Why Elderly Parents Refuse to Bathe

Why elderly parents refuse to bathe can be puzzling for family caregivers. Learn how safety concerns, pain, memory loss, and other issues complicate simple hygiene tasks for aging parents.
Family caregivers can also learn how to make bathing less embarrassing for parents in addition to gaining awareness of skin and other infections that require medical care and treatment.

[@Tsuop]

Hi just wanna ask your advice on our situation. Our grandmother doesn’t have dementia but she does has memory loss… she is still capable of bathing on her own and prefers this. However she doesn’t like somebody watching over her while she bathe. We can’t really just take our eyes off of her as she already had an accident before (and still don’t know what happened hence keeping watching of her). Do you have any advice to make it uncomfortable on her part and assuring for us by having us watch over her whilst doing the activity?

[@PamelaDWilsonCaregivingExpert]

Hi Reena - You might try anything that will distract her. Playing music or talking about topics she enjoys so that she doesn't feel you are watching over her.