Willow Care Cottages

Happy 4th from the Willow Care Cottages Family!

Thank you Tina and Bayou City Hospice for crafting with our residents today!

We are celebrating Father’s Day early at Willow Care Cottages!!!

Our residents enjoyed some unexpected guests, with amazing singing voices. Thank you to Reliant at Home hospice for the recommendation. And thank you to Medicare Musicals for dropping by!

We had a great time having a luau! Thank you to Reliant at Home for your support!

Our precious Naomi gained her wings this afternoon. It has been our honor to care for her for the last year. Our condolences to her family and to our incredible staff for the love each of them have given as they provided her care. Special thanks to Concho Hearts Hospice- Houston for being side by side with us to see that she had the best care possible.

What's better than Bingo, prizes and Apple Pie tasting? Our residents enjoyed tasting several different types (who knew there were so many different types of Apple Pie)? 🍎🫓 Special shout out to Jessica with Reliant at Home!

We are so very proud to partner with top notch hospice providers. Our residents are family to us and they deserve only the best. This morning, Dominique showed up to provide her services for Mrs. Pat, but didn't come empty handed. She brought a full basket of goodies for Mother's Day. Thank you Bayou City Hospice for employing special people like Dominique!

Stop and tour today! You'll be glad you did.

There is always something exciting going on at Willow Care Cottages in Champions! Stop by and tour our community and join our family!

Thank you, Tina and Bayou City Hospice for crafting with our residents today!

TALA is offering the popular in-person May 15-17 in Spring. Register now! Thank you to The Landing at August Woods for hosting. The course is also available online and through self-study. Click here to register and for the full education schedule https://tala.org/assisted-living-manager-courses/.

Today is National Lei Day, so we had a little Happy Hour and pretended to be in Hawaii!

The Care Staff at Willow Care Cottages were treated as the Superheroes they are. Caregivers give so much of themselves day in and day out. Special thank you to our families for their unwavering support. We also give a huge shout out to Concho Hearts Hospice- Houston, Bayou City Hospice, Gentiva Hospice.

We have rooms available! Come tour today and see why we are the best choice for Memory Care in the Spring area!

A person living with Alzheimer's or other dementia doesn't have to give up the activities that he or she loves. Many activities can be modified to the person's ability. In addition to enhancing quality of life, activities can reduce behaviors like wandering or agitation.

A person living with Alzheimer's or other dementia doesn't have to give up the activities that he or she loves. Many activities can be modified to the person's ability. In addition to enhancing quality of life, activities can reduce behaviors like wandering or agitation.

Advise for Dementia Care

Responses to dementia
The way a person reacts to dementia will depend on their personality, their previous experiences, their understanding of dementia, the social and emotional support they receive, and their environment. People may adopt different coping strategies at different times.

Some people may not acknowledge that they have dementia. They may deny that they are experiencing difficulties. Others may be aware that things are becoming harder but feel that is a normal part of ageing rather than part of dementia.

Changes in behavior
As their condition progresses, a person with dementia may start to behave in ways that are challenging and distressing, both for themselves and those around them. For example, a person with dementia may:

become restless or agitated
shout out or scream
become suspicious of others
follow someone around
ask the same question repeatedly.
These out-of-character behaviors can occur because the person has a need that isn't being met and they cannot communicate it. For example:

they might be thirsty, hungry or in pain
they may have misunderstood something and feel threatened
they may be frustrated or bored.

Relationships, roles and responsibilities
Relationships form a central part of our identity. Relationships often change when someone has dementia. People with dementia can easily become isolated or avoided by those around them. They may lose contact with friends and family, who may not know how to react to them.

As dementia progresses, some aspects of the relationship may become harder, such as the ability of a person with dementia to support those around them. However, many positive elements of the relationship (such as affection) will remain. Caregivers and those around the person with dementia may find it helpful to focus on these positive aspects.

Caregivers can help by supporting existing relationships and encouraging the person with dementia to join social groups, community activities, religious activities or hobbies. Dementia cafés provide an opportunity to meet other people, talk about living with dementia and take part in group activities. The GP surgery, local library or council office will also have information about other social groups.

Willow Care Cottages wishes everyone a Happy Easter Weekend!

Let's talk real talk. Caregiver Burnout.

Signs of Caregiver Burnout and How to Prevent It
Out of love, out of obligation, maybe out of a sense of just doing what’s right, you might be one of more than 40 million adults in North America taking care of an elderly, chronically ill or disabled loved one, according to Pew Research Center.

