Ingrid and Ilona With the population aging and so many seniors making up a part of this, it is important to pay attention to their lifestyle. This is a category that I myself fit into. At first, I found it challenging to adjust to the senior years. I realized that this was not just a problem I was facing, but one that many others did as well. There were many concerns some of my friends were growing increasingly concerned about, such as where could they access an assisted living finder or senior care service should they need one. These were concerns that I was also started to have as I got further into my senior years. What I noticed was that those seniors who did not adjust well ended up with more health issues.
Planning My Senior Years
During my working years, I often dreamed of what I would do once I retired and had become a senior. I might have also stumbled upon the thought of taking help of Home Senior Care in Ft. Lauderdale or elsewhere if need be. But now that I had the opportunity to turn these into a reality, I wasn’t sure where to begin. I knew I needed a plan. However, at times, I get confused about my plans. One of my friends suggested that I should try living in retirement communities in Utah or elsewhere so that I can find like-minded people and not get bored being all alone at home. I’m still a bit skeptical about doing this though. Anyway, I’ve decided to include what activities I wanted to participate in, how much time I was going to devote to them, as well as the cost.
The First Step
My first step was to really think about the activities that I wanted to be involved in. I knew that lots of assisted living communities have activities and exercise classes available for residents to take part in, but I knew I was going to be staying put at home. I also knew that getting up in years meant it would not be wise for me to attempt some of the activities I enjoyed in my younger years. But, what was exciting was the thought of trying something new. I wanted to be diversified in what I chose. Meaning I wanted some activities that I was not only interested in but ones that would help me to stay in good physical and mental shape. These are the ones I chose and why.
- Bowling: I decided to join a bowling league although I had not done much bowling in the past. For me, this was a good choice because I could opt for five-pin which is something I could easily handle weight wise and it would give me some good physical activity. Another reason for this choice is that it was an ideal way to socialize. It gave me a reason to get out of the house and a wonderful opportunity to meet new friends.
- Bike Riding: I have always been an active person and I saw no reason why I could not continue to be. My health overall was good. At the same time I knew that my body would not heal as fast should I be unfortunate enough to experience some type of injury.
I have always enjoyed bike riding so I had the experience necessary for this activity. Now as a senior I had more time to enjoy this and felt that it would be great but not too strenuous exercise.
- Cooking Classes: Another activity I took up was joining some cooking classes. I have always been a decent cook but I wanted to learn more about cooking for seniors. I knew my eating habits would be changing and I wanted to be prepared for this.
- Crafts: Then I decided to take up some crafts. These I felt would be good for mental stimulation. I also planned on playing some word games on the internet for further mental stimulation.
The Time
While I was very excited at compiling the list of activities that I was going to be involved in I knew I had to be cautious. I didn’t want to take on so much that I would end up finding them to be a burden or too tiring. To avoid this I planned on taking on these activities in sequences.
When the bowling season ended then I signed up for my cooking classes. Then in between these, I enjoyed the crafts that I had become involved in. I allotted three days a week for bike riding when the weather permitted.
The Finances
I had planned well financially for my retirement years. I had always been a person who was able to stick to a budget. I applied this knowledge to my financial planning for this time of my life.
Travel
I have never had a lot of time for traveling so part of my senior plan included a trip once a year. It wasn’t anything too extravagant. Most of the traveling I wanted to do was within my home country which is the United States. However, I did have a desire to visit England and this was added to my planning list for two years down the road. I wanted to do this in my early senior years while I was still in good health.
