Assisted Living

ASSISTED LIVING

Reading a recent post in Our Echo about senior living provided the impetus I needed to write a sequel to my earlier post about life in a nursing home. At the conclusion of that article I commented that it was likely that I would be moving to another area in the building where there are facilities for assisted living. Having improved in health while in the nursing home, I was able to do that; and I happily found my situation here to be quite an improvement. I am not criticizing the health care section which is a good place to be when it’s needed, but my apartment here is spacious compared to the one room which I shared with a roommate when I first entered this health/retirement community.

Apartments in this area are private, and residents furnish them with their own furniture. The management arranges for the moving to be done, and maintenance people assist in various ways such as hanging pictures or adding new towel racks. My space looks homey, and from my windows I can see an attractive landscaped area.

There are different levels of care, with some residents requiring very little while others need help with such things as being escorted to the dining room or assisted with personal care. All meals are furnished. Most of the residents go to the dining room, but meals can be brought to the individuals’ rooms if needed or requested. Every resident has some kind of support for walking or other movement, ranging from canes to deluxe electrical wheel chairs. Physical and occupational therapies are available, and there is a well-equipped exercise room. Entertainment and activities of various kinds are provided. Speakers from local churches present weekly chapel services.

This sounds like “the livin’ is easy”. Yes, it is, as the work is done by employed people and help is here for the asking. But living here is the result of accepting changes, necessitated by the losses which come with the aging process, and adapting to new situations.. Residents have had to accept changes which they may not have wanted to make. Leaving behind one’s home and independence and accepting a new lifestyle takes some doing. As pointed out in an earlier article, living in a care facility is very costly financially.

However, the elderly are very fortunate in having care available when it is needed. We can be thankful that we have not been put out in a forest in the winter to spend our last days. In general, the residents seem cheerful and content and appreciative of what is done for them here. An added benefit to family members is the confidence that their elderly relatives are in good hands. What more could be asked for?

Story ID:	4071
Written by:	Wanda Molsberry Bates (bio, contact, other stories)
Story type:	Musings, Essays and Such
Location:	Manhattan KS USA
Year:	2008