The question “why do seniors want to stay in their homes?” can frequently be answered with a single important word: familiarity. The option to age in a space that's familiar, comfortable, and filled with meaningful memories is understandably impossible to recreate in a specialized care community.
Most seniors want to stay in their homes as they age. Moving comes with both physical and emotional stress, and many seniors are afraid of leaving behind beloved neighbors and a family home full of memories. Add the fear of the unknown to those concerns and a move to senior living can be downright overwhelming.
Seniors who stay at home tend to live longer than those who live in nursing homes, and studies have confirmed this fact. In addition, those who stay at home tend to be physically and mentally healthier compared to the residents of nursing homes. Home health care also promotes the healing process.
Seniors crave companionship because it makes them feel good and controls their stress levels. Holding conversations with family and friends, or enjoying activities like gardening and hiking with their loved ones, can help seniors reduce their stress levels and lower the risk of depression.
Fortunately, socialization has been shown to be one of the most effective ways for seniors to improve their mental health. According to the American Public Health Association, socialization improves mood, cognition, memory recall, and is associated with healthy behaviors, including exercise.
Older adults are at increased risk for loneliness and social isolation because they are more likely to face factors such as living alone, the loss of family or friends, chronic illness, and hearing loss. Loneliness is the feeling of being alone, regardless of the amount of social contact.
Hawkley points to evidence linking perceived social isolation with adverse health consequences including depression, poor sleep quality, impaired executive function, accelerated cognitive decline, poor cardiovascular function and impaired immunity at every stage of life.
When a person with dementia becomes clingy, they have lost their rational thinking and memory skills until they can no longer understand what's going on around them. The simplest tasks have become impossible, and nothing looks or feels familiar.
Aging at home has significant health benefits.
A 78-year-old that lives an independent and active lifestyle has a life expectancy of 15 years+. If that same individual suffered physical injury or a disorder that required a move to a care facility, their life expectancy could be reduced by 50%-75%.
Globally, living in extended-family households – those that include relatives such as grandchildren, nephews and adult children's spouses – is the most common arrangement for people 60 and older.
Elderly parents who cannot take care of their basic needs such as cleaning, cooking, bathing, walking, or taking their medications at the right time should move into an assisted living facility. Mental, emotional, or cognitive decline can also indicate that your elderly loved one is no longer safe living alone.
Drop in at the Local Senior Center (Virtually or In Person)
Senior centers, also called adult activity centers, are where many seniors go to socialize, take exercise classes, and learn new things. Give the ones in your area a call, or look them up online.
The data also showed that regardless of living arrangements, factors such as low education level, cognitive impairment, fair or poor self-rated health, depression and limitations with daily living activities were all linked to experiencing social disconnection.
personality changes – reduced sensitivity to others' feelings, making people seem cold and unfeeling. lack of social awareness – making inappropriate jokes or showing a lack of tact, though some people may become very withdrawn and apathetic. language problems – difficulty finding the right words or understanding them.
The Significance of Depression Depression, a type of mood disorder, is the most prevalent mental health problem among older adults. It is associated with distress and suffering (4). It also can lead to impairments in physical, mental, and social functioning (4).
Why Do Seniors Seek Attention? We may find it increasingly difficult to support ourselves as we age. We are more likely to feel more vulnerable, which often causes us to require a little extra care from others.
Loss of Independence
Losing physical functions and having to rely on others for daily care is the biggest fear among seniors. According to a 2010 study from the Disabled Living Foundation, more seniors fear losing independence than dying.
Today a person 90 years of age is expected to live on average another 4.6 years (versus 3.2 years in 1929–1931), and those who pass the century mark are projected to live another 2.3 years.
While 'antisocial' denotes preferences against society, or social order, 'asocial' refers to individuals who aren't social.