MorningStar

  Along with assisted living , MorningStar of Littleton offers individualized, specialized care to those with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.  Our holistic approach to memory care is designed to affirm the value of the person and to find ways to celebrate the smallest successes.   Our Reflections Neighborhood is specifically designed to meet the needs of residents throughout the various stages of the disease.  The expansive area houses 20 secure suites and is intended to encourage residents to safely explore their surroundings.  Memory care residents also enjoy the outdoors with an enclosed courtyard. Normally, mealtimes in the Reflections Neighborhood are as much about Community as they are about Nutrition, with residents and team members eating together.  Family style meals allow team members to encourage residents’ appetites as well as to provide any needed assistance with eating. During the coronavirus outbreak, however, changes h...

  Many times a move to assisted living is precipitated by a fall or a medical emergency that causes a family to realize mom or dad needs more care than they are presenting getting living alone. In these cases, it means there is not time for planned strategies for where or when the person will make the move. Instead, they quickly leave behind a beloved home, while coming to terms with a recent loss of mobility or needing assistance with personal daily care activities. This can be very traumatizing for many seniors, and experts offer tips to help families and mom or dad cope with the sudden change. One of the first things they suggest when looking into the area’s senior living communities is to make sure that the community is equipped to care for your loved one’s needs. Moreover, as today’s move is hard, another move in a few years will be at least as hard if not more so, which is why you must evaluate if the community is also able to provide for their future needs. Another...

  If you are looking for exceptional assisted living , MorningStar of Wheat Ridge may be the place for you.  For seniors who wish to maintain their independence but require assistance with ADLs (activities of daily living), our 45 assisted living suites are equipped with all of the modern conveniences and safety features.  Available in a variety of well-designed floor plans, suites have wall-to-wall carpeting, high ceilings, lots of windows, ceiling lights, and mini-blinds.   In assisted living, we offer various levels of support with the ADLs (we have 5 levels in all), and your care plan is determined after a thorough assessment with our Wellness Director, and in agreement with you and your family. Various auxiliary services, both medical and non-medical, are priced a la carte.  However, regardless of your level of care, all assisted living residents have access to around-the-clock Care Managers to ensure your safety as they compassionately meet your expr...

  If you are looking for the best assisted living Colorado Springs offers, we invite you to learn more about MorningStar at Mountain Shadows. Our leadership team always welcomes phone calls and email inquiries regarding our community. In addition, we have a very informative website that focuses on many of the different aspects of our community as well as provides some background on our company. For instance, our home page offers a great description of our home, brief comments from our Management Team, a map showing our location as well as a Gallery of pictures to illustrate the detailed attention to welcoming spaces and beautiful design. Our home page also has a button to Amenities that describes many of the community’s resort-style amenities. Clicking on Suite Amenities highlights the comforts within our 45 private assisted living suites and 19 suites devoted to the individualized care of residents with memory impairment. Our suites are available in studio, one-bedroom and ...

  If you are the main caregiver for an elderly family member who requires help with the activities of daily living (ADLs), it may be the job is becoming too much for you. The Nov/Dec issue of Today’s Geriatric Medicine cites a study by the “National Alliance for Caregiving and Caring Across Generations,” which states that more than 11 million American adults are considered sandwich generation caregivers and bear the responsibility of simultaneously caring for their children as well as an aging family member. In total it is believed there are approximately 40.4 million unpaid caregivers for adults 65 years and older in the United States consisting of adult children, spouses, relatives or friends. In addition, 61 percent of those caregivers are employed, including nearly half who work full-time and juggle their own family responsibilities. While for most, caregiving is a labor of love but there is no denying it can be challenging. Whether you are an adult child with your own children...

  As we age, we can experience health issues such as a stroke or other disabilities that may benefit from the services of an occupational therapist (OTs).  When asked, many people have no idea what an OT does; while others think they help individuals find work.  Actually, an OT may be an instrumental part of your healthcare team who will work with you to facilitate your best recovery.  If you are wondering what the difference is between a physical therapist (PT) and an OT, a PT focuses on restoring or improving movement, strength, and range of motion; while an OT works on improving the motor skills you need to perform daily tasks.  If a loved one has suffered from a stroke, they may have lost the ability to perform tasks known as Activities of Daily Living (ADLs), which include bathing, toileting, dressing, eating, grooming, etc.  The job of the OT is to teach the person how to carry out daily, functional activities despite the impairment in order to impro...

      If you or a loved one is experiencing some mild memory problems or were recently diagnosed with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), you may find yourself wondering what that means for the future. MCI is defined as the fine line between what we think of as normal memory or thinking and dementia. Dr. Scott M. McGinnis, an associate neurologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, clarifies it by explaining, “We diagnose dementia when a person has changes in memory and thinking that significantly interfere with functioning in usual activities.” He cites examples such as getting lost driving to familiar places or having difficulty writing a check. MCI is diagnosed when a person has changes in their memory and thinking that goes beyond normal aging but does not qualify as full-blown dementia. Medical experts explain that MCI may be a precursor to Alzheimer’s disease but are also quick to add that not all cases of MCI result in Alzheimer’s but rather may increase th...

  If you or a loved one is in need of daily care to ensure your safety and wellbeing, you may be weighing options such as in-home care services versus assisted living . Most experts suggest a good way to start is to make a list of all the areas in which you or your loved one needs assistance with on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. From a strictly affordable standpoint (we know there is much more to it), the rule of thumb to determine if in-home care services or an assisted living community is less expensive is does the person requires more than 40 hours of paid care a week? If that’s the case, then assisted living is most likely less expensive. Also, remember that in-home care is a piecemeal approach and each additional service you need adds to the cost of care. Moreover, in an assisted living community like MorningStar at Jordan Creek, individuals receive 24/7 care from our compassionate, trained care managers in the activities of daily living (ADL). Another benefit ...

  While there is no cure or medical treatment to prevent Alzheimer’s disease there is some encouraging news on how we can slow down the risk of the disease in our own life, even if we have a higher genetic risk.  Researchers say that several studies indicate that by following a combination of healthy lifestyle habits we lower our risk of cognitive decline, and the more of them we adopt, the better it is for us.   The main health habits linked to slowing down the onset of Alzheimer’s include regular exercise, cognitive stimulation, a brain-healthy diet, light to moderate alcohol consumption and not smoking.  In fact in one study, researchers from Rush University in Chicago found that participants who “followed four out of five lifestyle behaviors over a six-year period had a 60 percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer's dementia when compared to people who practiced only one or none of these habits.”  Another study from the University of California San Fr...