In fact, 70 percent of family caretakers take care of one person over 65, while 22 percent help two people and 7 percent care for three or more people. Thirty-two percent (32 percent) of caregivers describe the experience as stressful.

Sound familiar?

You’re on the road to caregiver burnout. It’s not taken lightly by psychologists—who define it as “a debilitating psychological condition brought about by unrelieved stress”—and should not be taken lightly by you. By the time most caregivers suspect burnout, they’re already suffering myriad symptoms.

In addition to coping with a loved one’s illness, they might also deal with financial pressures, changes in family dynamics and a general disruption in family life. It’s a recipe for caregiver burnout that would negatively affect anyone’s ability to provide good care and potentially place the caregiver’s health at risk.

If you know what caregiver burnout is, you can protect yourself from burning the candle at both ends.

14 Warning Signs of Caregiver Burnout
Lack of energy
Overwhelming fatigue
Sleep problems (too much or too little)
Changes in eating habits; weight loss or gain
A feeling of hopelessness
Withdrawing from, or losing interest in, activities you once enjoyed
Neglecting your own physical and emotional needs
Feeling like caregiving is controlling your life
Becoming unusually impatient, irritable or argumentative with the person you’re caring for and/or with others
Anxiety about the future
Depression or mood swings
Difficulty coping with everyday things
Headaches, stomachaches, and other physical problems
Lowered resistance to illness
Caregiver Burnout Prevention
Now that you know what to look for, here are some tips to help you pre-empt caregiver burnout.

Ask for help! Needing help doesn’t make you a bad caregiver. It simply means you can’t do it alone (no one can do it alone).
Give yourself permission to take breaks. Get out of the house. Visit with friends. Pamper yourself with a massage. Take a long bath.
Take care of yourself. Don’t skip your own doctor’s appointments because you’re too busy. Exercise, eat well and get enough sleep.
Get up 15 minutes earlier and use the time just for you. Sit with your coffee or tea and enjoy it. Journal about your struggles and feelings. Meditate, pray, stretch. . . . Do whatever you want to do.
Make a list of your daily activities and tasks. See if you can delegate any of them. Perhaps your spouse can make dinner twice or a week. Maybe a friend or relative can run errands or help with laundry. People often want to help—take them up on it!
Check into family-leave benefits from your place of work. Take a huge weight off your shoulders by giving you more hours in your day.
If your loved one is receiving hospice care, ask your hospice provider about local support groups. Communicating with others who are in your situation helps immensely, as does opening up and sharing your frustrations—and your joys!
If an opportunity comes along for a brief getaway for you, consider hospice respite care for your loved one. Your hospice program should offer short-term inpatient admission for your loved one (meaning more than 24 hours and up to five days and nights maximum) to relieve family members or other persons who are caregivers.
There is support, there are shortcuts, and there are strategies for reorganizing your priorities to make you a happier person and a better caregiver.

But what if it is your job? What if caregiving is how you survive and pay your bills?

Paid caregivers suffer burnout as well. What do you do?
Communicate! Talk to your coworkers, take necessary breaks. Plan for time off, take care of yourself. Recognize it and react in a positive manner. Alone we can do so little, Together, we can do so much!

Willow Care celebrates our 1st Anniversary with a barbecue and Easter Egg Hunt with our incredible staff, residents and families!

It was a beautiful day for our barbecue and Easter Egg Hunt!

Special Thank you to Concho Hearts Hospice- Houston for attending and bringing Fender! Thanks to Devotion Hospice, Gentiva Hospice and Bayou City Hospice for you generous donations of Candy and Easter Eggs!

These ladies are exercising their brains with some word searches on this rainy morning.

Our residents have been quite busy! They enjoyed green pancakes in honor of St. Patrick's Day, had Key Lime pie after lunch, they had chips and guacamole for a snack, and somewhere in between, they found time to bake and decorate some green cookies!

Join us on March 23 at noon as we enjoy barbecue and an Easter Egg Hunt!

We are also celebrating the 1 year anniversary of the Opening of Willow Care Cottages!

3/14 is Pi Day
3.14

Celebrate it today!
Pizza Pie
Apple Pie
Cherry Pie
Pot Pie

Our residents are helping the bunny get these eggs filled for the upcoming Easter Egg hunt!