February 23, 2024 • 14 mins
Have you ever pondered the impact of a simple shower on your well-being or considered the profound effect of cleanliness on the human spirit? Join me, Kristi Gurule, and my co-host Jeremy Wolf, as we unravel the nuanced relationship between bathing and health in the context of home care. With personal tales, like Jeremy's experience with his son's bathing routine, we shed light on the universal significance of hygiene across all ages and lifestyles.
This episode also brings us closer to the harsh realities some face when bathing becomes a challenge due to age or disability. A heartfelt exchange with a prospective client who hadn't showered in two years due to the fear of falling and physical limitations sparks a crucial conversation. We offer heartfelt advice and actionable tips to ensure that the act of bathing remains a safe, comfortable, and dignified part of daily life, highlighting the undeniably crucial role of care and independence in maintaining our quality of life.
Please visit our website for more information: https://www.comfortkeepers.com/offices/florida/davie/
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to the Comfort Keepers Davy podcast,
where we elevate the humanspirit.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Here's your host, christie Grulay.
Hello everyone, and welcomeback to another episode of the
Comfort Keepers Davy podcast.
I'm your co-host, jeremy Wolt,joined by your host, christie
Grulay.
Christie, how you doing today?
Good morning, glorious ofFridays.
It seems like we're alwaysmeeting on Fridays, doesn't it?
Speaker 1 (00:27):
It's all right.
It's kind of like a great recapof our week and people are
excited about the weekend.
I mean, I don't know what youdo on weekends, but sometimes it
is nice to look forward to aweekend.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Yeah, Netflix and chill.
We take it easy around theseparts.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
As I get older, so speak to each their own.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So, speaking of the week, Iwant to do something a little
bit off the cuff, a little bitnew today.
You had mentioned thatsometimes issues just come up,
topics just come up throughoutthe week and seem to be
recurring issues, and this weekit was all about bathing,
Exactly how it pertains to homehealth care.
(01:06):
So please share with us whatcame up this week and give us
some tips, insights, things thatwe should know about bathing as
it pertains to home health care.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Okay, awesome.
Well, I want to start off byasking you, Jeremy, I want you
to think about a time where itdoesn't even matter what you
were doing, but let's just say,life got in the way kids
schedules and you've gone acouple days without a shower,
right, but we're virtual, right.
So I'm not sitting next to you,I can't smell you, I can't feel
(01:40):
your aura.
But what I'm saying is how doesthat make you feel like?
How does that, how does thataffect your whole self?
Right?
Yeah shower for a day or two,just first thing.
Speaker 2 (01:52):
It's huge, right, you feel a little gross.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
Blah right.
That's the best way that I canput it.
You feel down, absolutely.
You feel down and I think thatyou know, without it being like
busy schedule, this is for everysingle person.
If we're sick, you know, andwe're at home and we're off work
for a while and we're just,we're laying in bed like even 24
hours, just like laying there.
(02:18):
We feel oftentimes much betteronce we take a shower, once we
clean ourselves 100%.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
Actually, let me interject here my son, who's
nine.
He would have a hard time for awhile taking a shower before
going to sleep and he playsvirtual realities outside.
He's getting he's likedisgusting right, he needs to
take a shower and he would giveus a tantrum and he wouldn't
want to go in.
And my wife set up a routinewith him and now he's to the
(02:48):
point where he enjoys going inbecause he recognizes now that
he feels so much fresher layingdown to go to sleep before
cleaning himself.
So it's interesting.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
So I like to tie it in that this is not just this is
not just something that impactsone demographic of our our
population, right, it impactseverybody.
And this week the topic hasbeen everything around bathing
and showering.
So I was approached by a clientthis week, a prospective client
, who we had a very, very indepth, private conversation
(03:26):
because, I mean, this is a veryprivate part of our daily
routine, right and she confidedin me and said Christie, I
haven't been able to take ashower.
This is going to be crazy.
