What are sleeping night care and waking night care?

These types of care are both provided for overnight care at home. Sleeping night care is where a carer will be available to help you or your loved one during the night, but usually only once or twice to ensure that your carer can be refreshed to continue supporting you during the day. Waking night care is where your carer will be available throughout the night.

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What is Sleeping Night Care?

Sleeping night care is a form of overnight care where your carer will be available throughout the night to provide your care. The difference between sleeping night care and waking night care is that whilst both are there to help you overnight, a sleeping night carer will sleep during the quieter moments, ensuring they are sufficiently refreshed to continue providing your support the following day. Whereas a waking night carer is fully trained to be available during the night to provide your support.

As previously mentioned, a sleeping night care is when carers will sleep during the night – but they will be available to support you whenever they are needed. There will usually be a small limit on the number of times that they can wake up to help you, and the number is usually twice. But that doesn’t mean that your carer will be unable to help you throughout the rest of the night, it simply means that if you require further help, then we may need to reassess your needs so that we can provide a level of support that will suit your needs better. If you do start to need help at more regular intervals during the night, the waking night service may be more applicable to your needs.

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What is waking night care?

A waking night carer will be available to cater to your needs throughout the night, whenever you need support with anything. A waking night carer’s duties can include anything that you or your loved one needs assistance with, whether this is helping you to change positions during the night or taking medication at regular intervals throughout the night.

A waking night carer is primarily there to support you during the night. Unlike a sleeping night carer, sleep will not usually be a priority for the waking night carer, in fact the waking night carer will often not sleep at all. During quieter times of the night, the waking night carer will attend to other domestic duties as required, such as laundry, cleaning or tidying the house.

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What are the differences between a waking night carer and a sleeping carer?

Simply put, a waking night carer is primarily there to be available during the night to support your needs. Whereas a sleeping carer is there to provide assistance if needed, but only on a limited number of occasions.

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Your needs will be initially assessed, and you will be provided with the type of carer who is likely to suit your needs. If you or your loved one doesn’t wake that often during the night – perhaps only once or twice, then a sleeping carer may be provided. If the situation changes, and you gradually begin to need more regular help during the night, your sleeping carer will be able to provide this, but as part of your carer’s job will be to ensure that they are sufficiently refreshed in the morning, you are likely to be offered a waking carer instead.

A waking night carer will not usually sleep at all. Your carer will be on duty all night, ensuring that they are available for any time during the night that you need assistance. The rest of the time, your carer will be fulfilling any other tasks which need completing around the house, such as doing laundry, washing the dishes or cleaning and dusting the house.

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What is waking night care?

A waking night carer will be available to cater to your needs throughout the night, whenever you need support with anything. A waking night carer’s duties can include anything that you or your loved one needs assistance with, whether this is helping you to change positions during the night or taking medication at regular intervals throughout the night.

A waking night carer is primarily there to support you during the night. Unlike a sleeping night carer, sleep will not usually be a priority for the waking night carer, in fact the waking night carer will often not sleep at all. During quieter times of the night, the waking night carer will attend to other domestic duties as required, such as laundry, cleaning or tidying the house.

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FAQs

What are the benefits of good sleep?

Good quality sleep carries some significant benefits for everyone, but sleep can be particularly beneficial for older adults. High quality sleep can improve and sustain cognitive functioning, helping an individual to be able to think more clearly, be more physically active and it can even reduce symptoms of mental health problems, or dementia.

Sleep is beneficial for the body as well as the mind, and an individual may find that they have clearer skin, more energy and better metabolism as a result of high-quality sleep. It may also often be the case that an increase in sleep and an improved sleep pattern can lead to a decrease in the need for medication usage. In older adults, small levels of physical activity each day can reduce daytime drowsiness and increase sleeping time overnight.

It is generally recommended that people should try to get between 7-9 hours of sleep per night. Less than 6 hours, or more than 9 hours, on a regular basis can have a negative effect on the overall function of your mind and brain. Less than 6 hours’ sleep on a regular basis can lead to exhaustion, low energy levels and an increase in physical health issues. If an individual finds that they are struggling to gain more than 6 hours’ sleep per night, on a regular basis, then it would be recommended to see a GP.

Why do sleep problems occur?

A common condition affecting sleep is insomnia, which is where an individual may have difficulty getting to sleep or remaining asleep. Insomnia can vary in intensity, from an individual simply having difficulty falling asleep three or four nights a week, to individuals who cannot gain more than 2-3 hours’ sleep per night.

There are a number of factors which cause sleep problems. Some of the factors are environmental or related to an individual’s lifestyle, such as diet, exercise, alcohol, smoking or drug consumption, or even the amount of time that a person spends looking at a screen.

Dietary factors can include caffeine consumption too close to bedtime or eating foods that have a stimulating effect on the mind. A lack of exercise can also leave a person’s body or mind insufficiently tired at bedtime. Spending too much time looking at a mobile phone screen or a television at night can also affect melatonin production, a chemical which regulates the natural sleep pattern.

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Conclusion:

Domiciliary Care is a type of care which allows you to stay at home and function as an independent individual. You can discuss your care needs with us, and we will then assess your requirements and produce an offer which includes a care package, a specific carer who will be specially trained for your needs, and a list of costs.

The difference between receiving care at home and care in a residential home is that with domiciliary care, you will be able to remain in your own home and be cared for by a carer who is there to look after your needs solely. Whilst being cared for at home can be more expensive than moving into a care home, the price difference is not usually significant.

Home care is designed to be a cost-effective way of living, where an individual can remain independent and happy in their own home.