Are you someone who loves enjoying life while making new friends and exploring new opportunities? Do you wish to enhance your social circle in your golden years?
Social isolation increases the risk of various cognitive declines as we grow older; therefore, fostering social circles and friendships in your golden years is essential. Socialization helps improve memory and reduces the risk of cognitive decline. However, you cannot expect to make new friends or meet new people unless you go out.
But when accomplishing all household chores, like doing dishes, laundry, or mowing lawns, takes up much of your time, how can you expect to go out and socialize? In such a scenario, independent living brings relief by providing you with ample opportunities to socialize and participate in various community programs.
Independent living communities are designed for older individuals to help them live independently while getting assistance for the activities they need. This includes doing all household chores, meal preparation, socialization, making new friends, and so on. The independent living apartments are structured in a way that helps older individuals live their lives carefree and enjoy their golden years to a fuller extent.
In this post, we are going to take a look at how independent living communities help older individuals build up their social circle. We will provide you with some tips on developing your social circle if you have recently moved to an independent community living.
These tips will help you rise to expectations so that you don’t have to look elsewhere to make new friends in your new community.
So, sit back and read on!
How Can You Increase Your Social Circle In An Independent Living Community?
We understand that transitioning to an independent living community can bring new challenges. You may feel isolated and start giving a second thought to your decision.
But don’t worry; once you have a new idea of how you can start increasing your social circle, you can soon meet some new people. So, enjoy your life, making new friends all together once again, like in your childhood.
Tips To Boost Your Social Circle:
Participate in Community Programs
At home, you may be caught up in various household chores, leaving no time to go out and engage in various community programs. As a result, you may not know your new neighbor or meet someone new in your neighborhood.
But in independent living communities, you can participate in various social activities and meet new people. From fitness clubs, gardening activities to book clubs, you can participate in various community programs to improve your social skills and meet new people.
Engage With People Who Share Common Interests
Wouldn’t you love to have a friend who is just like you?
It is important to meet like-minded people and have a company where both of you spend quality time discussing and making up new plans. This helps to kill boredom, and you can always give a call, meet up, and enjoy discussing new plans.
When you start participating in social activities and engaging in various community programs, you get to meet people who share common interests. For instance, if you are a fitness enthusiast and join a fitness club, you will meet people who are equally interested in fitness and health.
Organize And Participate in Social Events
Various communities organize social events where one can meet new people. It is important to participate in various social programs and events that enhance your social skills in later years. Increasing participation in various social activities can reduce social isolation and help fight depression, high blood pressure, coronary diseases, and so on.
So, at independent living facilities, you get various opportunities to participate in various social events. These events also include various volunteering activities where you help many people while meeting new people along the way. Various community programs in the neighborhood help older people meet up and have fun. This reduces the risk of isolation that most loved ones face during their advancing years.
Share Your Personal Stories With Others
Sharing anecdotes with friends and families at various get-togethers and parties cherishes small moments of joy and happiness. It has been shown that sharing stories can help reconnect various important parts of memories that we often forget otherwise. Therefore, sharing personal stories has its own fair share of benefits and helps create new bonds, preserve family memories, and bring new mental health benefits.
At independent living, you meet new people who will listen to your stories, and staff will organize various events where you can participate and treasure those truly cherished family memories with other people, bringing smiles to their faces. It strengthens bonds and memories, reducing stress and anxiety in the advancing years.
Social Interaction To Overcome Social Isolation
Social isolation is common in advancing years. As the risk of social isolation increases, it brings other negative mental health impacts, such as Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. Therefore, older people are often encouraged to interact as much as possible.
If you are someone who lives alone and craves social interaction, independent living may serve a suitable purpose. Social interaction helps with memory retention and creates a positive impact on older individuals to motivate them to continue learning and prevent cognitive decline. With social interaction, one can overcome social isolation, explore new opportunities, or relearn childhood hobbies.
How Do I Find Independent Living In Silver Spring And Bethesda?
Today, independent living facilities are quite common. Various older individuals love to choose independent living over other communities. This is because of the independence they get at independent living apartments in their golden years. However, it is important to understand whether independent living would suit your purpose or not. Check out the list of things you should ask before considering independent living for yourself.
If you have been looking for an independent living community for your loved one, get in touch with the senior care experts at Senior Care Love. Our care experts know the ins and outs of independent living in Maryland, including Silver Spring and Bethesda.
Our senior care advisor first learns about your needs and preferences and helps you choose the right one. Finally, our care expert continues to stay in touch with you until you settle down in your new space. Once you settle down, our care advisor stays in touch with you until the end.
To learn more about how we can help you find your independent living community, contact us.