It floored me.
Jeremy, in two years, why havenot been able to?
Now my mind starts going throughall of the reasons why.
(03:48):
Right, I'm jumping toconclusions because I've talked
to plenty of people who'veexperienced a fall, or maybe
their their bathtub or shower isnot working properly, so I
wanted to know more.
So tell me more.
And she shared with me that sheis not, she's not comfortable
(04:08):
being able to get in when shehas nobody else in her home.
She is worried about thepotential of a fall.
She also further explained thatit's harder for her to clean
her back to reach and, due tosome other physical limitations
you know, raising her arms aboveher head it's just become more
(04:28):
difficult.
And so she explained to me that, yes, the sink baths are
working, you know ish.
But she then said that after acertain amount of time she
became so depressed that shedidn't want to leave her home.
She dropped out of clubs thatshe used to be in I bet
Immunities that she had.
She's like I stopped goingbecause I was embarrassed.
(04:52):
I'm prideful, I don't know whoto ask for help, and so she's
calling to see if there is a waythat I could come in and just
help with that.
One thing, absolutely,absolutely.
This opened an entire newoutlook on how important bathing
(05:14):
is.
So this conversation started atthe beginning of the week you
can't even make that up by theend of the week.
This conversation has now beenhappening in our local nursing
homes and our assisted livingfacilities, because what we
experience in these settings notin someone's home, but what we
experience is an overallshortage of staff.
(05:36):
It's very, very hard.
You have nurses who are workingtheir butts off and then people
get sick.
Then you have a nurse who can'thelp do the bathing in a
nursing facility that afternoon.
So now you have residents thatare not on their routine.
So how can comfort keepers comein and still ensure that your
(05:58):
loved one is getting theirpersonal care.
So this whole week has beencentered around bathing,
showering Another story, I mean,I'm all about stories.
Mom and dad, mom and dad.
Dad's helping mom, dad'sworried about mom falling, mom's
worried about dad falling.
Together they're kind ofcreating their own hazards,
(06:22):
right.
So dad's doing his best to helpwash mom's hair and mom's doing
her best to help dad shave.
And it is not working out.
It's just not the best, right.
So stress If you try to putyourself in their shoes, like,
how stressful is that?
Right, you have your ownphysical limitations, and so
this week we've always, always,always helped people in their
(06:45):
homes with showers, withanything that they need.
But this week was really aneye-opener of listen.
We need to do somethingspecialized, and so we've
completely developed this nichewithin our roster of amazing,
skilled, qualified caregivers tobe our bathing buddies, right.
(07:06):
So dignity in every drop iswhat I'm calling it Our bathing
buddies to come in and helpshower, bathe and we'll get out
of your hair, but we will makesure that the environment is
safe when we leave.
Everything is dried, you'redressed and cleaned and ready to
go.
We're in and out as private.
We're professional and I feelso good about that because to
(07:28):
hear the relief through awoman's voice over the phone was
everything it really really was.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
I love it.
So many great things there.
I mean it does seem like atopic that is easily swept under
the rug and it just goesunnoticed and it could turn into
such an issue like that clientthat went two years.
I mean I can't imagine how muchof a weight was lifted when she
spoke to you and opened up andfound a solution for that.
It must have been incrediblefor her, and I love bathing
(08:00):
buddies.
That's really wonderful.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
Listen, I like to have fun with things right,
because if that's one thing youcan get through all of this is
that we're a lively group, we'refull of energy and again, we're
trying to make it lighter butalso professional, and the thing
that is sometimes the hardestto ask for help with it's it's a
very, very private event, so weare going to be professional
(08:27):
about it.
But yeah, bathing buddies.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
That's good stuff.
Yeah, I don't know.
I just might need to get abathing buddy involved in my own
operation pretty soon.
As I said I was telling youbefore, I put this, this new
bath tub, in and it's so high upthat it's not an issue for me
now.
