A few weeks ago, I had the honor and pleasure to join our own Daphne Davis at the Boulevard Park Church in Burien. We arrived with the intention of helping to answer questions from their active group of seniors and their family members.
As we all know, Daphne is truly an “information post” who’s service to families are absolutely free. It is her passion to help seniors and their families take the right individual steps that suit them in moving forward, and she is truly a favorite among our listener audience.
The key points that we all learned from her talk I feel are truly worth sharing here.
- Senior Living Communities are not for everyone. The misnomer that people like Daphne have one agenda to relocate you to a community is absolutely false. Today there are numerous options that seniors have for their aging years. It truly depends on their own individual circumstances, abilities and desires.
- Do you live in a home environment that will support you through the years? Can your home support mobilization challenges? Perhaps there are some modifications in your own home that can be made to accommodate this.
- Is your home too big for your bucket list? This is truly an honest question. Is the maintenance, cost and upkeep of your home keeping you from things you want to do in your life? Do you find yourself being overwhelmed with tasks that you would rather others do for you? Do you have a desire to do things, but living isolated in your home prevents this?
- What is your support system? Is your family accessible to you? Do you have resources to bring people in to care for you if you need it? What is your plan for when you cannot do these tasks for yourself?
- Can you afford Home Care and Outside Services? Does that lawn need mowing when no one is available to help? How can you keep up with roof repairs, maintenance on your property, escalating property taxes, and in-home-care, when/if that time comes?
- What is your social circle? Do you have a circle of friends and family that will keep you active over the long term? If not, living alone and isolated will not be healthy for your aging over the long haul. It can contribute to depression, and escalate symptoms of dementia, and make you a higher fall risk.
Whatever the answers are to this list, it’s important to ask these questions honestly when considering senior living. If you cannot truly answer these questions with full confidence it may be time to make a change. If you can, it’s still a good idea to discuss these questions with your family members.
