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I’m Not Ready Yet

So you don’t keep the house as clean as you used to when your kids were all living at home, and sometimes you warm up a frozen dinner instead of cooking a balanced meal.

Now all of a sudden, they’re sending you newspaper articles about seniors tripping over piles of mail and trying to get you to tour the local assisted living community. No, thank you!

You may be retired, but you’re not ready to go to an “old-folks home” where all they do is watch The Price Is Right and eat bland food off hospital trays. And why would you want to leave the home you shared with your spouse for decades, the home where you raised your kids, and the place where you made so many beautiful memories to move to an assisted living community?

Whether you feel like you’re not ready yet or there are fears or concerns you have about assisted living, that have you hesitant to explore it, it’s not always easy to communicate to your children that all this talk about assisted living leaves you feeling like they’re stripping you of your freedom, independence, and current lifestyle.

So what’s the best way to approach these conversations with your worried children?

 

1. Get Your Doctor’s Support

Many older adults develop chronic medical conditions that make it difficult to do things like mow the lawn or walk up and down flights of stairs. But if you’re feeling relatively healthy and are still capable of managing medications, coordinating medical appointments (including transportation), showering, and preparing well-balanced meals, then you might not need assisted living just yet.

Consider asking your doctor when would be the right time to visit an assisted living community.

And even if the doctor supports your decision to continue living at home, there are still benefits to searching for assisted living before your health demands it.

“The earlier you start the search, the better, just so you know what’s out there,” says Bianca Syriac, Marketing Director at The Ivy at Ellington. “If you do the research ahead of time, it makes crisis situations easier because you’re already aware of who’s out there and what kind of services they provide.”

Doing your research in advance, even if you never need to make the move to an assisted living community, allows you to communicate with your children your wishes should you be in a position where they need to make decisions quickly.

 

2. Tell Them About Your Week

Your kids just want to know that you’re happy and healthy. And if you’re not, they want to do what they can to support you. After all, that’s the way you raised them to be.

So when they ask what you’re eating or how you’re sleeping, don’t be afraid to tell them. But don’t stop there. It’s likely that your kids are worried about you being isolated at home alone, which for many older adults isn’t so much a choice but a result of other circumstances out of your control.

If you’re still getting to church, going to events at your local senior center, and making social calls, let your kids know. Tell them about who you’re seeing and what you’re doing.

But if you are feeling lonely and isolated at home, you might be surprised to learn that your fears might actually be preventing you from considering an assisted living community which is designed to help older adults stay young at heart and get back to enjoying a social and healthy life.

“The program is so full of activities throughout the day,” says Lindsay Redin, Executive Director at The Ivy at Ellington. “You won’t be in your home where there’s no engagement. There are people to talk with, walks to be taken, meals to be enjoyed. There are all these components of your day that you might not have had before.”

Between the fine dining, lectures by guest speakers, happy hours, and outings, assisted living might be an opportunity to start a new chapter in life.

 

3. Consider Hiring Home Care Support

Maybe you can run errands. You drive to the bank and the pharmacist once a week. But you don’t really like driving in the snow or after the sun goes down. Or perhaps you love to eat — you just don’t like to make it or clean the house after.

Flexible home care options are readily available. Home care aides can provide a wide range of services depending on what you want and need. They can help with light housekeeping, meal preparation, and laundry. Although home caregivers can’t perform medical care, they can offer medication reminders, schedule doctor’s appointments, and help with transportation.

But if you start to feel reliant on your home care aide for all your transportation — or if you end up spending most of your days home alone — you just might find that you enjoy community living.

Thanks to transportation services offered by most assisted living communities, residents visit the town by going out to eat at different restaurants, cheering on the local baseball team with a beer and hotdog, spending a day at the beach, taking a boat cruise on the river, and going to the local museum.

“Assisted living could be a chance for you to reinvent yourself or do an activity again you once enjoyed doing,” says Activities Director Lorelei Dubowski.

 

4. Share Your Fears

If you haven’t been to an assisted living community before, it’s hard to know what to expect: Are residents told where to be and when? Are the staff just a bunch of Nurse Ratcheds? The mind can run wild with all sorts of assumptions.

