"check-In" Service For Solitary Persons

[Ringlet]

I don't know if anyone here has the same difficulty as me, but I am hoping someone might have an idea on how to deal with it.

I am 69, I live alone, I have temporal lobe epilepsy and had a small stroke last year. I also have HBP and know that I am probably at risk for another stroke.

I have two adult children, who pay short visits every few weeks.

I enjoy living alone, and don't mind not seeing many people as I am quite a solitary person by nature. But my difficulty is this - I have several very precious pet cats and dogs who are totally reliant on me. I fear that I might die in my sleep, or collapse in the house, and lie until one of my children pays a visit. But their visits are so infrequent that my animals would have starved to death by the time they were found. This thought terrifies me and prevents me from going to sleep.

When I first became solitary, I asked one of my adult children if she would mind if I texted her one word each evening. If she didn't receive the word, she would ring me, and if there was no answer, she would check up on me. This seemed to work for a while but after a few months I forgot to text the word a couple of times and there was no response from her. So I waited a few weeks, and deliberately "forgot" to send the text for four days in a row. She didn't notice. So I quietly stopped doing it altogether and it has not been mentioned since then. I understand that remembering every evening to check if she has received a text from me is a big imposition on her life and I regret putting her in that position.

I would like to know if anyone knows of some kind of service that solitary people can use to "check in", whereby if they don't check in daily, an attempt is made to contact, and if contact cannot be made, an alarm is raised with a named individual. This would work for me, as I feel I could ask my daughter to be the "named individual". This would be much easier for her than having to remember to look for the daily text from me.

I have been looking, and have seen all sorts of devices to wear in case of a fall, but can't find anything that resembles a "check-in" type of service.

Any comments, ideas or advice would be very welcome.

[Zacs-Master]

Some info here, Ringlet. They approach your problem from a concerned offspring point of view but they're still (hopefully) relevant:

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/check-in-services-that-can-help-seniors-stay-put_b_59ad66dde4b0c50640cd60d2?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAJe9qfM0nLrsJFIbXjsotljojkmeKWPg8gM0ZipTh_0q21x7N6OTGv1LQlY93B2fg4yKSmZ7GJ0H4ZK00s-9N205fgzP-zWPM2EdmPZT1V95AldcQ-b3oxO5gJvyQofr6OAruNY8LvyjhWsCZ_q5u2S2aS1a4VJYg6nlyY473JCv

[Mamyalynne]

This is UK based and offers a variety of services at a price, check whether anything is suitable.

http://www.seniorresponse.co.uk/elderly-contact-services/daily-call/

[hc4361]

If you live in Glasgow or Ayrshire this is a free service:
https://www.goodmorningservice.co.uk/

This one costs £12 a month - other similar services can cost much more
https://carecalls.co.uk/

This one is £11 per month
https://helplineplus.co.uk/automated-calls/

[hc4361]

It is frustrating just how difficult it is to find the prices of these services.

[sanmac]

I suggest that you look around your neighborhood for a teenager who does baby-sitting. The fact that she baby-sits would indicate that she is fairly responsible. Offer to pay her so much a month to call you each day at a mutually agreed time in order to check on you.

[Baldric]

Speak to the 'Red Cross' they offer a very diverse number of services.

[Buenchico]

Age UK might be able to offer advice. Their helpline is available from 0800 to 1900 daily, free of charge, on 0800 678 1602.

Alternatively use the postcode search facility here to find your nearest Age UK office. (They're sometime attached to their charity shops but some are separate to their shops):
https://www.ageuk.org.uk/services/in-your-area/

[Ringlet]

Thank you to all of you for so much good advice. I will work my way through all the suggestions and see what comes out best. I worry so much about the welfare of my animals. I really need to get something put in place. Cheers.

[Eve]

Maybe speak to the Cinnamon Trust to see if there is any way that they can help to you put your mind at rest about your animals?

https://cinnamon.org.uk/cinnamon-trust/

[anneasquith]

I hope you get something suitable in place soon .

[roopower]

Ah, eve beat me to it. Contact the Cinnamon trust, they will take care of your beloved pets for you and find them new homes or foster homes.

[Ringlet]

Thank you so much for your kind comments about my pets. I am not so much worried about their long-term future. I have arrangements made for them with Cats Protection and Dogs Trust. But for this to happen, people need to know that they need help. So what worries me is if I die suddenly at home, the animals might not be discovered for anything up to three weeks, by which time they would have suffered horribly. I need to identify an organisation (or maybe a person, as suggested by Sanmac) that I can check into every day so that if I die suddenly, my animals are not left on their own for a lengthy period of time. I have lots of suggestions above, and I am going to look into them all. Thank you to everyone who took the time to reply and to wish me well. It is much appreciated.

[anneasquith]

I think what you are doing is a great idea. Peace of mind for you is essential. Take care ..

[hellywelly4]

Do you have a Lifeline service? Mine is through the sheltered scheme where I live, but they are run by AgeUK and, I think, the local council. You have a pendant which you wear all the time, and press if you fall or pass out. They connect you to the relevant service for your current need, and they do also offer a daily ‘well-being’ check. Mine is with Apello but I’m afraid I don’t have a contact number for them. I will see if I can find anything and post it on here if I can.

[hellywelly4]

It’s Apello.co.uk. You have to fill something in and they will contact you.

[Tilly2]

This may be a bit simplistic but do you have neighbours who can see whether or not your curtains have been opened each day? If so, and you know them well enough, you could ask them to keep a look-out and come to your aid if necessary.