Convincing Mom to Think About Assisted Living in the New Year

January 6, 2021 by ·

Perhaps you’ve carried on this conversation in the past with your elderly mother: assisted living. You know she would be better suited in an assisted living community, but she might have been resistant to the idea in the past. 

This is a new year, though, and certainly many things have changed. Seniors in a lot of care communities, including assisted living, had been isolated for much of the last year. They may still be enduring some isolation to protect them from COVID-19. 

However, despite all of the challenges that the senior care community has faced this past year, assisted living remains one of the best options for aging men and women, and for many good reasons. 

Still, it’s not always easy to convince an elderly parent to consider assisted living. If you want to try again this year, below are a few tips, some advice, if it were, that might help. 

 

Talk honestly.

Assisted Living Citronelle, AL: Convincing Mom to Think About Assisted Living

Don’t try to beat around the bush or sugarcoat things. Say it like it is. You don’t have to be harsh, though. If you notice her struggling with certain things, she has called you for help to get the laundry up from the basement, to bring her to the grocery store, or you’ve noticed potential hazards in the kitchen, bathroom, or elsewhere in the house, mention those. 

Bring up the things she wants to forget as far as her safety, comfort, or even opportunity to spend time with friends is concerned. 

Sometimes, it’s easier to gloss over the struggles when an adult child or friend or family member stopped by for a visit. Yet, when she knows you have observed these things and remember them, she will, too. 

 

Listen to her. 

This isn’t just about what you think is best for her. There may be certain reservations she has about assisted living she has tried to communicate to you in the past. 

Listen carefully. Listening is one of the most overlooked yet powerful skills we have in communication. If you listen to what she says, even going so far as to repeat it back to her in a kind and gentle way, it shows her that you care about her opinion. 

Sometimes, people resist topics like assisted living simply because they assume they are being ignored. Your mother won’t assume that when she sees how well you listen to her questions and comments. 

 

Learn more about assisted living. 

The best thing you can do to help your elderly mother understand the value of the living is to learn more about it yourself. The more you learn about it, the more you’ll be to answer questions or even objections, when they arise. 

 

If you or an aging loved one are considering Assisted Living near Citronelle, AL, contact Ashbury Manor Specialty Care and Assisted Living at 251-317-3017. 

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About Cindy Johnson

Ashbury Manor’s Administrator since 2008, Cindy Johnson is a long-time expert in the assisted living field. Prior to her arrival at Ashbury Manor, Cindy managed acquisitions and crisis management for existing and new larger senior care project developments for eleven years. As regional manager for an Oregon-based assisted living management company, Cindy was directly responsible for operations for five 50-65 bed assisted living facilities. As manager during the transition to new ownership, Cindy reorganized internal operations and conducted leadership training for Executive Directors. As a result of her management and expertise, one of the company’s facilities (in Ocala, Florida) received a deficiency-free survey, resulting in the lifting of a moratorium on operation.

A nurse for 36 years, senior care has always been Cindy’s passion. Desiring to work more closely with residents, Cindy became a Category II Administrator in 2005. As Ashbury Manor’s Administrator, Cindy understands the complexities associated with dementia and cognitive impairment and she has fallen in love with seniors with dementia or cognitive impairment and their families.

Cindy is Treasurer of the local “Senior Coalition” chapter. She enjoys mentoring new candidates who want to become administrators.

As a 16-bed facility, with Cindy's training and experience, our residents and their families can be sure Ashbury Manor’s carefully selected staff provides the expertise of a larger facility while maintaining the individualized personal care of a small special needs home.
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