Your loved one’s move to an assisted living community is likely to be one of the most monumental adjustments they make in their mature years. However, making the transition from living in your own home to a brand new community would be intimidating for anyone. While you and your loved one may share some of the natural anxieties that come with this big move, you can follow these tips to make your loved one’s move to assisted living so much easier!

Choose the Retirement Community Well

Research is everything when your loved one is moving to an assisted living neighborhood. The earlier you research, the more well-prepared you can be in the case of an immediate need for your loved one to move. Most assisted living communities offer tours to interested families, which is a great opportunity for you to make the most out of. Every retirement community varies from the team member-resident ratio to the pricing models, so you should make sure to tour multiple options in your area. You can take advantage of your tour to get a realistic, close-up view of what life in a certain retirement community is like, and to ask the team members you meet as many questions as you want. After you and your loved one have already decided on a specific community, you could also opt to squeeze in another tour to visit the community and become more familiar with it if you have some time before the big move.

Pack Efficiently

Packing well goes a long way in smoothening out your loved one’s transition to assisted living. It never hurts to pack early, because packing for the move to assisted living can be surprisingly time-consuming. Packing early allows you the capacity to be more organized and pack in a step-by-step manner, making the process less intimidating overall. Furthermore, it gives your loved one more time to emotionally prepare for their move. We recommend prioritizing the most important items first and working your way down from there.

Tie Up Any Logistical Ends

Due to the scale of your loved one’s transition to assisted living, it can be easy to let logistical matters slip away from your memory. However, tying up these loose ends will provide not only your loved one but yourself more ease in the long term. Create a list of ongoing services your loved one won’t need anymore to cancel such as cable and internet, making sure that you don’t waste funds that can be directed towards bettering your loved one’s assisted living experience.

Be Emotionally Present

This transitional period can be an emotional time for your loved one, and acting as a pillar of support can help your loved one feel more at ease knowing that you have their back. Being receptive to your loved one’s opinions, including their worries and fears, will make it easier to communicate with them even after their move into the community.