Four Ideas for Motivating Your Senior to Bathe

Bathing is important for hygiene reasons, but it can also help your senior to be more comfortable as well. If your elderly family member is resisting bathing, you might find some of these tips helpful.

Give Her Something to Look Forward to Doing Afterward

Planning ahead might be the ticket to convincing your senior to bathe, especially if you’ve got options a few times a week. Encouraging your elderly family member to bathe with the promise of a special outing can be incredibly effective. But it doesn’t have to be about going somewhere, either. Visits from friends and family are a great reason to take a relaxing shower and to change clothes.

Put a Schedule Together and Make it Visible

Routines are huge for your senior, especially if life feels chaotic to her without them. Making a bathing schedule lets her know when to expect a bath or shower, which goes a long way toward removing the surprise she experiences if that’s a problem for her. If you do make a schedule, put it on a visible calendar so that it’s not easy for your senior to miss. Count down the days together or find some other ritual that helps you both to stay aware.

Keep Bathing as Positive as Possible

If bathing is always a battle with your elderly family member, it’s understandable if you start to dread even mentioning it to her. But when you express your frustration and dread, that’s something your senior may start to associate more and more with the activity, too. Then you’re both just compounding the bad feelings. Do everything that you can to keep bathing as positive as you possibly can.

Consider Other Options, Too

It might be time to consider other options. That might mean sponge baths once a week or it might mean that you step back from helping your senior to bathe. Some aging adults find that having a family caregiver helping with showers and baths is uncomfortable and embarrassing in the extreme. It might be time to bring in elderly care providers to help with personal care tasks so that you and your senior can take a break from the conflicts.

Even if your elderly family member used to adore showers, that can change quickly. She may be afraid of falling or the discomfort of showering may outweigh the benefits to her. Talk to your elderly family member about what she’s experiencing so you can find the answer for her.