Routine: A powerful tool for Seniors

Routine is a blessing in senior age and becomes the ultimate cure for their mental, emotional, and physical chaos. Picture a bustling day for you, where you barely get through random errands, phone calls, social events, or difficult bosses. You dash into your aging parent’s room and say “Get ready. We have to leave in 10 minutes for a doctor’s appointment”. Well, you have just grilled up a situation that shoots up their anxiety, confusion, and irritation. Not knowing it beforehand throws them off guard and brings the entire home upside down with questions, resistance, or anger. A daily routine for the senior community, and keeping them updated about it helps us to fill the gaps of unknown fear for them.

The challenge is to change the mundane day into one filled with purpose and something to look forward to. As we age, we feel a bit of a loss of sense of what lies ahead. Younger and healthier days had work, children, social engagements, to-do lists, responsibilities, targets, and dreams, and suddenly it’s invisible confinement. Instructions, or asking around. A routine will provide much-needed comfort and improve the quality of life, which ideally is the aim for all the next generations in senior care.

Build a healthy routine for seniors – How?

When you re-introduce a routine like an unexpected sequel, expect resistance, hesitation, and rebellion. But we must keep- up our patience and paddle them back into a life that offers them emotional wellness, better sleep, good exercise, memory support, care coordination, and a deep sense of security. While there are no single approaches, as the situation may differ from person’s health condition, however below is how you can bring it in for your older loved ones:

• Provision of things: Based on interest, procure things that will keep their day going like newspapers, books, colors, notebooks, easy-to-operate music systems, etc.
• Make small goals: Provide them or staff with a list of schedules to be followed for the day. E.g. Walking for half an hour, praying in the evening, sunbathing in the morning, reading four pages daily, etc.
• Incorporate daily schedules: Fix up times for baths, meals, and physical activities. That will slowly develop as their muscle memory. For example, after an afternoon nap, they will know it’s their walk time.
• Plan menus: Knowing what they will get for meals generates excitement, just like for kids, it is no different for seniors. Trust me, waiting for that Sunday ice cream will do wonders for the spirit.
• Keep minimal scope for surprises: For any outing or guest arrivals, keep them informed as much as possible so their nerves remain calm. Imagine a single TV in the hall, time for their favorite serial, and your guests for dinner come over. God bless you with the reaction if you request to switch off the TV. While an ideal solution could be a second TV, prior information too will work magic.

Any routine ensuring the incorporation of platforms and resources that let them express and create their journey with pride and joy is ultimately a reflection of their well-lived past.

Assisted Living Facility: Where Routine thrives

Assisted Living facilities often have routines, and schedules in place to keep providing residents comfort and a feel-at-home atmosphere. By establishing consistent habits for daily tasks, individuals can feel more in control of their lives and experience a greater sense of accomplishment.

• Meal times and menus are always fixed. Residents from various backgrounds are adapted slowly and organically into a schedule. Patience and consistency is the only way forward for the team.
• Exercise and hobby times are scheduled based on each one’s capacity, health, and interests. Designated time slots are allocated for walks, exercises, yoga, movies, reading, prayer, music, etc.
• Social Engagement: Any get-togethers, festivals, or birthdays are informed prior, so they can gather under one roof and celebrate together. Daily evening activities with games, bhajans, etc give them a look forward to the day.
• Health check rounds and medicine administration by a nursing team also set up a non-negotiable critical routine.
• Grooming, physiotherapy, bank visits, and hospital appointments are pre-informed activities that are conducted and followed through at any good facilities.
• A good hygiene routine or room cleaning also keeps them clued into their sense of wellness.

Papayacare, the only assisted living facility in the city of Ahmedabad, is a testament to routines that not just get followed but are a way of life. The transition and incorporation happen slowly till it becomes a habit. They aim to consistently provide them with a higher quality of life, by giving them the choice to pick, express their desire, pursue their hobbies, and network. For families eyeing a worry-free zone where senior living communities are kept engaged, with every plan rolled out, a facility as experienced as PapayaCare is the answer. Be it active seniors, or seniors with neuro issues like Alzheimer’s, Dementia, Parkinson’s, etc routine can reduce their daytime fatigue, give them a sense of accomplishment, and keep their anxieties low.

You may like to read this: Retirement Homes with Assisted Living [Basics + Benefits + Tips]

Conclusion

The all-season benefit of routine is, that it reduces unwanted and avoidable stress. We need a rising generation who understand these needs at basic home levels, so transitioning them into a facility at any point is not a challenge. Make those small changes, let the charts mount for staff and families to see, and let them feel assured that the routines also have time with you, their most precious loved ones. 😊