Diwali is fast approaching. While this is a joyous festival, for many of our elders, this is a time of great trepidation.
After all, Diwali is inextricably entwined with fireworks, and this means heightened levels of pollution that can lead to breathing difficulties and chest infections. For people with weakened immunity, having asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), Diwali can be extremely taxing.
So here are a few things you can do to protect yourself and your dear ones from the pollution:
1. Avoid going out
2.If possible stay inside an air-conditioned room. Ensure that the air-conditioner’s inlet vent is in closed position, so that it does not suck in outside air but keeps the same room air circulating. Most air-conditioners have a setting for this.
3.Wear a mask. A N95 approved particulate respirator maskthat covers the nose and mouth should do the trick. All the toxic particles released by bursting firecrackers will be blocked by this mask ensuring that none of it enters your lungs.
4.If you suffer from asthma or bronchitis, make sure you have your inhalers and medication ready and with you at all times.
5.If noise is an issue, get earplugs. Disposable soft earplugs that are gentle on the ears are available.
6.If you wear hearing aids, this may be a good time to remove them or switch them off. [At least when you are at home and in a safe environment].
7.Take all your regular medicines without fail.
8.Drink plenty of fluids
9.Encourage family, especially children, to reduce quantum of purchase of fireworks
Call your doctor immediately if:
You have shortness of breath or wheezing that is rapidly getting worse.
You are coughing more deeply or more frequently, especially if you notice an increase in mucus (sputum) or a change in the color of the mucus you cough up.
You cough up blood.
You have increased swelling in your legs or abdomen.
You have a high fever (over 100 degrees).
You feel severe chest pain.
You develop flu symptoms.
You notice that your medicine is not working as well as it had been.
You use oxygen at home and feel like you need more. Use only the amount
recommended by your doctor. In some people with COPD, too much oxygen can
be dangerous.
Here’s wishing you a happy and healthy Diwali! To buy the mask please visit our site.
The city may soon get a 24-hour helpline for senior citizens in an initiative taken up by Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), in association with Sneha Sandhya and HelpAge India.
As per the ‘State of India’s Elderly-2014’ report by HelpAge India, the country has 100 million elderly and by 2050 the figure is likely to triple to 324 million.
I am a Family Caregiver living in Abhiramapuram and my mother and I take care of my elderly grandmother. My grandmother has some challenges with mobility and with moving her right arm as she is a stroke survivor, but she manages quite well and is very lively.
The length of the dress is also slightly shorter, so we don’t have to worry about her tripping over it when we are helping her to move from the bed to her chair. Previously we had to hem all nightgowns, but this one seems to really be made with our needs in mind. Sometimes during Diwali we reminisce on how she used to wear beautiful saris and feel a bit sad that we cannot buy her one to wear. But, from our previous experience with a Cocoon nightgown, we know it looks and feels like a high quality garment, so it made us feel like we are giving her something nice in lieu of a sari like the old days.
Leaving behind instructions to handle incapacities