Preparing Your Parents For Senior Living

Helping your senior loved one make the move to a senior living community away from home can be a challenging process, especially if they had initially planned to age at home. Although making the decision to move your aging loved one into a senior living community can be difficult, it's important to understand the benefits they’ll ultimately be faced with, as they won't have to take the steps for taking care of themselves and their health alone.  

Relocating to a senior living community can provide them with opportunities to socialize, meet like-minded individuals, and improve their quality of life. To help you and your senior loved one with the process, we've compiled a list of recommendations to help prepare for their move into senior living. 

When it comes to helping your parents make the transition into senior living, it can be an emotional process leaving home and starting new, as they may associate their existing home with positive memories of milestones in their life such as graduations, birthdays, holidays, etc. 

As this can all make it harder to leave home behind, to process your or a loved one's emotions through the process of moving, you may consider throwing a farewell gathering or party with your close friends and family. Not only can this act as a goodbye party for their old home, but also serve as a reminder to their friends and family of how they will always rely on their support during these big milestones in their life. Although moving away from friends and family can be difficult, knowing that they have care and support can provide them with the strength to embark on the next chapter of their life. 

Reminding a loved one of the initial reasons they had for moving may help put moving out into perspective. They may have wanted to move to either be in a community closer to their family, downsize their daily responsibilities, or receive additional support in everyday tasks. Whichever the reasoning, It is helpful to remind them of the benefits of senior living when planning for the move. 

 Taking another tour of the community they’ve chosen and its surrounding areas together a few days before the move can help your loved one get acquainted with the new environment. You may choose to explore surrounding restaurants, find their new favourite grocery store, or find ways and ideas to decorate their new apartment. In any case, exploring a new area is a great way to help familiarize them with their new surroundings so that they can find their way around the community with ease once they move in. 

The adjustment to change can be challenging for everyone, but it can be especially hard on the elderly. While it may take some time for your senior loved one to adjust to their new surroundings and lifestyle, it is important to remember to take care of their well-being during the process.