But I could see as I get olderand my body starts to ache and I
(08:54):
get the comes more and moredifficult to do things that were
easier earlier on.
I could see that being aproblem.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
So it's a video.
You made a comment and do asafety assessment.
I will for you, Jeremy.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
I'll be my bathing buddy, oh goodness.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
I'll be.
I'll make the recommendationsfor the safest restroom bathroom
around.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
You know, I think, god willing, I got another 10,
15 years hopefully 20 before Ineed to go down that path, but
you never know, right.
So there's folks that have allsorts of issues that might
prohibit them from taking careof that, and it could always be
good to get some help and raiseawareness for that for sure.
Speaker 1 (09:35):
Absolutely Well and ultimately, the whole
development of this was reallyto say that, for those who truly
just need this one major thingright, that's gonna set the tone
for the day.
It's gonna impact your mentalhealth, your overall wellness,
your whole body health Like, letus come in and just do that and
then we'll leave, but we'll doit routinely.
(09:56):
On the routine, we'll do a fullbathing assessment to be able
to bathe or shower you withexactly the products that you
use and the steps that you take.
So again, so very, verypersonalized, but to enable
someone to continue what they'redoing that they're now stepping
back from, just out of fear andtheir mental health due to no
(10:22):
bathing.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Now of your general client pool.
The overwhelming majority ofthe clients that Comfort Keepers
helps is bathing a big part ofthat in terms of the kind of
approach that you take, or is itsomething that I mean?
Speaker 1 (10:39):
absolutely so.
When we come in and we meetwith our prospective clients and
their families, we go overeverything that we could help
them with, and oftentimes we arehelping with some aspect of
their personal care, of bathingor grooming.
So even if it's just setting upthe bath or setting up the
shower, setting out everything,we're still there as a standby.
(11:01):
God forbid there's anythingthat they may need, we're there
to be able to grab it for them.
And other times we are verymuch hands on.
We're doing everything from abed bath to a shower, assist to
helping them wash their hair,because, again, they can't reach
or scrub All of those things.
We personalize it to everysingle individual that we serve.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
So yeah, I can see how for some that could be a
little uncomfortable, havingsomebody present with you
through that process.
How do you typically go aboutlightening that load, if you
will, or easing thatuncomfortability that somebody
might have about kind of gettingundressed in front of somebody
and having that help that theyneed?
How do you kind of open thatconversation and speak to
somebody to get them morecomfortable with that process?
Speaker 1 (11:47):
Absolutely so.
It all starts with ourassessment, which is done by our
RN, Sharon.
She's phenomenal and meetingface to face with a family,
letting them know what the stepsare.
We don't just send a strangerin to help you shower Nobody
nobody Right getting thebathroom stripped down and
getting there.
No, we don't at all.
So that's our first bridge, ourfirst connection point.
(12:09):
The second is a family meet andgreet.
We want you to meet the personthat's going to be coming into
your home.
That caregiver is fully awareof every single thing that this
individual is asking for, howthey're asking for it and then
what the completion would looklike.
So from the very beginning tothat meet and greet, there's
already, you know, a familiarity, a comfort level, and then, at
(12:33):
the very first time that we cometo do our shift, to be able to
be there, we've already met.
Right With that very firstshift, our nurse is going to
also be there.
I mean, we're talking about anurse for over 36 years who is
coming alongside an alreadytrained caregiver just to be
there as extra support andencouragement, right to make
(12:54):
sure that everything runs andgoes as smoothly as we are
saying.
That will, and that right there, just so many extra
personalized touches veryintentional, very relational
helps everybody feel morecomfortable.
Speaker 2 (13:10):
Love it, love it, christy, always doing great work
.
Thank you Fantastic.
Speaker 1 (13:16):
For excited about it.
Speaker 2 (13:17):
Yeah, I'm not going to forget that the bathing
buddies really stuck would be,and I like a little playful
aspect of it to lighten it upfor folks.
