Your senior years can be among the most rewarding of your life

Despite what many people believe, growing older has its advantages. You’ve learned a lot, and things that seemed important when you were younger may not seem so important anymore. You’ve had a long life and know what makes living good: friends and family.

Of course, aging has its challenges. You may need help with daily living chores due to a health condition. Moving into the right senior-living facility will offer you the extra care that you need while providing you with independence and excellent community support. Your senior years can be among the most rewarding of your life if you choose a place that emphasizes community.

Community and Physical Health

Socializing isn’t just enjoyable: it’s essential to your good health. Research shows that seniors who stay socially active live longer. A study following approximately 1,500 older people for 10 years found that those with a larger network of friends were 22% less likely to die during that decade.

Experts believe that friends help you feel better about yourself, discourage you from bad habits and help prevent depression⏤all things that may extend your life. Also, as a senior, you tend to weed out people who you do not enjoy. You surround yourself with people who bring brightness to your days. This positive social network helps you reduce stress and may even help you survive serious illnesses, such as cancer and heart disease.

When you enter a quality senior facility such as Heritage Villas, you enter a community of people of similar age and interests. While you enjoy privacy and autonomy in your own space, you also have constant opportunities to make new friends and join community gatherings.

These social outings also keep you on the go, helping you remain physically active. Regular exercise is key to maintaining good physical health and offers you emotional and mental benefits as well.

Socialization and Brain Health

Those who live in a friendly community setting also tend to better retain their cognitive function⏤a goal of every senior. Studies have shown that regular social interactions help keep you mentally stimulated and “intellectually engaged.” As a result, you are less likely to experience memory loss, Alzheimer’s and general cognitive decline. Seniors who isolate themselves are much more likely to suffer from these mental issues.

When you live in a friendly senior community, you are less likely to isolate yourself and are more likely to enjoy life on all levels. With friendly faces everywhere, you will be more physically and mentally active. As a result, you should live longer while retaining your mental abilities⏤a situation every senior hopes for.

Socialization Difficulties

As a senior, you may face more health challenges than you did when you were younger. If you stay in traditional housing, these challenges may keep you from socializing, particularly if you have mobility issues. Even getting to the local diner or senior center can become too difficult. When you live at Heritage Villas, you get that extra level of support for your physical issues that allows you to mix socially. A strong social network becomes easier to maintain.

Heritage Villas offers individualized care plans that give you the medical care you need. They also offer home-cooked meals, laundry services and housekeeping. Their transportation service will get you where you need to go, so you never feel stuck in one place. All these benefits give you the freedom to enjoy friends and family, and, in turn, those connections keep you healthy.

Family Benefits

You want to retain your independence, but your children may worry about you living alone, especially if they are in another state or across the country. They might be urging you, gently or not so gently, to make a change. You can relieve their worry and still live the lifestyle that you want at Heritage Villas.

Because you will have your own private living space at the Villas, you retain your autonomy while maintaining the important family relationships that help keep you happy and connected.

You probably don’t want to be young again. As a senior, you have learned a lot about life and how to live it, and you know that relationships are the most important part of living. Moving into a senior living community means you can keep your current friends and find new ones. You will stay mentally and physically healthier as a result of having new people in your life. A strong social network gives you a better quality of life and helps increase your longevity.

If you are looking for a superior senior living facility, contact us to set up an in-depth tour. Visit their website to learn more about life in the community. They offer a community-centered experience that will please both you and your family.

Friends and family: the best parts of a life well-lived.