If your elderly parent is unable to stay at home alone during the day, an adult day care center is a great option to consider. Trained professionals can provide a range of services to your parent, including ensuring that he or she eats and takes medication, and social interaction can add some liveliness to your parent's day. If your parent is opposed to the idea of going to adult day care, here are some tips to help convince him or her. 

Choose the Right Time and Location

When it comes to discussing adult day care, when and where you choose to talk about it with your parent is important. If you choose the wrong time or place, your parent could quickly become agitated or tense about the subject. 

Ideally, you should wait until your parent is in a relaxed mood. This leaves you emotional wiggle room in case your parent does become upset at the topic. You also need to choose a non-emotional location that is relatively free from distractions. 

Do Not Say "Day Care"

Although the name "adult day care" is not meant to be offensive or harmful, your parent might view it as such. As a result, your parent could refuse to even consider going based solely on the negative thoughts he or she has about the name. 

If you believe that will be the case with your parent, refer to it as something else. For instance, you could call it a club or class. By changing the name, you help to reframe your parent's thinking about going. 

Focus on the Benefits

You are attempting to sell your parent on the idea of attending day care, so highlighting the benefits is very important. Your parent is less likely to resist attending if you can make the case for why it is beneficial to him or her. 

Tailor the benefits to your parent's needs and wants. For instance, if your parent likes to play chess, you can point out that there are many others there who play and this is an excellent opportunity to connect with them.

If your parent has been struggling with loneliness or depression, you can point out that attending adult day care is a good way to help alleviate some of those symptoms since they will have a chance to interact with others. 

If your parent is still reluctant to attend adult day care, consider scheduling a walkthrough with him or her. The walkthrough can help clear up some misconceptions about day care and also give your parent a chance to ask questions about the services offered. 

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