Just appreciate all the greatwork you're doing in the
community.
Unless there's anything elseyou'd like to share, I guess we
can wrap this one up.
Speaker 1 (13:36):
That's right.
Yeah, get ready for yourweekend.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
All right.
Well, everyone, thanks fortuning in and we will catch you
all next time.
Everyone, take care.
Thank you for listening to theComfort Keepers Davy podcast For
more information visitComfortKeeperscom or call
954-947-7954.
Welcome to the Comfort Keepers Davy podcast,
where we elevate the humanspirit.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Here's your host, christie Grulay.
Hello everyone, and welcomeback to another episode of the
Comfort Keepers Davy podcast.
I'm your co-host, jeremy Wolt,joined by your host, christie
Grulay.
Christie, how you doing today?
Good morning, glorious ofFridays.
It seems like we're alwaysmeeting on Fridays, doesn't it?
Speaker 1 (00:27):
It's all right.
It's kind of like a great recapof our week and people are
excited about the weekend.
I mean, I don't know what youdo on weekends, but sometimes it
is nice to look forward to aweekend.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Yeah, Netflix and chill.
We take it easy around theseparts.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
As I get older, so speak to each their own.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So, speaking of the week, Iwant to do something a little
bit off the cuff, a little bitnew today.
You had mentioned thatsometimes issues just come up,
topics just come up throughoutthe week and seem to be
recurring issues, and this weekit was all about bathing,
Exactly how it pertains to homehealth care.
(01:06):
So please share with us whatcame up this week and give us
some tips, insights, things thatwe should know about bathing as
it pertains to home health care.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Okay, awesome.
Well, I want to start off byasking you, Jeremy, I want you
to think about a time where itdoesn't even matter what you
were doing, but let's just say,life got in the way kids
schedules and you've gone acouple days without a shower,
right, but we're virtual, right.
So I'm not sitting next to you,I can't smell you, I can't feel
(01:40):
your aura.
But what I'm saying is how doesthat make you feel like?
How does that, how does thataffect your whole self?
Right?
Yeah shower for a day or two,just first thing.
Speaker 2 (01:52):
It's huge, right, you feel a little gross.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
Blah right.
That's the best way that I canput it.
You feel down, absolutely.
You feel down and I think thatyou know, without it being like
busy schedule, this is for everysingle person.
If we're sick, you know, andwe're at home and we're off work
for a while and we're just,we're laying in bed like even 24
hours, just like laying there.
(02:18):
We feel oftentimes much betteronce we take a shower, once we
clean ourselves 100%.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
Actually, let me interject here my son, who's
nine.
He would have a hard time for awhile taking a shower before
going to sleep and he playsvirtual realities outside.
He's getting he's likedisgusting right, he needs to
take a shower and he would giveus a tantrum and he wouldn't
want to go in.
And my wife set up a routinewith him and now he's to the
(02:48):
point where he enjoys going inbecause he recognizes now that
he feels so much fresher layingdown to go to sleep before
cleaning himself.
So it's interesting.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
So I like to tie it in that this is not just this is
not just something that impactsone demographic of our our
population, right, it impactseverybody.
And this week the topic hasbeen everything around bathing
and showering.
So I was approached by a clientthis week, a prospective client
, who we had a very, very indepth, private conversation
(03:26):
because, I mean, this is a veryprivate part of our daily
routine, right and she confidedin me and said Christie, I
haven't been able to take ashower.
This is going to be crazy.
It floored me.
Jeremy, in two years, why havenot been able to?
Now my mind starts going throughall of the reasons why.
(03:48):
Right, I'm jumping toconclusions because I've talked
to plenty of people who'veexperienced a fall, or maybe
their their bathtub or shower isnot working properly, so I
wanted to know more.
So tell me more.
And she shared with me that sheis not, she's not comfortable
(04:08):
being able to get in when shehas nobody else in her home.
She is worried about thepotential of a fall.
