You may not be at an age where you feel like you need more help right now, but did you know that there is such a thing as learning how to age well? You’re probably doing a lot to be able to ensure that you stay in good health and that you can enjoy your current life and the life you built for yourself in the future.
You are eating right, you’re stretching every day, you’re exercising, you’re working hard and you’re not missing out on any of your screenings. But it also makes sense to have some contingency plans for the bumps in the road that can occur. It’s not morbid, and it’s not tempting fate to believe that things could change. Things will change as you get older and you may one day need the help of services such as Agincare. If you do, then having these plans in place early is really going to help you to lean into them rather than fight them. Change is an inevitability, so let’s take a look at how you can age well.
1. Be ahead of home adaptations. You know that stairs, baths, and kitchens can present hazards for older people, so why not sort your bathroom now and make it into a wet room while you can, why not make sure that you’re doing your annual safety reviews and adjusting your kitchen to be less hazardous? Installing rails and banisters in your home isn’t going to be an unsightly thing to do, but it’s also going to be preparing you for anything that goes wrong.
2. Work to prevent falls. Falls can be a big deal for older people, and as you get older you wouldn’t think it happens to you until you all of a sudden fall down the stairs. Safety precautions are important, but so are exercises that you can take on to improve balance and strength. Instead of being the type of person that stumbles over their own feet, take up some Tai chi or yoga so that you can learn balance and strengthen your core.
3. Be prepared for your housing options. You might be independently living in your own home with your own mortgage right now, but you might consider looking into retirement complexes, selling your house, and downsizing. They have plenty of coordinated care options and there is support available on site. Plus, a lot of these senior friendly options are cheap, which means you can sell your current house and buy outright, so you’d have no mortgage.
4. Pay for your will and your funeral. Is it a good idea right now to have your funeral paid for and in place? Absolutely, having these services done will stop the burden being on your family and it will ensure that you get exactly what you want when the time comes. Planning out and preparing your will while you still have all of your faculties is also a very good idea because you can then dictate what happens to your belongings and your money.
5. Plan for emergencies. From life insurance and income protection, you need to have emergency planning. Who is going to be the person you call an emergency? Do you have people in your life who can check on you regularly? What would you do if you fell? Having all of these things in place will prevent you from being alone when these things happen.
