Many aging adults hope to live out their days in their own homes rather than an assisted living facility. With the right planning, seniors can live happily in their long-time homes. All it takes is making the right home upgrades to age in place. Aging in place refers to living in your own home independently and comfortably, regardless of your age, income, or mobility level. It takes a lot of time to plan for aging in place. Take a look at three wellness accommodations that you should consider when planning for the long term.
1. Modifying the Bathroom
Slip-and-fall accidents are a serious and common risk for the elderly. The best way to protect yourself and avoid falling in the bathroom is to modify it with grab bars, a walk-in tub, raised toilet seats, and shower benches. Walk-in showers or tubs are far safer than climbing out of high-sided tubs. Safety bars can provide extra stability when lowering yourself to use the toilet or maneuvering from a walker into the tub area. Caregivers ensure a long-time home is appropriate for aging in place by ensuring it meets mobility, dexterity, cognition, vision, and personal health and safety standards. It may not be practical to completely renovate your home, but a better way is to upgrade with mobility aids.
Limited mobility can make daily life more challenging and completing simple tasks complicated. Installing the right mobility aids can help your maneuverability and help you avoid slip-and-fall accidents. The experts at Luxury Bath & Window offer affordable and efficient tub to shower conversions that can be done in one day. Their remodeling team has the skills to transform your bathtub into a spacious new shower that best suits your needs and style. The professional team starts each conversion project with a free estimate before choosing a custom style using the highest-quality durable products. Whether you need a shower conversion, bathtub replacement, or full bathroom renovation, the expert remodeler can meet any project and budget needs.
2. Upgrading to Better Flooring
A long-time home’s flooring is of real concern when it comes to slipping and falling. It’s important to address any tripping hazards, such as throw rugs. It’s a better idea to use a slip-resistant floor treatment that will reduce the chances of seniors slipping on wood or tile flooring. It’s also a good idea to set up strong visual cues that remind you of risky areas to maneuver. Not only are your mobility, strength, and cognition impacted by age, but so are your vision and hearing. Using visual cues like a colorful border on the edge of countertops or changing the color of flooring that changes elevation can help prevent accidents.
Another way to keep you safe on your feet is to wear cushioning insoles that provide stabilizing arch and heel support. When your feet don’t have the right support, you experience decreased foot function, plus foot pain, knee pain, hip pain, and other painful foot conditions. PowerStep offers a variety of shoe orthotic inserts that relieve and prevent foot pain from common conditions like plantar fasciitis, heel spurs, bunions, and more. Their orthotic insoles feature built-in arch support and a deep heel cradle for a stable, comfortable fit. In addition to custom insoles, you can also find compression socks, bracing options, and other foot care accessories to help prevent pain from common foot conditions.
3. Embracing Smart Home Technology
A great way to adapt your home for aging in place is with smart home technology. Quieter home appliances and ventilation mean less noise interference when trying to have conversations with hearing loss. App-driven appliances can alert you when things are ready, such as when cooking. Some smart home technology seniors should consider include smart door locks, home security systems with mobile apps, and smart technology appliances that make daily tasks easier.
Modifying the bathroom with mobility aids, upgrading the flooring, and embracing smart home technology are some wellness accommodations seniors should consider when planning to age in place.