When you begin to plan for the future, it does not have to be all doom and gloom. Getting older is not all negative as it is sometimes portrayed. Getting older is a fact of life and how you deal with it, mentally and physically, will determine how and if you enjoy it. You can still get the most out of your older years especially if you start looking and planning ahead now. One of the main things you need to be looking at is future accommodation. When you think about older age accommodation you may just be thinking about care or residential homes, but there are other options. One popular option is assisted living. When you look at assisted living, you are looking at keeping your independence, but just getting a little extra help as well.
Assisted Living versus Residential Homes
Assisted living often gets mixed up with the services that care homes and residential homes provide, but it is important to clarify early on that they are not the same. Assisted living focuses on helping older adults manage and assist without intruding and taking over. Within assisted living, individuals have their own living accommodation which is totally private. Assisted living is beneficial to adults who would like help with daily tasks and chores including assistance with handling and taking medication. A major benefit of assisted living is that you can still enjoy doing what you love when you want to. When you are in a residential home, or a care home, you will have your own bedroom and possibly your own bathroom but you will not have your own separate unit to live in. Meals will most likely be prepared and served to you in a communal area, and you will most likely have a communal area to watch TV/seek entertainment. Within residential or care home settings your movement is more restricted and you will find it a lot more difficult to just come and go as you please. You are more likely to have people visiting you rather than visiting them when you are in a residential home.
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Deciding When To Make The Move
You will know when you are ready to move and it is always best if you can make and take the decision for yourself. Friends and family may be good at choosing somewhere for you to live, but while you can why not secure somewhere that you like and that you know you will be happy in? The right time to make the move is when you feel like you need that bit of extra help and support, but you do not want to give up your self-independence yet. There sometimes will not be a right time, but there may be events leading up to moving that you may experience such as missing or forgetting to take medication or struggling to wash and get dressed unaided.
What You Should Be Looking At
There are lots of considerations to factor in when looking at assisted living and two of these are size and the facilities on offer. How big is the complex, village, or building that you are looking at? Do you prefer smaller more quaint villages and complexes, or would you prefer something a bit larger that offers more and ensures you are kept busy and entertained (when you want to be). In relation to size it is always wise to look at what facilities are on offer. The bigger the complex or village the more they usually have going on, and the more assistance you can look to receive when required. Of course, in addition to these two key areas of consideration you will also want to think about cost. Cost of assisted living is a big factor that you need to consider. Although cost alone should not form the basis of any decision you make, it should be factored into your decision-making process to ensure that you can afford the care and the setting that you wish both now and a few years down the line too.
Where You Should Be Looking
The location is very important. What you want and what you get from a new location is important. You have to be happy and content in your new surroundings, and you have to ensure that you are getting the right location for now and in the future too. For example, there are assisted living in Houston Texas complexes which are really special, and which have that lovely wholesome and welcoming community feel about them. Is a welcoming feel important to you? Is there a state you have always wanted to live in? To further aid your search you may want to start thinking about where family and friends are located. It is important to remember that you can choose where you want to live and if that is in Texas then that is where you should be. If family want you to be close, but you want to head out of town then you have to think about what you want. Ultimately you are making the move for you and you only. Family are of course important, but you should not base your decision solely on what they want you to do as this will ultimately leave you feeling low and unsatisfied, especially if you have had to compromise to keep others happy.
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Financing Assisted Living
When it comes to financing your move, it is best to plan ahead as much as you can. Good care costs money and care-costs appear to be rising in line with other costs. Any home or house move costs money and the earlier you start planning the easier it will be. There are options for financing assisted living which you may want to consider, from selling your home to cashing out investments and annuities there are ways you can fund a new life and lifestyle. As everyone’s circumstances are different and you do not know how long you will need to pay for assisted living for it is always wise to seek professional advice and guidance at your earliest opportunity to ensure you can positively move forward with your life.
