Happy New Year
With the coming of a New Year we often take this time to think of ways that we can improve our life. Orchard Senior Living would like to help 2019 be a great year.
Taking Stock
A new year is a good time to take stock in what we like, and what we would like to change about how we live. What is important to know is that change begins with our self and our happiness in life cannot be dependent upon someone else. To base our happiness on another person sets both people up for failure.
Making A Positive Change
When trying to make positive changes in life, it is good to take a look at what can be changed. Some of these are more concrete than others.
- Thoughts – adjusting thoughts to ones that are positive reduces stress and allows for more creative thinking.
- Actions – actions can create stress or opportunities for connection.
- Smiling can actually life your mood, lower stress and boost your immune system.
- Sitting close to one another, touching or giving hugs releases oxytocin into the blood stream and reduces stress.
- Language – shapes how you see things and focuses your attention. What are the words that you use when talking about your situation?
- Perspective – taking a positive perspective changes a situation into seeing what is possible.
- Focus – what we focus on will become our experience
- Environment – is the environment welcoming, familiar, is it functional, is it forgiving if mistakes are made? Does the environment help someone feel as if they belong?
- Support – what kind of support is being offered and is it welcomed and or needed?
- Time – what happens throughout the day? Are there moments for joy and rest, is the day structured and does it have opportunities for success?
When someone is aging, or living with a chronic condition like Heart Disease, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s or other dementias there are some things that can change and others that we have no control over. These things that we have less control over include:
- The changes that are occurring in the body and brain.
- The progression of the disease.
- The skills that a person has.The amount of time that it takes for a person to respond, understand and or do something.
- Social history
- Personality traits
- Likes and dislikes
Some of the things that can be changed and that can make a big difference in the person’s life and the life of their care partner includes:
- Care partner’s knowledge
- Care partner’s skill
- Type of support – doing with and not to
- Assessing environment – is it the right fit?
- Paying attention to how time is spent – what is the structure of my day?
Therefore, if we want to help a person, we must take a look at what we can do to make the necessary changes so that they will be able to live a full and joyful life. This holds true for our life as well. If we have a healthy body and brain, the one thing that we can do is make the changes that we want to see in our life and realize that we hold the key to our own happiness. Orchard at Brookhaven is a community resource and wants to help you find solutions for your family. Our luxury senior living is opening soon and wants to support you in your goals for health and wellbeing in 2019. Please contact us for more information.