She also further explained thatit's harder for her to clean
her back to reach and, due tosome other physical limitations
you know, raising her arms aboveher head it's just become more
(04:28):
difficult.
And so she explained to me that, yes, the sink baths are
working, you know ish.
But she then said that after acertain amount of time she
became so depressed that shedidn't want to leave her home.
She dropped out of clubs thatshe used to be in I bet
Immunities that she had.
She's like I stopped goingbecause I was embarrassed.
(04:52):
I'm prideful, I don't know whoto ask for help, and so she's
calling to see if there is a waythat I could come in and just
help with that.
One thing, absolutely,absolutely.
This opened an entire newoutlook on how important bathing
(05:14):
is.
So this conversation started atthe beginning of the week you
can't even make that up by theend of the week.
This conversation has now beenhappening in our local nursing
homes and our assisted livingfacilities, because what we
experience in these settings notin someone's home, but what we
experience is an overallshortage of staff.
(05:36):
It's very, very hard.
You have nurses who are workingtheir butts off and then people
get sick.
Then you have a nurse who can'thelp do the bathing in a
nursing facility that afternoon.
So now you have residents thatare not on their routine.
So how can comfort keepers comein and still ensure that your
(05:58):
loved one is getting theirpersonal care.
So this whole week has beencentered around bathing,
showering Another story, I mean,I'm all about stories.
Mom and dad, mom and dad.
Dad's helping mom, dad'sworried about mom falling, mom's
worried about dad falling.
Together they're kind ofcreating their own hazards,
(06:22):
right.
So dad's doing his best to helpwash mom's hair and mom's doing
her best to help dad shave.
And it is not working out.
It's just not the best, right.
So stress If you try to putyourself in their shoes, like,
how stressful is that?
Right, you have your ownphysical limitations, and so
this week we've always, always,always helped people in their
(06:45):
homes with showers, withanything that they need.
But this week was really aneye-opener of listen.
We need to do somethingspecialized, and so we've
completely developed this nichewithin our roster of amazing,
skilled, qualified caregivers tobe our bathing buddies, right.
(07:06):
So dignity in every drop iswhat I'm calling it Our bathing
buddies to come in and helpshower, bathe and we'll get out
of your hair, but we will makesure that the environment is
safe when we leave.
Everything is dried, you'redressed and cleaned and ready to
go.
We're in and out as private.
We're professional and I feelso good about that because to
(07:28):
hear the relief through awoman's voice over the phone was
everything it really really was.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
I love it.
So many great things there.
I mean it does seem like atopic that is easily swept under
the rug and it just goesunnoticed and it could turn into
such an issue like that clientthat went two years.
I mean I can't imagine how muchof a weight was lifted when she
spoke to you and opened up andfound a solution for that.
It must have been incrediblefor her, and I love bathing
(08:00):
buddies.
That's really wonderful.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
Listen, I like to have fun with things right,
because if that's one thing youcan get through all of this is
that we're a lively group, we'refull of energy and again, we're
trying to make it lighter butalso professional, and the thing
that is sometimes the hardestto ask for help with it's it's a
very, very private event, so weare going to be professional
(08:27):
about it.
But yeah, bathing buddies.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
That's good stuff.
Yeah, I don't know.
I just might need to get abathing buddy involved in my own
operation pretty soon.
As I said I was telling youbefore, I put this, this new
bath tub, in and it's so high upthat it's not an issue for me
now.
But I could see as I get olderand my body starts to ache and I
(08:54):
get the comes more and moredifficult to do things that were
easier earlier on.
I could see that being aproblem.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
So it's a video.
You made a comment and do asafety assessment.
I will for you, Jeremy.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
I'll be my bathing buddy, oh goodness.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
I'll be.
I'll make the recommendationsfor the safest restroom bathroom
around.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
You know, I think, god willing, I got another 10,
15 years hopefully 20 before Ineed to go down that path, but
you never know, right.
