Tag Archives: community

Happy New Year. I hope you were able to enjoy time with family over the holiday season.

Once the holidays are over, our elder loved ones may miss the social interaction and companionship. I know my mother deeply missed the daily companionship of my father after he moved into the memory care center and then died a year later. There was an active senior community center where she lived, but my mother refused to go, saying she didn’t want to be around “old people.”

Home Care Matters had good tips on helping elders connect with community in their newsletter. They also offered additional tips about keeping elders engaged during the winter months when it may be difficult to leave the house for socializing. Some churches offer transportation service for those who need assistance to and from services. Volunteer work is another great way to connect with the community. How one socializes and stays engaged with their community may take some creativity on the part of family, but the mental, emotional, and health benefits are well worth it. You’ve likely seen the reports about the health consequences of the loneliness epidemic, including an increased risk of dementia.

What about our elder loved ones who are introverted or don’t enjoy the typical senior community center activities? As an introvert myself, I’m not a big fan of in-person group activities, but I found that I do enjoy online activities like virtual book clubs. An online women’s healing circle has been beneficial in supporting my emotional wellbeing during the pandemic. I also enjoyed an in-person knitting group I attended last year a couple of times and may return to that in the future. For me, the key is to use my hobbies and interests to find communities where we share a common interest.

What about those who are resistant like my mom? Sometimes, you have to let your loved ones follow their own way. For example, my mother used errands to socialize with everyone from the bank manager to the Mexican restaurant server to the shuttle driver. I appreciate those people who took extra time to interact with my mother. They probably don’t realize how much of a positive difference they made in my mother’s life.

Image created by Google Gemini.