November 15, 2022
For most Americans, living at home for as long as possible is synonymous with healthy aging.
While fighting chronic health conditions, loneliness and memory loss, many senior citizens and their families attempt to remain at home as long as they can. Being at home more often can lead to unhealthy and isolated living conditions, which are not conducive to healthy aging.
Instead, imagine thriving at an independent living community where you are free to do what you want.
In a senior living community, you can make new friends, try new things and keep yourself healthy! Communities that cater to seniors offer a wide range of benefits and a lifestyle that maintains a focus on wellness. Additionally, communities are generally more affordable than living at home … not to mention the benefits of family involvement in senior living, which often means fun family gatherings!
If you’re looking for more reasons to ponder a move to senior living, read on to learn about some of the ways that communities can strengthen seniors’ engagement with their families. We’ll also cover three major benefits to senior living that you may not have considered.
How Communities Can Help Encourage Family Closeness
Many people are unaware of just how important family engagement is for residents’ health and well-being. The truth is that residents’ mental and physical health is strongly influenced by their family ties. It is important for residents to have the ability to keep in touch with family members, whether it’s playing games, visiting, talking or whatever traditions you might keep.
Families can generally expect better care outcomes for their loved one when they’re able to stay in touch. This often eases family concerns about their loved ones’ health and helps to reduce caregiver stress.
Senior living communities can help the friends and families of their residents to stay connected. Some of those ways include offering easy channels of communication, wifi services included in utilities, spacious dining areas for family visits and more.
Three Benefits to Senior Living Community Involvement.
The following three perks of senior living community involvement offer a social counterpart to the ways that families that can stay involved.
Active Days
The services offered by senior living communities go beyond medical care and daily assistance. As a resident-driven community, The Admiral at the Lake offer those who live there exciting and busy days where you can join a committee, take part in creative activities and explore Chicago’s North Side to your heart’s content. A senior living community can often arrange for classes at a nearby college or university, classes in a foreign language or trips to nearby attractions.
You can take cooking classes, join gardening groups, or join community leadership programs to make a difference in your community. A resident can join a yoga class, a birdwatching club and even give back to the community by volunteering. Community engagement means there’s always something to do or somewhere to go if you choose to do so. Resident engagement means that you can always find something just for you.
Friendship
Seniors often suffer from social isolation. Researchers have shown that loneliness can make seniors more depressed and cause dementia to progress faster. The feeling of loneliness is potentially harmful to seniors’ mental health. But in a senior living community, you never feel lonely. Just steps away from friendly neighbors, residents have a chance to build a support system.
Having friends and relationships with people can help you feel less lonely and depressed. It’s also fun to try new things with new friends. Residents who practice healthy socialization get out of their apartments and engage in meaningful conversations within their senior community, which fosters connections and supports a healthy mind.
Less Responsibility
Last but not least, residents of senior living communities have fewer responsibilities at home. Residents are free to pursue a life that is full of activities they love without having to lift a finger to shovel the sidewalk or mow the yard. In senior living communities like The Admiral at the Lake, residents benefit from housekeeping, restaurant-style dining, swimming facilities, an art studio and much more. Maintenance services are tailored to allow them to pursue hobbies and other leisure activities.
Senior living communities provide the opportunity for engagement and socialization and an active and fulfilling lifestyle for healthy aging.
Discover What City Life at the Lake Can Be for You
We at The Admiral at the Lake offer comfortable and elevated senior living on Chicago’s lakefront. Our Life Plan Community offers Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Support, Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation. Come visit us on the lakefront and see what our community offers or request a brochure.