How to Determine if You Are Ready to Move to an Assisted Living Facility
Choosing to put yourself into an assisted living facility may come after the death of a spouse, if you need help remembering to take your medication, if you need help cooking or cleaning, or if you are at risk of falling in your own home. Knowing how to determine if you are ready to move to an assisted living facility, though, can be a challenging question for most. You need to decide for yourself it the move is right for you.
Steps
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1Ask yourself if you are feeling isolated or depressed. Many of your friends may have moved or passed away, and assisted living facilities can offer you group activities and social interaction.Ad -
2Determine if you have any fears living alone. Are you scared that you might fall and not have one to help you? Do you have difficulty getting in and out of the tub or onto the toilet? Are you afraid at night that a stranger may come to the door? Any of these concerns can be addressed by choosing to live in an assisted living facility. -
3Think about moving into an assisted living facility if your spouse needs more care than you can give him or her by yourself. -
4Be honest with yourself whether or not you have any issues with memory loss. Memory loss can mean forgotten medication, stovetop left on, or becoming disoriented when you are out of the home. All of these can be dangerous, but if you lived in an assisted living facility, you would have care and needed supervision. -
5Realize that you can transition facilities as your needs change. You may choose an independent retirement community at the start, but you can move over to an assisted living facility or nursing home if you have any health complications. -
6Consider assisted living if you are no longer able to drive for yourself. Many facilities can give you a ride to and from public locations as needed as part of your payment rate. -
7Think about assisted living if everyday chores become difficult for you. If you can no longer mow or maintain the yard, if cleaning or housework is hard or painful for you to accomplish, or if shopping is difficult for you to do, these all may be signs that you are ready for assisted living. -
8Ask yourself if you have made poor financial decisions lately. Have you fallen victim to a scam? Are you having a hard time balancing your checkbook? -
9Determine if your health or hygiene is suffering. Living by yourself can lead to skipping meals because you do not want to cook for just one person and/or not feeling like bathing, showering, shaving or other general hygiene tasks.
