How Do You Know When It’s Time for a Care Home?
If you are an older Californian or older American, you may be wondering whether or not the time has arrived for transitioning into some type of care home environment. The same process can also occur when adult children have an aging parent. There are a number of signs that the time may have arrived for an aging individual to consider the possibility of transitioning to some type of care home setting like an assisted living community. The primary signs to consider when it comes to the questioning of moving to a care home are:
- Nutrition is declining
- Transportation limitations
- Housekeeping is deteriorating
- Plants and pets not well attended
- Social connections are declining
- Physical health issues
- Emotional and mental health issues
- Problems tending to basic tasks
- Family members suggest a move might be wise
We address each of these signs in turn to provide you some guidance.
Nutrition Is Declining
A frequently occurring sign that an individual may be in need of some type of care home assistance is found in the form of declining nutrition. With regularity, older people become less interested in or less capable of making healthy meals on a consistent basis. A variety of reasons exist for this turn of events. A key element of life in an assisted living community is the provision of healthy meals every day.
Transportation Limitations
Many older Californians and Americans from elsewhere across the country lack the ability to drive. There are others who are continuing to drive when they cannot safely do so. Transportation limitations are signs that an individual may want to consider some type of assisted living. Assisted living communities provide transportation assistance for their residents.
Housekeeping Is Deteriorating
A sign that time has arrived for transition to an assisted care setting is a deterioration in a person’s housekeeping efforts. When a residence is not as well tended to as it had been earlier in a person’s life, that is indicative that an individual is not as capable with housekeeping as is necessary to maintain a proper home.
Plants and Pets Not Well Attended
If you are like many people heading into their Golden Years, share your home with plants and pets. As you grow older, you may find yourself less capable of properly taking care of your plants and pets. This can be indicative of the fact that the time has arrived to consider a care home. (Some assisted living communities do permit residents to bring a pet along.)
Social Connections Are Declining
Yet another indicator that the time has arrived to consider moving into a care home, including an assisted living community, is when an older person’s social connections are declining. When older people begin to socialize less and spend more time alone, that can be an indicator that assisted living might be a wise idea.
Physical Health Issues
A typical indicator that a care home may be a good place for an older person to live involves the state of such an individual’s health. Over time and as people age, they begin to experience more physical health issues, conditions, and problems. Some physical health issues can arise to the level that a person may need the level of help available in a nursing home. In other situations, the more limited services of an assisted living community can be suitable. A primary care physician can provide vital guidance as to the level of assisted living that may be necessary when an individual is dealing with some type of medical issue.
Emotional and Mental Health Issues
In some instances, an older person begins to experience emotional and mental health issues that arise out of living alone as the age. When issues like depression and anxiety become issues, the time may have arrived for an individual to consider transitioning to some type of care center.
Problems Tending to Basis Tasks
A very significant sign that you may want to consider a move to an assisted living community or some other type of care setting is if you find yourself having problems with dealing with basic tasks of day to day living. This includes such day to day activities like:
- Dressing
- Grooming
- Bathing
- Making meals
- Cleaning the house
- Driving
- Medication management
- Taking care of pets
Family Members Suggest a Move Might Be Wise
Finally, a sign that you should consider moving to some type of care home setting is when family members suggest that such a move might be wise. Of course, you do need to process that information closely. You need to consider this type of suggestion when it comes from a family you trust and who has provided you with reliable advice in the past.
The reality is that many individuals will show more than one of these signs. Multiple signs become indicative of the possible need for an individual to move to an assisted living community.