Seniors may end up having to move for a variety of reasons, from leaving a property they can no longer manage to moving to be closer to friends and family. Whatever the context, you can help to make the process a lot easier by doing some planning before the process gets underway. Here are a few key points of consideration for seniors looking to move.
Get Others Involved: The last thing you want to do is push yourself when it comes to trying to organize and move a whole home’s worth of items, especially if you have medical issues. Reach out to loved ones and try and see if they are able to help you with moving some of the heavier items. If you’re concerned about asking too much of them, try and distribute the work evenly, so everyone only has to help you a little bit.
Turn Decluttering Into A Positive: Not everyone likes cleaning and decluttering, but you can have a little fun to make it easier. For example, a yard sale is always a nice time to interact with your community and maybe even make a little extra cash while you’re at it. If you’re looking for an alternative, donating can help make some of your items useful for people in need. There are a lot of organizations out there with needs for almost everything you can think of. Rehoming items with sentimental value is also a possibility.
Take A Picture of the Old Home’s Interior: Sometimes, part of facilitating a transition is helping make a new space feel like an old space. Snapping photos of the layouts of some of your favorite rooms before you pack them up can make an older space feel like new, which is always nice. Along with this, try and get a blueprint of the new room you’ll be staying in if you can, to see how the two compare.
Start Small and Be Patient: As we mentioned before, you don’t want to rush yourself. There can be a lot of sentimental items to pack and it may be more tiring than you initially thought. That’s okay, and that’s also part of the reason why you want to plan as early as possible. Starting preparation sooner lets you take breaks and potentially stop if you’re starting to get overwhelmed.
Struggling with some of the logistical aspects of a move, but need more than your family or loved ones can provide? There are several services out there specifically designed to help seniors with their moving needs. At Friend Of The Family, we can provide a suite of options to help make the process of moving preparation less difficult and stressful. For seniors, we can help with both the physical and emotional load of having to leave a place you’ve become accustomed to over the years.