According to the American Health Care Association, over 800,000 adults currently reside in assisted living communities. With the rapidly growing population of adults over the age of 65, that number is expected to increase dramatically in the coming years.
So, how do you know if assisted living is the right choice for you or someone you love? While you’ll know it’s time for extra assistance when you or a loved one can no longer live safely or comfortably at home without help, it can be difficult to gauge when it’s time to make the decision. In fact, many people wait until it’s too late before searching for assisted living options.
At Peaceful Pines Senior Living, our assisted living communities are here to help your family enjoy peace of mind and discover a new, exciting lifestyle. Here are three signs that can help you determine whether or not assisted living is the right choice for you or your family.
1. Needing Support with Daily Tasks
A 2017 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that almost 9% of adults aged 75 to 84 need some form of personal care assistance, specifically when it comes to Activities of Daily Living. If you’ve looked into some form of senior living in the past, you’ve probably seen this term used before – but what does it mean?
Activities of Daily Living or ADLs are the routine and essential tasks a person must complete in order to live a high quality of life. If a person becomes unable to accomplish these tasks, it can lead to unsafe living conditions and a decline in self-care, which can be detrimental to their physical and mental wellness.
If you’ve noticed an inability, either in yourself or someone you love, to complete these tasks, it might be time to consider assisted living for additional support.
2. Challenges with Maintaining the Home
While chores and household maintenance tasks aren’t necessarily anybody’s idea of a good time, it’s essential to keep up your home in order to safely navigate one’s living space and maintain the value of the house.
However, home maintenance tasks go beyond routine, everyday chores like doing laundry, sweeping or mopping the floors, cleaning the kitchen, or discarding trash. Home maintenance also includes complex tasks, such as:
- Exterior Repairs (roofing, siding, windows, etc.)
- Electrical and Plumbing
- Landscaping (mowing the lawn, clearing sidewalks and driveways, leaf removal, etc.)
Not only are these tasks incredibly taxing, but they can be complex and lead to potential safety hazards. Many of these maintenance tasks include climbing ladders, going up and down staircases, and spending hours outdoors, which could lead to various accidents or falls.
If you or someone you love is facing challenges or is unable to complete these tasks, assisted living could provide them with a maintenance-free lifestyle so they no longer have to worry about the potential risks of keeping up their home.
3. Lack of Social Connections
According to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, over one-fourth of adults over the age of 65 are considered to be socially isolated. Social isolation occurs when an individual experiences deep feelings of loneliness or has a lack of social connections in their life. Remember, even if a person doesn’t live alone, they can still experience feelings of loneliness.
Social isolation has become an epidemic for many older adults due to specific factors that are more likely to affect their age group, such as:
- Loss of friends and family
- Health conditions
- Living at a distance from loved ones
If your loved one has begun to feel lonely or lacks a social group to spend time with, assisted living can provide the much-needed social outlet they deserve. Assisted living communities offer engaging activities and fulfilling events that create a close-knit sense of community amongst residents and increase their social wellness.
At Peaceful Pines Senior Living, our goal across our communities is to embrace the needs of residents beyond our buildings and grounds through attention to detail, respect, and compassion. We invite you to contact Peaceful Pines today to learn more about our senior living communities, care, and services.
