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@nhbfan: It’s scary having health problems, unreliable mental clarity, needing help doing ordinary things! Aging isn’t for wimps!
We don’t want our family’s help. We decided 9 1/2 yrs ago to move into a Continuing Care Residential Community (CCRC) where we live independently until we need additional help. We are with residents who have made this decision who we have much in common. Holidays are all celebrated with gusto and our environment is very luxurious. By agreeing to a Lifetime Guarantee the owners will take care of us for the rest of our lives, regardless if our funds run out. The peace of mind, lovely environment, activities and friendly neighbors have proved to be best decision we could have made. We continue to simplify our life more every year! Best to you… Bette
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I’m glad you shared this. Does your spouse have dementia and are they able to enjoy the independent living? My husband and I are moving into a new Independent Living apartment in Aug 2026. This is a new part of the same kind of CCRC with all levels of care including rehab. He has Moderate cognitive impairment but by then I’m afraid it will have progressed to full on Alzheimer’s. I’m just hoping he can move in with me and enjoy the apartment. We are doing this because we need support and he may need Memory Care. I want to be on the same campus to be with him as much as possible without having to maintain a bigger home.
Two of our children live nearby and one out of town. They are all working and busy with their lives and are glad we are making the move but they are going to have to help with Dad via visits, days out, etc until we get there.
Right now I’m his 24/7 guide for all things and we do need to hire help to give me a break. I’m doing my best but am learning to ASK for help.
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My husband and I looked into a CCRC near Lebanon, Ohio. I was gung-ho about moving there at first, but then I started worrying that moving him now is only going to make things worse. Usually people with dementia do get worse when their routine and familiar environment is changed.
We currently live on private land inside a national forest, surrounded by beauty and amazing air, so that doesn't help make the decision to move. We have neighbors—none of whom are right next door, but all of us are friends. We help one another, and most are older, although we're the oldest. Living in the woods ten miles from a county road with dementia sounds dangerous, but actually it's the opposite. I think if we were in an urban environment, even in a CCRC, I'd have to watch my husband twice as much as I do now. I'd probably be afraid to even get in the shower!
If we had moved before it became evident, that would probably have worked, but we never wanted to move from here so we didn't. If we had already lived in a town, we'd have moved immediately to the one we looked at, but leaving this place is just so hard to do.