Beyond food, clothing, shelter, financial support, emotional support, and on and on the list goes, your parents gave you one amazing and priceless thing: life! Although you’ll always be their child, now that you’re an adult yourself, it’s time to give back to your parents. That might mean treating them to dinner, helping them run errands and attend doctor appointments, or supporting them as they transition to an assisted living facility. We’re here to help with that last point. If you need to know how to help parents transition to assisted living, please scroll down. We have a variety of helpful tips to share with you.
After decades of living in their own home, it might be difficult for your parents to relinquish full control of their life and embrace the changes that come with assisted living. We recommend the following tips:
- Visit and keep in touch. Your parents might feel isolated and uncomfortable at the start, so it’s important that you maintain contact and help them feel loved. Visit when you can, perhaps once or twice a week. If you’re too busy to stop by, give them a call and ask how their day is going. This will help you determine how they’re faring at the facility, and help them feel supported during this transitional period.
- Don’t hover. Although we do recommend keeping in touch, don’t visit or call everyday. Your parents need to feel independent and confident, and if they spend all their time with visiting family and friends, they might struggle to make new friends amongst the retirement community. Give them space and encourage them to attend social activities and events.
- Bring their home to them. Your parents’ new living space might feel barren and bleak at first. If you want them to embrace the assisted living facility as their new home, make it feel like home by bringing some personal items along. Help your parents decide which photos, decor, and knickknacks are worthy of the trip. And before you leave on the first day, help them decorate the room so that it feels homey and comfortable.
- Bring a housewarming gift. To help make the occasion feel more like a celebration, consider bringing a small gift. You could give them a basket with their favorite snacks and beverages, to ensure that they have something yummy to eat that first week, framed photos to remind them of happy memories, or a radio/stereo so that they can play some of their favorite songs. This should help calm their anxieties and make the day feel more festive and fun.
Don’t feel guilty when you say goodbye to your parents on that first day. There are new friends to be made, new events to attend, and a new chapter to start. This is an exciting change that should leave your parents feeling happier, healthier, and reinvigorated.
Good luck!
If you’re looking for a senior living facility in the Midwest, be sure to check out Hearthside Senior Living Place. Our eight senior living facilities are located in Missouri, Arkansas, and Tennessee. If you would like to take a tour of one of our facilities, please click here.