11 Tips For Discussing Assisted Living With Your Parents

Is your mom or dad getting on in years? Could they use some help – possibly more than you can provide? Is it time to consider a care facility or retirement community? That would, of course, mean moving out of the home they have come to know and love. This is not going to be a 60-second conversation. You have to let them know in some way that they can get more out of life and live safer – but they may not want to hear it.

When it comes to discussing assisted living with your parents, it's seldom something people look forward to. We’re going to provide a few pointers for not only getting ready for a conversation such as this but for the best way to go about it as well.

Conversation Preparation

Make sure you're prepared before you initiate a conversation involving your aging parent moving to assisted living. Do your homework. Here are some means of preparation:

• Educate yourself as to how important it is for retirees to live in a particular situation (how it affects longevity, mental health, physical safety, etc.).
• Learn as much as you can about assisted living and other care options for retirees. There are supervised independent living communities, assisted living programs, and even memory care programs for those with conditions like Alzheimer's or dementia.
• Write down all of the concerns you have regarding the current living situation of your aging parent so they can see, from your point of view, some of the problems they may not even notice.

Carrying Out The Conversation

You will be more confident during this talk if you've educated yourself as much as possible, as suggested above. To have a productive conversation, follow some of these tips:

• Always keep in mind that, ultimately, it is the decision of your parents (in most cases).
• Schedule a retirement community tour.
• Because this isn't a fast chat, plan on discussing the topic more than once.
• Don't hurry.
• Rather than displaying sympathy, practice empathy.
• Listen, listen, and then listen some more.
• Whenever possible, speak in person, face-to-face.
• Don't wait. As soon as possible, start bringing up the topic and having meaningful conversations about it.

One important aspect of your discussion needs to be to avoid overloading your parents with too much information. It's just too much to process. This is another reason why it could take more than one conversation to get through everything you need to discuss.

Discuss Assisted Living at Discovery Village At Palm Beach Gardens With Your Loved One

When residing at Discovery Village At Palm Beach Gardens, our care team will be happy to assist your aging loved ones to make sure they take their medication as directed, help them with daily activities – and so much more. We offer both supervised independent living and senior assisted living in spacious, desirable apartments. We also are proud to provide SHINE® Memory Care for those affected by conditions like dementia and Alzheimer's.

Our retirement community offers a salon, fine dining, club rooms, and a theater – but that barely brushes the surface. To learn more about our retirement age living programs, please call us at 561-316-4626 to speak to a representative about sales and/or leasing. Any other questions can be directed to 561-801-7301. You can also use our convenient online form to contact us.

Better yet, see for yourself all we have to offer by scheduling a tour.