Low Demand Assisted Living Facilities
Every form of refuge has its price.
~ The Eagles
Aging in Place
I recall years ago giving a talk at one of Portland’s finest and largest assisted Living facilities. Something happened that day and it still sticks with me some 15 years later. It was before my talk, when I got invited to the large spacious dinning room to chat with a few “residents” prior to the session.
At one of the large circular tables sat 3 older men surrounded by a sea of tables crowed with gray haired women. The sex=ratio of longevity in plain sight as the 10:1 gender difference was palpable.
As I was introduced to the gentlemen, I took my seat. They appeared to be content, and excited to engage in conversation. We chatted about retirement, what they did for a living, families, and I finally got around to the thing I wanted most to know. I asked them how they liked it in the LTC facility?
I will never forget as one of the gentleman leaned back, folded his arms across his chest, and happily expressed “We don’t have to cook, we don’t have to clean, we don’t have to do anything…” The others nodded in agreement.
I could hear their dendrites shrinking from across the table! My thoughts went 2 years into the future as their environmental press had been essentially removed from the equation. I feared for them frankly.
Those burdens of Home Ownership
I have always argued for older adults to have some things in their lives that require a response, both physical and mental. Keeping up a home can be daunting–but it can also be neuron/physical-protective. Here is a recent article that reinforces my message and provides further proof. The key is to find the right balance of challenge and stimulation that rewards the home dwellers without overwhelming. And this is a dynamic balance that is on a continuum of change and flux.
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See the Article here:
Can Household Chores Be Considered Brain-Boosting Exercise?
The Study:
A study published in Neurology in 2022 found a link between doing ordinary household chores and a lower risk of dementia.