How to Talk to Your Parents About Moving to Senior Living
As your parents age, it becomes increasingly necessary to discuss their future plans with them. Part of this discussion will undoubtedly include conversations about whether or not your parents will be moving to an independent senior living community or will continue to reside in the family home as their care needs change. However, these conversations can sometimes be difficult to initiate. With that in mind, here are some starting topics for these necessary discussions.
Discuss Future Plans
To begin, ask your parents about what they want for their future. Have your parents accounted for the costs of outside help to assist them with daily care needs and home maintenance tasks if they stay at home? Do they understand the benefits that an independent living community can offer them? What if one of them were to pass away and leave the other with primary care of the home? Ensure that they have thought through these scenarios and are planning accordingly.
Address Concerns About Senior Living
Some older adults may have concerns about the idea of “senior living” communities. Perhaps they think they are still too young to benefit from one, or that there isn’t one that’s right for their lifestyle. However, you can do your part to assuage these concerns by listening to your loved ones and exploring senior living communities together. If they have friends or other relatives at a community, tell them to reach out and ask for their loved one’s impressions of their new home. Many older adults say that they wished they had chosen community life sooner.
Consider Touring a Community
One of the best ways to continue discussions about moving to senior living is to take a tour of a prospective community. Hearing from current residents of a community can also be a helpful way to learn more about a community. Talking to current members of the community on a tour can be helpful. Interviews with current residents can also provide a behind the scenes look into day-to-day life.
Highlight Benefits of Senior Independent Living
It’s important to highlight all of the benefits of moving to an independent senior living community. Moving to an independent living community can help individuals reach their health goals, provide new socialization opportunities and give older adults more options to explore their passions.
While there are many details to consider before moving your parents to a senior living community, a distinctive community like Edgemere offers vibrancy and the opportunity for an enriching life at any age.
Explore Independent Living Options at Edgemere
It’s understandable to have many questions when talking to your parents about moving to independent living. To get help finding answers to those questions, we invite you to contact our team to learn more about life at Edgemere. If you or your loved ones would like to experience our Dallas neighborhood for yourselves, you can also schedule a tour. We’d love to host you for a day.