How to Ease the Transition

Making the transition into an assisted living community doesn’t need to be difficult or unpleasant for anyone involved. The transition will be much smoother if all of the family members involved in the decision are on the same page from day one, and have committed to working together and staying involved in the loved one’s care. Moving into an assisted living community can be an exciting new chapter in your loved one’s life if they can see it as an opportunity to meet new people and participate in new activities with people in their age range.

If your loved one has a tried and true routine that they like to stick to, make it easy for them to follow it once they have moved into their assisted living community. If they have a book group or knitting club, find out if they can still participate, or see if there are such groups already meeting at the assisted living home. If they love having a cup of tea and reading each night before bed, make sure you set up a reading corner in their new room, and send or deliver new books and boxes of their favorite tea regularly. If your loved one knows they can still participate in their favorite activities, the transition may not be as difficult.

Your loved one will want to be assured that they can stay connected to family even though they will be living in a new place. Make sure they know that there will be regular family visits, phone calls, video chats, and family events that they will still be a part of. If your loved one is able to travel, make plans to have them home for special family events and holidays. Your loved one needs to know that they won’t be cut off from family while living in an assisted living community.

As much as possible, keep your loved one’s living space the same as it was when they were at home. Set up furniture in the same way, and make sure that they have as many of their keepsakes and comfort objects around them as they can. Hang family photos on the walls, and make sure photo albums are nearby and easily accessible. If your loved one likes listening to music, have their stereo set up in the same way that it was in their home. Try to make it as easy as possible for your loved one to get to any of the items they love using in their day to day life.

If your loved one knows when and how often you plan to visit them in their assisted living community, they will know that they’re not alone. Plan your visits in advance so your loved one can look forward to seeing you and other family members. You can even make a special family calendar to hang on the wall that has family photos and lists all of the visits that your loved one can look forward to.

Even when you’re not visiting, you can let your loved one know that they are in your thoughts. Send regular care packages to remind them of your love. You can send meals, flowers, their favorite snacks, and books. Even better, you can send them things from the family, like a painting from their grandchild, and photos of family members. They will love getting these heartfelt reminders to enjoy, even when you are not there.

If you think it’s time to make the transition into an assisted living community in Tucson, Arizona, our caring team of professionals at Arizona Homestead can help. We’re happy to give advice on how to make the transition an easy one. We believe that once you and your loved ones see all of the amenities that Arizona Homestead has to offer, it will be easier to have the discussion with your loved one about next steps. Contact us today and learn more about how we can help your family.