How Long Does It Take to Move into Assisted Living?

Moving is never easy, and it can be especially stressful if you have a loved one who needs to move into assisted living. In addition to the usual stressors associated with moving (packing up your entire life, moving it to another building, unpacking and arranging it all), there are some things that are unique to moving into assisted living. There are also some things that can make the process take longer, so let us talk about what to expect when moving into assisted living.

Waiting Lists

Most assisted living communities have a waiting list, so do not make the mistake of assuming you can move into any assisted living community you want as soon as you or your loved one is in need of assisted living. Instead, you need to have an action plan in place before you need assisted living.

Things to consider include where you want to live – in the area you live now, or closer to your kids or siblings who live in another state? Or maybe you want to spend your golden years in a warmer climate. The farther you currently are from the assisted living community you want to move into, the more planning will need to go into the moving process to make sure you have everything you need.

Once you have identified the assisted living community you want to live in, ask about their wait list. Just like with a restaurant waiting list, they can give you an estimate of how long it might take for them to have a vacancy, but it might end up taking more or less time than they anticipate.

Downsizing

Most people moving into assisted living are moving into a much smaller space than the one in which they have been living for decades – maybe even their whole lives. That calls for a considerable amount of downsizing.

The best way to downsize is to go through all your possessions and divide them into three categories: Keep; Donate: and Trash. Once you have gotten rid of everything you want to donate and throw away, you might need to further divide the Keep pile into the items going with you into assisted living and those going into storage.

Since it is unlikely you will move into a larger home after assisted living, you might want to consider taking the items you would normally put into storage and instead distribute them to your closest friends and family. That way they can always lend them to you if you need to borrow them. Otherwise, you know they have a good home.

Adjusting to Life in Assisted Living

Living in a new place always requires an adjustment, but that adjustment might take a little longer for those moving into assisted living. Not only do they have to get used to a new place, they have to get used to their fellow residents and the idea of accepting help from staff.

While the goal of assisted living is to help residents continue living a life as normal as possible for as long as possible, just having someone around to help at all times can be different enough from what residents are used to that it can take a while to adjust.

If your loved one is having a hard time getting used to assisted living, encourage them to give it time and to keep an open mind. If they decide they are going to have a bad experience, then they will have a bad experience no matter what the assisted living staff does to help them. But if they decide to have a good experience, they just might have the time of their lives.

If you have any other questions about easing the transition to life at Stillwater Senior Living, we are always happy to chat. Just reach out now to start the conversation.