If you have concerns about assisted living, share them with your kids. Let them know that you’re worried that assisted living will strip you of your independence or that you’ll lose your privacy. But also think critically about how much independence you really do have at home: How much time do you spend on housework, shopping, and home maintenance? Are you able to get to the events and errands you want to?

Assisted living is designed to offer residents all kinds of freedom — to live in comfortable surroundings you don’t need to maintain; eat delicious meals you don’t need to prepare; and take advantage of intellectual, physical, and emotional enrichment opportunities you don’t need to seek out and plan for.

Many people who move to assisted living are happy to discover that community living actually improves their quality of life.

“I love seeing our residents flourish in a community that’s safe and suitable for them, seeing an uptick in where they were,” Redin says. “A lot of residents were anxious to come here, and watching the anxiety go away as they transition to living here is rewarding to me.”

Adds Carrie Wilson, Reflections Program Director at Ivy at Ellington: “Most people realize once they move that everything provided in an assisted living community is so much more than that person could have at home.”

Ready to visit an assisted living community for the first time? Take a look at what The Ivy at Ellington has to offer.

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Assisted living can be a touchy subject. No matter how you approach it, your parent is likely to have objections to something.

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This checklist will help to make sure you are getting the most out of your visit to The Arbors.

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The Arbors Assisted Living-Guide-How to Choose the Right Assisted Living Community: What You Need to Know Before You Begin Your SearchHave you decided that assisted living is the best option for your elderly parent, and now are feeling overwhelmed on how to begin your search for the right community?

This guide will go over what you need to know before you make a decision.


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The Arbors Assisted Living-Guide-Assisted Living Costs and AffordabilityAre you considering assisted living for yourself or a loved one but are hesitant about the cost? Assisted living costs, services and amenities vary greatly among the last and most expensive communities, and costs are higher in some states than others.

This guide will answer questions you may have about the costs of assisted living and recommend resources to help you pay for it.


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The Arbors Assisted Living-Guide-Having “The Talk” With Your Parent: It’s Time for Assisted Living
Talking to your aging parent about moving to an assisted living community isn’t easy.

Often, many adult children avoid bringing it up because it can be a sensitive topic.

This guide will provide you with helpful tips and insight on how to have a productive conversation with your parent and siblings regarding your parent’s future.


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The Arbors Assisted Living-Guide-The Challenges of Aging: How to Handle Your Aging Parent’s Difficult BehaviorsDifficult behaviors in elderly adults are very common. They may be an expression of frustration your loved one feels or a symptom of early stages of dementia or Alzheimer’s.

This guide will provide you with skills and knowledge on how to handle difficult behaviors your aging parent may be experiencing.


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The Arbors Assisted Living-Guide-Becoming a Family Caregiver: What You Need to Know Before Deciding to Take Care of a Loved One
Becoming a family caregiver can be a rewarding experience. It also has its challenges.

There are many questions to answer before making the decision to take care of a loved one.

This guide will provide answers to questions you may have on this topic.


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The Arbors Assisted Living-Guide-Helping Your Parent Manage DepressionIs your parent or loved one depressed, or just in a bad mood?

What does medication and illness have to do with depression?

How can you help? In this guide, you will be provided with answers to the difficult questions you may have about depression.


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The Arbors Assisted Living-Guide-Is It Depression? A Guide to Identifying and Addressing Depression in Aging AdultsHas your aging parent recently lost interest in activities they used to enjoy? Have you noticed a change in their mood and behavior?

This guide will provide you with resources and tools on how to identify depression, what are the common causes of depression, and how to promote mental health in your aging loved one.


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The Arbors Assisted Living-Guide-Assisted Living Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
Does your loved one need more support than what they are getting? Would they benefit from some assistance with daily activities?

In this guide, you’ll find answers to the most common questions asked about assisted living.


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The Arbors Assisted Living-Guide-Why We Chose the Arbors Assisted Living and Memory Care: A Collection of Stories from Residents Living at The ArborsWhere do you start searching for assisted living or memory care communities?

What qualities in a community should you look for? How do you know you made the right decision?


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The Arbors Assisted Living-Guide-7 Warning Signs It’s Time to Make the Move to Assisted Living
Has your dad stopped getting together for lunches or outings with friends or visits with neighbors? Have you stopped enjoying time with your parents because you’re a caregiver?

