How Seniors Can Prevent Stress by Forming a Support Network
After my father died, my mother who lives in Fort Worth completely isolated herself from the rest of the world. Like the rest of the family, she needed time to grieve, but even as she began to cope with the loss, she refused to regain her social life which had previously given her a sense of self and helped to combat stress. With stress levels overwhelming her, she needed to reconnect with friends and family more than ever, before the stress of her loss and isolation sent her to join my father in the grave.
In order to get her reconnected with friends in Fort Worth, I got in touch and explained what my mother had been dealing with, because they had decided to give her space and let her get in touch when she was ready. Since she wasn’t going to make the first step to reconnect with her friends, I encouraged them to do it. Once she was back in touch with her friends, she started off with regular phone conversations, until she was get back into her former social routine. By connecting with friends and family again, not only was she distracted from thinking about the issues that stressed her out, she also felt less lonely, because she has people to go to when she needed them, and this reduces her overall stress.
Sources:
1. Mayo Clinic
2. The American Institute of Stress
Image Source: pro.corbis.com
