No matter how good of an argument you make or how logical your point might seem, there are times when your aging parents will just refuse to listen. The ordeal can be especially painful when stubborn parents become increasingly susceptible to falls and illness yet still refuse to accept help. This often causes the children to become stressed (and in some cases, even clinically depressed) and results in a feeling of helplessness.

According to research carried out by Penn State University, around 77% of adult children believed their aging parents to be stubborn and unreasonable when it came to accepting help or advice. In this blog, we’ll share a few expert tips on how to deal with stubborn elderly parents.

Get Outside Help

If elderly parents flat-out refuse to any and all of your requests, try to get someone else involved that your parents are more likely to listen to. This could be your siblings, relatives, or neighbors with whom they have a good rapport. Just make sure that the involvement doesn’t seem like an intervention and more of a conversation.

Be Patient

This is perhaps the most effective (and difficult!) step required to handle the situation. Having patience is what’ll allow you to not get upset and have calm conversations with your parents. At times, an inability to control one’s emotions is what further adds fuel to the fire and causes the situation to blow out of proportion.

Keep it Simple

Sometimes, giving out less information is better. Understand that your parents’ stubbornness comes from mental decline and an inability to judge what is best. That’s why overloading them with information about the day-to-day activities is often not the right choice to make. Let them know what’s going on by providing general information and keep things simple and easy to understand. This way you’ll be giving them fewer grounds to start an argument.

Prioritize the Problems

Know and understand that not all problems can be solved at once. If you have 6 things you want your parents to agree to at the same time, the chances of encountering resistance will be very high. But if you just focus on one or two, it’s highly likely that they’ll agree to it.

Prioritize what needs to get done, keep realistic expectations, and don’t dwell too much on what couldn’t be accomplished.

Remember that you can’t win every time and that it’s perfectly alright to seek professional help. AvantGarde Senior Living is a senior living community in Van Nuys, California that ensures all of its members have access to recreational facilities, socializing events, and qualified caregivers. Contact us today for more information.