If you have read this blog before, you know all about the myriad ways that assisted living facilities can improve the lives of elderly Americans by facilitating safe social activities and providing a place to live that will help them with their daily necessities. Memory care facilities that care for those with conditions like dementia and Alzheimer’s can be one of the only ways to take care of your elderly parent or family member without dedicating a large amount of your time and effort to the task. Still, the choice to place your parents in these communities can be hard and emotional, and the transition from a life of independence can be a challenging change of pace. If you have made the decision to place your loved one in an assisted living facility, help make the process as smooth as possible by working ahead of time and preparing for the move.
Best Ways To Make Your Loved One’s Moving Day Into A Stress-Free Occasion
The process of leaving your home, possibly leaving your friends and family, and moving into an assisted living or memory care facility can be hard enough without the added stress that moving can take on a person. Get involved and use these tips to ensure they can focus on caring for themselves during this difficult time.
Help Them Decide What To Bring
Moving into an assisted living facility will probably bring with it downsizing, but this doesn’t have to be a bad thing. If your loved one has grown old in the same house for decades, the amount of unneeded clutter will be tremendous. Not only can downsizing help free them from some previously unbeknown mental stress, but it can also help locate cherished mementos and keepsakes from the past that were lost over time. Inquiring or visiting your family member’s room at the facility can be an excellent way to gauge the space and storage restrictions they will be faced with. Nothing is more stressful than trying to move into a new place and realizing last minute that the furniture you planned to use won’t fit through the doorway. Help them work through any issues they have regarding leaving behind certain furniture or items. You can opt to store things in a separate storage container for later, but it is often better when downsizing only to bring essential items and start fresh by donating or selling unneeded items.
Pack And Plan Early
Moving Day should be reserved for moving the boxes and furniture, not finalizing the packing itself. Instead of stressing out your loved one by arriving late, forgetting to finish the packing, or trying to finish last minute, go through sorting and choosing which items to bring well in advance. Any needed changes, such as a request by your loved one for a specific item, can be much easier accommodated if you are not otherwise busy packing other things.
Create an Inviting Space
Our assisted living facility is designed to allow a lot of freedom in how you develop the room with furnishings from your loved one’s previous house. Help them adjust to the move by creating an inviting space full of familiar furniture, rugs, bedding, pillows, and more. Don’t forget the small items; adding finishing touches like family photos or sentimental knick-knacks can immediately create a sense of familiarity.
Making moving Day as stress-free as possible is a great first step, but more work is likely needed to help your loved one feel safe and secure in their new home. Following the move, plan to visit before too long to gauge how they feel about their new home.
Assisted living facilities can provide a safe and nurturing residence to seniors who can no longer stay alone in their own homes. A Banyan Residence is an assisted living and memory care center located in Venice, Florida. Call us today for a private tour and consultation.
