34 Quotes on Caring for the Elderly to Remain Patient with Them

When you are caring for the elderly, whether you are taking care of them professionally, or just taking care of family members, can be exhausting. It is easy to forget what you are doing and how it helps them.

Don’t let the day-to-day work make you forget what you are doing and the good work you are doing. Even on bad days, you are making a difference in someone’s life. They may not show their appreciation, but it does help them. These 34 quotes on caring for the elderly will have you remembering why you are doing it.

34 Quotes on Caring for the Elderly

1. “We want autonomy for ourselves and safety for those we love. That remains the main problem and paradox for the frail. Many of the things that we want for those we care about are things that we would adamantly oppose for ourselves because they would infringe upon our sense of self.” – Atul Gawande
2. “And it is still true, no matter how old you are, when you go out into the world it is best to hold hands and stick together.” – Robert Fulghum
3. “That fear-ridden, irreversible release lingers in the doorway, but hesitates for reasons we don’t understand, leaving us to weep with a mixture of angst and gratitude all at the same time. It is finally ushered all the way in, to comfort and carry our loved one to that Better Place. When the time finally comes, we can be enveloped in a warm cloak of long-awaited acceptance and peace that eases our own pain.” – Connie Kerbs
4. “One person caring about another represents life’s most significant value.” – Jim Rohn
5. “The elderly need love just like the children do.” – Hendrith Vanlon Smith Jr.
6. “Appeal with respect to elderly people as you would to the members of your own family.” – Lailah Gifty Akita
7. “The closest thing to being cared for is to care for someone else.” – Carson McCullers
8. “To care for those who once cared for us is one of the highest honors.” – Tia Walker
9. “My caregiver mantra is to remember: the only control you have is over the changes you choose to make.” – Nancy L. Kriseman
10. “There will come a time when your loved one is gone, and you will find comfort in the fact that you were their caregiver.” – Karen Coetzer
11. “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” – Leo Buscaglia
12. “By loving you more, you love the person you are caring for more.” – Peggi Speers
13. “Care is a state in which something does matter; it is the source of human tenderness.” – Rollo May
14. “Caregiving is a constant learning experience.” – Vivian Frazier
15. “Caregiving leaves its mark on us. No matter what we do to prepare ourselves, the hole left behind looms large.” – Dale L. Baker
16. “Caring for seniors is perhaps the greatest responsibility we have. Those who have walked before us have given so much and made possible the life we all enjoy.” – Senator John Hoeven
17. “We can all make a difference in the lives of others in need because it is the most simple of gestures that make the most significant of differences.” – Miya Yamanouchi
18. “Caregiving will never be one-size-fits-all.” – Nancy L. Kriseman
19. “Caring about others, running the risk of feeling, and leaving an impact on people, brings happiness.” – Harold Kushner
20. “The moods and actions of people with dementia are expressions of what they have experienced, whether they can still use language and recall, or not.” – Judy Cornish
21. “Being loved by someone gives you strength while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” – Lao Tzu
22. “Nurturing is not complex. It’s merely being tuned in to the thing or person before you and offering small gestures toward what it needs at that time.” – Mary Anne Radmacher
23. “Family is the most important thing in the world.” – Princess Diana
24. “I follow three rules: do the right thing, do your best, and always show people you care.” – Lou Holtz
25. “To make an elderly person happy is the noblest act a young person can ever do!” – Mehmet Murat İldan
26. “The simple act of caring is heroic.” – Edward Albert
27. “The disease might hide the person underneath, but there’s still a person in there who needs your love and attention.” – Jamie Calandriello
28. “Even though people experiencing dementia become unable to recount what has just happened, they still go through the experience—even without recall. The psychological present lasts about three seconds. We experience the present even when we have dementia. The emotional pain caused by cruel treatment or unkind talk occurs during that period.” – Judy Cornish
29. “Compassion brings us to a stop, and for a moment we rise above ourselves.” – Mason Cooley
30. “The day the roles reverse is foreign. It’s a clumsy dance of love and responsibility, not wanting to cross any lines of respect. It’s honoring this person who gave their life to you—not to mention literally gave you life — and taking their fragile body in your hands like a newborn, tending to their every need.” – Lisa Goich-Andreadis
31. “In the heart of every caregiver is a knowing that we are all connected. As I do for you, I do for me.” – Tia Walker
32. “God gave burdens; he also gave shoulders.” – Yiddish Proverb
33. “There is a wonderful mythical law of nature that the three things we crave most in life — happiness, freedom, and peace of mind — are always attained by giving them to someone else.” – Peyton Conway March
34. “Relationships based on obligation lack dignity.” – Wayne Dyer