Practical information for home caregivers caring for their parents.
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Posted on eldercaregiver.com 2/26/2011
Elder Care - 7 Tips For Learning How to Listen Like a Pro
By: Hal Robertson Listening can be hard - especially if you and your elder have always tried to talk over each other over the years. When people are able to take a step back and actually listen to another person when they are talking, the pathway to closeness and understanding is very clear. But for this to happen, you've got to practice it, especially when it's not been one of your strong points. The following seven tips aren't guaranteed to get you to change overnight, but if you practice them faithfully, you'll find your enhanced listening will pay off in spades over the long term. 1. Refrain from thinking of a response before your elder has finished talking 2. Don't interrupt your elder If you do - apologize 3. Nod when your elder is speaking This will show you are listening and are engaged in the conversation. 4. Ask for additional details about what your elder is speaking about 5. Summarize the conversation on occasion This demonstrates you've been paying attention 6. Repeat the last few words on occasion Again, this shows you are engaged in the conversation 7. Ask plenty of questions If you run into a situation where the discussion is a complaint, find something in the complaint to agree with. You'll find that even when your elder has a wild and exaggerated complaint, there will always be something you find to agree with. Hearing for the 5th time that a label that you cut out of your dad's shirt 3 weeks ago is still chafing his neck can be challenging. Simply let him know that you agree, fabric chafing your neck is aggravating too. By agreeing with him, the issue will likely be put to rest, at least for the short term. Elders want to be understood more than they want to be agreed with, just as most people do. Put a limit on listening - perhaps 20 or 30 minutes tops. Listening can be tough work to be sure. But overdoing it can easily backfire on the relationship because you're only going to be able to take so much. Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Hal_Robertson
Hal has been writing articles online since 2005. Not only does he specialize in elder care issues, he also
maintains a number of informative web sites as well. You can check out his latest website here: Cemetery Software
which discusses the various features that can found in Cemetery Software packages
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