Assisted living facilities are becoming more and more common across the country. Slightly different from senior centers, where large groups of older Americans can be found living together in shared quarters or small communities, and not quite as intense on the care spectrum as nursing homes, assisted living centers offer aging seniors the support that they need to live full, healthy lives, but still retain as much independence and control as they are able to handle.
Knowing when it’s time for yourself or someone you love to move into an assisted living home can be a tricky thing. Some people know themselves well enough to realize “Hey – I’m not as young as I used to be!” Things gets harder to handle: all the cooking, cleaning, and maintenance that goes with living alone (or even as a couple) in a full-sized house or even just a condo. Assisted living facilities do away with most of these details, in addition to offering a wide array of support services.
Right off the bat, whether it’s a voluntary decision by the resident-to-be or a difficult conversation you need to have with a person who is losing his or her ability to function independently, you need options. If you live in an area with only one assisted living home, then you may need to broaden your search area a bit. The ability to visit your loved one regularly is an important consideration, however. Regular attention from and interaction with loved ones (and anyone, really) is an important part of staying mentally, emotionally, and physically healthy your whole life.
Having options means that the resident-to-be gets to feel (and truly is!) empowered. Assisted living is living. If you or the resident just feels warehoused by a busy society that is passing them by, then they aren’t going to be happy or healthy. Visiting multiple facilities, taking tours and getting to know the caregivers and other residents helps make the process less arduous and will ultimately result in a better decision at the end of the process. It can also help you secure a better deal by having comparison quotes from different facilities and using them as bargaining chips – business is business.
So remember: when choosing an assisted living facility, make sure that the resident-to-be is an active participant (as long as their mental faculties allow it). Adults, even those in need of some assistance with their activities of daily living, are still adults, with all the pride, emotions, and sensitivity that goes with that.
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