Life is a series of changes and with each change we take on different roles in life. For many in their elderly years, losses may have affected them, and expectations may feel more like disappointments. It is often the home helpers who provide the guidance and support for seniors to accept their new roles in society.

Aging may take a toll on some, physically as well as emotionally. Impaired hearing and vision, slower movement, and possible memory loss contribute to evident elderly changes. The changes impact what was once a normal routine of family, friends, work, and recreation. Today life takes on a new normal, and home helpers often support and guide seniors through this new journey. The new normal may include role reversals for some seniors. Once independent, the path for today includes leaning on someone for support.

The home helpers may guide the elderly into their new identity. Not as an old person, but as a senior with a new vision. Even when roles must be reversed, the senior may still be capable of participating. By offering senior support services that empower seniors to participate in decisions and allow them to contribute from their areas of strength, seniors are able to make positive contributions for themselves and the senior helper.

Empowering seniors to live life to the fullest often provides those they encounter a richness of history, knowledge, and companionship. Studies indicate that seniors are more alert, happy, and healthy when they are not isolated. The elderly are no different from anyone else; they want their voices heard and often it is the home helper who listens. When we listen to them, they accept their new roles and often become helpers themselves.