So there's folks that have allsorts of issues that might
prohibit them from taking careof that, and it could always be
good to get some help and raiseawareness for that for sure.
Speaker 1 (09:35):
Absolutely Well and ultimately, the whole
development of this was reallyto say that, for those who truly
just need this one major thingright, that's gonna set the tone
for the day.
It's gonna impact your mentalhealth, your overall wellness,
your whole body health Like, letus come in and just do that and
then we'll leave, but we'll doit routinely.
(09:56):
On the routine, we'll do a fullbathing assessment to be able
to bathe or shower you withexactly the products that you
use and the steps that you take.
So again, so very, verypersonalized, but to enable
someone to continue what they'redoing that they're now stepping
back from, just out of fear andtheir mental health due to no
(10:22):
bathing.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Now of your general client pool.
The overwhelming majority ofthe clients that Comfort Keepers
helps is bathing a big part ofthat in terms of the kind of
approach that you take, or is itsomething that I mean?
Speaker 1 (10:39):
absolutely so.
When we come in and we meetwith our prospective clients and
their families, we go overeverything that we could help
them with, and oftentimes we arehelping with some aspect of
their personal care, of bathingor grooming.
So even if it's just setting upthe bath or setting up the
shower, setting out everything,we're still there as a standby.
(11:01):
God forbid there's anythingthat they may need, we're there
to be able to grab it for them.
And other times we are verymuch hands on.
We're doing everything from abed bath to a shower, assist to
helping them wash their hair,because, again, they can't reach
or scrub All of those things.
We personalize it to everysingle individual that we serve.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
So yeah, I can see how for some that could be a
little uncomfortable, havingsomebody present with you
through that process.
How do you typically go aboutlightening that load, if you
will, or easing thatuncomfortability that somebody
might have about kind of gettingundressed in front of somebody
and having that help that theyneed?
How do you kind of open thatconversation and speak to
somebody to get them morecomfortable with that process?
Speaker 1 (11:47):
Absolutely so.
It all starts with ourassessment, which is done by our
RN, Sharon.
She's phenomenal and meetingface to face with a family,
letting them know what the stepsare.
We don't just send a strangerin to help you shower Nobody
nobody Right getting thebathroom stripped down and
getting there.
No, we don't at all.
So that's our first bridge, ourfirst connection point.
(12:09):
The second is a family meet andgreet.
We want you to meet the personthat's going to be coming into
your home.
That caregiver is fully awareof every single thing that this
individual is asking for, howthey're asking for it and then
what the completion would looklike.
So from the very beginning tothat meet and greet, there's
already, you know, a familiarity, a comfort level, and then, at
(12:33):
the very first time that we cometo do our shift, to be able to
be there, we've already met.
Right With that very firstshift, our nurse is going to
also be there.
I mean, we're talking about anurse for over 36 years who is
coming alongside an alreadytrained caregiver just to be
there as extra support andencouragement, right to make
(12:54):
sure that everything runs andgoes as smoothly as we are
saying.
That will, and that right there, just so many extra
personalized touches veryintentional, very relational
helps everybody feel morecomfortable.
Speaker 2 (13:10):
Love it, love it, christy, always doing great work
.
Thank you Fantastic.
Speaker 1 (13:16):
For excited about it.
Speaker 2 (13:17):
Yeah, I'm not going to forget that the bathing
buddies really stuck would be,and I like a little playful
aspect of it to lighten it upfor folks.
Just appreciate all the greatwork you're doing in the
community.
Unless there's anything elseyou'd like to share, I guess we
can wrap this one up.
Speaker 1 (13:36):
That's right.
Yeah, get ready for yourweekend.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
All right.
Well, everyone, thanks fortuning in and we will catch you
all next time.
Everyone, take care.
Thank you for listening to theComfort Keepers Davy podcast For
more information visitComfortKeeperscom or call
954-947-7954.
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Dateline NBC
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Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.