Association, World Health Organization, and all responsible medical authorities have considered alcoholism a disease for nearly 50 years!

Tips for Parenting Teens

Parenting teens has always been an art and a science, with a bit of luck thrown in. Although frustrating and stressful for many, parenting teens can still be fun, exciting, and fulfilling. Here are a few tips to consider.

Understanding Enabling

Due to inaccurate in formation and mistaken beliefs about alcoholism or addictive disease, people who are close to the addict (alcoholic) "enable." This behavior pattern occurs in personal relationships with addicts, both at home and at work. There are usually persons in relationships with addicts who are considered primary enablers.

Use Common Sense When Caring for a Stroke Survivor

Caregivers and family members can help to enhance a stroke survivor's autonomy through creative adjustments in daily routines and the use of supportive devices. It's important for caregivers to make a few changes and make the home safer to help protect their loved ones from accidents and falls.

When Recession Looms

Since slowing business growth will cause stagnation in pay increases and rising energy prices will cause a significant increase in the cost of living, it is important that we prepare ourselves and our families for this recession.

When You Experience a Traumatic Event

The EAP can help you evaluate the effect of a traumatic event on your life and can offer suggestions about how to bounce back.

When You're a Victim of Domestic Violence

Battered employees often hide the pain at work. They may be embarrassed or afraid of losing their job. Do you or a coworker have bruises to hide, fears you can’t talk about? Most victims of domestic violence are women–wives or significant others, who deny what’s happening.

Workplace Survivor Syndrome

It’s one thing to read about layoffs in your local paper; it’s quite another to see a close colleague pack his kid’s pictures into a heavy box and hobble for the door - to find yourself speechless in the face of his shock and humiliation—to know that you may never share a joke over lunch again. It’s tough, there’s no question about it. Here are some strategies to help you cope.