Why Choose Live In Care? | Helping Hands Home Care

Find out how a live-in carer could benefit you

The great thing about live-in care is that it enables you to live within the familiar surroundings of your own home whilst receiving one-to-one support for all of your care needs. Designed to work around all of your medical requirements and personal preferences, more and more people are choosing live-in care as their preferred method of support, and here’s why…

Keeping your home, pets and possessions

Having a complex care condition or reduced mobility used to mean that you either had to live with family or move to a care home, but not anymore. With a live-in carer, you can continue to live in your own home with the possessions and home comforts that you know and love without having to compromise your freedom, choice or independence.

Many people that we provide live-in care for have lived in their home for many years, often having brought up their children there and seen their grandchildren grace the hallway and garden. Leaving somewhere so full of cherished memories is often a heart-breaking decision, but one that doesn’t have to be made with the support of a live-in carer. They will live with you in your home and be there as a constant source of reassurance.

What’s more, a live-in carer won’t just support you but can also assist with taking care of your canine companion, feline fellow or any other beloved pets that you have. We understand how important a pet can be to you and how much it can enhance your wellbeing. There’s even research to suggest that owning a pet can reduce stress levels and depressive tendencies. So, from taking them for walks, changing their bedding and making sure they are fed and watered regularly, we’ll make sure their tail is always happily wagging – as what’s important to you is important to us too.

Giving choice

Whether you’re in your more senior years and are living with a Parkinson’s diagnosis and need support at mealtimes, or if you’re a young adult with an acquired brain injury and you need round-the-clock support with most of your care – everyone deserves the right to choose when, where and how they receive care.

Regardless of your needs or diagnosis, you shouldn’t have to be woken up at 5am to get ready for breakfast if you’re not a morning person. Equally, you shouldn’t have to get into bed with the lights out at 9pm if you’re a night owl, but with a live-in carer you can decide anything from your bed times to what you want to eat for your tea.

Just because you have a carer living with you, it doesn’t mean that they will take over and do absolutely everything for you. Person-centred care is all about giving you the choice over your care needs and is very much a collaborative process. You may need assistance with your personal care but you might still like to wash your face, or you may need support getting to and from the shops but still like to choose what groceries you have and pay for the shopping yourself. We’ll get to know you and your preferences to create a bespoke care plan that is completely tailored to you.

Beating loneliness

Being cared for isn’t just about maintaining your physical health and care needs; it’s also about looking after your mental health and wellbeing too. Having someone on hand throughout the day and night to talk to and discuss any worries or anxieties with can make a real difference to many, especially if you’re living as a widower or have family who live a long distance away.

Loneliness can be a huge issue for many people who are elderly or who live with a complex health condition that disrupts their social life. Having a live-in carer will not only ensure that there is always someone there for you to talk to, but can also be a means of reconnecting with your friends and family, particularly if you struggle to get out of the house. With the support of your live-in carer, you may find yourself catching up with friends you haven’t seen for a while in your local café, or even visiting your favourite museum or historical landmark – the possibilities are endless.

It’s important to recognise the difference between being alone and feeling lonely. One can choose to be alone but be perfectly content, but feeling lonely can exacerbate existing symptoms of anxiety, depression or low self-esteem and cause your feelings to continue in a downward spiral. This can then have a knock-on effect on your physical health, and you can end up feeling like you’re in a hole that you can’t get out of. We believe that no one should have to experience these negative feelings because of their care needs, and having a live-in carer could make all the difference to your overall wellbeing by enabling you to still feel connected to the outside world.

Helping families and couples

Live-in carers don’t just support people living by themselves; they can also live with you if you’re part of a couple or live with a friend. Having to say goodbye to your partner because they’re moving to a care home can be extremely upsetting and can leave you feeling hopeless and completely heartbroken. Yet with a live-in carer, you can continue living the life you both know and love but with a little extra support whenever you need it.

Whether it’s having the peace of mind that you can call on someone day or night that will be with you instantly or knowing that you’ll never be without support wherever you go, live-in carers can support couples by:

Providing intensive support to one person within a couple so they can continue to live with their partner
Assist with taking you both on days out to your favourite café or to the place where you first met
Accompany you to celebratory events and occasions that you don’t want to miss
Taking you both on holiday so you can all enjoy a well-earned break

What’s more, because we’ll work with you to find a live-in carer that’s appropriate for your care needs, interests and personalities, you can choose someone that you’ll both get along with. That way, you’re not only gaining an extra pair of hands, but an extra friend.