Choosing an assisted living community is a big decision. Learn how to find the right one for you and your loved one.


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Guide-Getting Your Affairs in Order
No one ever plans to be sick or disabled, and disasters, man-made or natural, can happen at any time, anywhere.

Yet older adults are among the most vulnerable during a crisis. That’s why it’s critical that seniors, and those who care for them, prepare for emergencies.


NOTE: Your privacy is important to us. We’ll never share your details nor spam your inbox.

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Guide-Guide to Making the Move to Assisted Living
Moving to assisted living is a life-changing event.

This guide provides tips and ideas on downsizing, what to pack and how to make the transition smooth for your senior parent.


NOTE: Your privacy is important to us. We’ll never share your details nor spam your inbox.

Instant Access to Free Guide

 

Guide-Solutions to Common Caregiving ChallengesIn this eBook, you’ll learn how to talk with family and friends about caregiving challenges, how to deal with a parent who is resistant to help, how to get more caregiving help from your siblings, and how to keep your job while caregiving.


NOTE: Your privacy is important to us. We’ll never share your details nor spam your inbox.

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How Moving My Loved One to The Arbors Eliminated My Caregiving ChallengesHave you had to cut back your hours at work to care for your mom? Are you worried about administering medications or injections?

Have you stopped getting together with friends, either because you don’t have the time or you’re too exhausted? Are you becoming the invisible second patient?


NOTE: Your privacy is important to us. We’ll never share your details nor spam your inbox.

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Guide-When is the Right Time for Memory Care?In this guide, you’ll learn about the difference between Alzheimer’s and dementia, including the early symptoms of dementia; the seven stages of dementia and the symptoms that typically accompany each one; and the signs it’s time to start exploring your memory care options.


NOTE: Your privacy is important to us. We’ll never share your details nor spam your inbox.

Instant Access to Free Guide

 

Guide-What to Look for in a Memory Care CommunityIn this guide, you’ll learn about the difference between assisted living and memory care, how healthcare professionals are trained in dementia care, common features of a memory care community, and questions you should ask when exploring your memory care options.


NOTE: Your privacy is important to us. We’ll never share your details nor spam your inbox.

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Guide-Brothers and Sisters
Navigating adult sibling relationships can be a challenge, but coming together for the sake of your parent is important.

In this guide, you’ll learn about common sibling conflicts that arise when caring for parents, strategies for getting siblings on board, and where to turn to for help.


NOTE: Your privacy is important to us. We’ll never share your details nor spam your inbox.

Instant Access to Free Guide

 

Guide-The StandoffAssisted living can be a touchy subject. No matter how you approach it, your parent is likely to have objections to something.

As you help them transition to a new stage of life, it helps to be prepared with answers to their questions and concerns.


NOTE: Your privacy is important to us. We’ll never share your details nor spam your inbox.

Instant Access to Free Guide

 

Guide-11 Most Common Caregiving Challenges
A Guide to the Most Common Family Caregiver Challenges Associated with Caring for an Aging Parent.

You’ll learn about the true costs of being a family caregiver, common family conflicts that can occur when caring for parents, and some of the unexpected challenges of caregiving.


NOTE: Your privacy is important to us. We’ll never share your details nor spam your inbox.

Instant Access to Free Guide

 

Guide-Checklist_ Questions to Ask When Touring an Assisted Living Community
This checklist will help to make sure you are getting the most out of your visit to The Arbors.

The list details what important questions to ask during your visit so you are able to make an enlightened choice and find the best assisted living community for your needs.

NOTE: Your privacy is important to us. We’ll never share your details nor spam your inbox.

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Guide-What is Assisted Living Really LikeIf you’re unsure what Assisted Living looks like in real life, whether there is a difference with nursing homes or a desire to see how community life unfolds, then this guide is exactly what you need.

A guide to discover the Care Team and a Typical Day in Assisted Living.

NOTE: Your privacy is important to us. We’ll never share your details nor spam your inbox.

Instant Access to Free Cost Comparison guide

You’re probably wondering how much the different senior living options compare to your current situation.
If you do, then this guide is exactly what you need.


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