Assisted living is one of the most popular forms of care for seniors because it is based on the idea of allowing seniors to maintain their independence while giving them the support they need and connecting them with people of a similar age. If you are thinking about changing your living situation, there are a few important things you need to understand about moving into an assisted living retirement facility.
Your Independence Is Valued
An assisted living community is not a nursing home. With an assisted living community, you let them know what type of help you need, and they provide it. The level of help and assistance that you need may change over time. If you only need someone to clean your home, then that is all you will ask for and pay for. Or maybe you need assistance with bathing, but you have everything else under control. With an assisted living community, it is your job to let them know what help you need, and they will work to provide you with that help. You are not required to accept help you don't want or need, and you can schedule the assistance to fit around your schedule.
Your Monthly Fee Includes Everything
At most assisted living communities, your monthly fee covers all of your expenses. Your monthly fee pays your rent and utilities. It often covers your cable, and increasingly, your internet fees as well. The fee generally covers things such as laundry service, housekeeping, and transportation, basics that are offered to the community as a whole. If you need special assistance, that is included in the fee too. Although the monthly fee may seem a little high, it should be rather encompassing, and you shouldn't have very many bills other than healthcare and maybe groceries outside of the fee.
You Get Your Own Space
There are a variety of different assisted living facility set-ups. In some, you have your own small home in a neighborhood where everything is taken care of for you and care staff is on-hand to assist with necessary needs. In some cases, you have an apartment in a building that is dedicated to assisted living care. Or you may have a little suite if you choose an assisted living facility that cooks and provides food for you.
No matter what type of assisted living community you choose, you will get your own space. You will still have your own bedroom and living room, and you may even have your own kitchen, depending on the set-up. You will not have to reduce your belongings down to a bedroom or have roommates. You'll have your own private space, as well as community spaces where you can connect with others.
If you value your independence and space, but you want a little help with certain tasks, and you want to be around people who are around the same age as you, an assisted living retirement community may be the right place for you.
