Transitioning Into Assisted Living

| Thursday, May 22, 2014
By Rue Nichols


If you have decided to move into an assisted living community, you might be wondering how to make this move as easy and stress-free as possible. As with any move, this can be a stressful transition, but here are a few ways to make the move a little bit easier.

What normally happens is that you move from your private home into an apartment that is smaller. Apartments may typically measure from 400 square feet to about 800 square feet or more, depending of course on the number of bedrooms. Therefore expect all of your things not to fit. Although leaving some of your things may make you sad, know that dealing with less could be easier if you want to be organized. While you must downsize, you can certainly bring some of your most treasured items along for the move.

For instance, you might have boxes of family photographs and certainly no one wants to leave these behind. However, you can have all of your photographs digitally scanned and stored on flash drives. Of course you can also decorate your walls with family photos, and this takes up little actual room in your new apartment, but brings a great deal of cheer.

True that when it's time to give away or sell items it can be easier to give up impersonal items like towels or cookware but can be quite tough to let go of items with personal memories attached. Items like one's favorite books, a comfortable blanket or a favorite chair may be some of those that make us feel truly at home. If so, bring these items with you and forget about the remaining stuff. It may be tough to surrender items however note that life is not about possessions but all about experiences. When you find yourself still battling the idea of letting go of items whether through selling or donating, put them in storage for a while. This gives you time to think about your decision and renting a storage unit generally is a fairly reasonable expense.

The new assisted living community you are moving in will usher in new people indeed but it still is good to choose an apartment where family and friends can be close by. It could enable you to continue with the "usual" attendance at your local church, club meetings and even meet-ups with family and friends. To feel that your loved ones are nearby makes any transition easier especially the first few weeks being crucial, just until you can be comfortable in your new place.

Try to focus on the positive aspects of assisted living. You won't have to spend time dealing with daily chores, you don't have to cook your own meals and there are staff members around to help with tasks such as dressing, grooming, bathing, laundry and housekeeping. In addition, there's always something to do so you can be as busy or as relaxed as you wish. Consider contacting Care Placement today and get started on your search for an ideal assisted living community for you.




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