Tips For Helping Your Elderly Parent Move

Whether you are moving a senior loved one into your home, a new property, or into assisted living?any move can be difficult. After all, moving is seen as one of the most stressful things that you can encounter in your life. While moving is a challenge for anyone, no matter their age, it can be particularly difficult for seniors. With this in mind?here are a few tips to utilize when helping a senior parent move.

1. Be Prepared for Emotions- It can be very emotional for seniors to move. Whether they are nervous about moving to assisted living, or if they are leaving a home they have lived in for decades. Be ready for the process to be emotional?and do your best to provide comfort to your parents even if you don?t understand why they are upset.
2. Enlist All the Help You Can Get- Moving never goes as smoothly as any of us want it to, which is why it is so important to enlist the help of friends and family. There are never too many hands on deck when moving. Plus, your senior loved one will likely enjoy the opportunity to be surrounded by loved ones.
3. Take the Opportunity to Downsize- In almost every case, moving a senior will involve some type of downsizing. Before the moving day, go through your loved one?s home, item by item to help them start downsizing. You can categorize objects based on what is being donated, what stays and what goes. It is a great way to help your senior loved one get organized and can be a fun trip down memory lane.
4. Hire Experts- You are going to need to give your senior loved one a lot of attention to help them through the moving process. This is why it is important to hire experts to help you. This not only includes moving companies but packing and cleaning services as well. The smoother it goes, the more time your senior loved one will have to focus on their own transition.
5. Take the Time To Get Their New Space Ready First- Whether it is painting, doing repairs or just setting up a room with pictures, if you take the time to get your loved one?s space ready and feeling like home before they move in?it can really help with their transition.

While moving can seem like a big undertaking, it doesn?t have to be as stressful as you assume, when you keep these tips in mind. Just remember to relax, take a deep breath and remember that the stresses of moving are likely going to mean a better home for your loved one.

Author Profile

Lori Thomas

Lori Thomas has decades of experience as a caregiver. Her writing for SeniorAdvice.com is informed by years of research as well as hands-on family experience caring for her now late mother, who had chronic health issues for most of her life. Lori is an integral part of the SeniorAdvice.com management team, acting as Vice President of Marketing and Chief Editor.

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