Socializing & Mental Health

Speak to an agent about finding your next home in a 55+ community. Call 310-991-3946 now.

Socializing in Your Senior Years Can Boost Your Emotional Health & Reduce Dementia Risk

You wouldn’t expect it to happen at a funeral, but that’s exactly when Lawrence and Samantha realized just how much they missed good conversations and food with friends. Claudia had been their friend of over 30 years, and when she passed away Lawrence and Sam knew they had to host her memorial service at their home. Years ago they would spend almost every evening together with Claudia and her husband, catching up and playing cards. They would celebrate her life with all her favorite foods, finger sandwiches, fried chicken, and kebabs with mint tea, as eclectic as it would be.

They hadn’t spent so much time organizing an event since their kids grew up and birthdays slowly graduated from grand celebration to quiet dinners at restaurants. They didn’t realize just how bad they needed to see all their old friends and family again. It was like a knot of stress and boredom that had wound itself for decades had finally come undone.

After everyone left and they swept and cleaned up the home, Sam and Lawrence made a decision that they would do something social at least once or twice a week. But for seniors, that becomes harder and harder to do. Lifelong friends move or pass away, family spreads out across the country or even abroad. That’s why more and more seniors are looking into senior living communities, where they can still own their own home and feel independent, but get all the social benefits of friends, sports, and tons of special events ranging from horseback riding, to music concerts, to competitive scrabble tournaments and bingo.

Research from the American Public Health Association has found that a common social network, like you’d get at retirement communities, is extremely important to mental health. The effects range from emotional wellbeing to possibly reducing dementia risk.

SeniorLifestyle.com talks about how we get more sedate and less active, social, and outgoing as we get older. We fall into routines. We get comfortable. We notice how bored or lonely we are feeling, but we do less and less to remedy it.

When you’re in a community with frequent exposure to peers and friends your own age, it motivates you to get out and do more. To experience more of life. Frequent events and activities like swimming, billiards, tennis, or golf are great ways to stay active and keep your mind fresh with friends.

If you’re feeling bored and feeling ready to get out there and be more active, a 55+ community might be a great place to find your next home. Speak to an agent today about your options. Call 310-991-3946 now.