If you have made the bold and exciting decision to reclaim your freedom and independence as much as possible and for as long as possible by moving to a renowned and established care home, then you will have a million thoughts swimming around in your mind.
Here, to arm you with an emotional support system that you can turn to is a survival guide for your first few weeks moving to a care home.
Pack a First Morning Box
When you wake up in your own bed in your own home, even if you have recently been experiencing a plethora of problems with your mobility or even your cognitive function, you will be both consciously and subconsciously comforted by being surrounded by your own things.
This is why, therefore, one of the most important things you can do to emotionally prepare yourself for the move to a prominent care home, such as valeviewheights.com, for example, is to prepare yourself a ‘first-morning box’, which should contain items such as:
- Morning toiletries
- Your dressing gown
- Your own towels
- Any medication you need
- Your glasses and glasses case
Familiarize Yourself with the Layout Beforehand
One exceedingly useful way of making you feel as safe and, indeed, as welcome in your new home as possible is to spend time beforehand looking into the layout, the amenities, and basically where everything is.
It will only serve to compound your feelings of disconnection and disorientation if you feel as if you have absolutely no idea where, for example, your room is in relation to the dining area. You could even draw a simple map to keep on your person with some basic notes for the first few days upon arriving.
Meet the Staff
If you had not had the chance to meet the staff when you came to visit the care home, or else were unable to attend a meeting to discuss your new living arrangements, then one of your first priorities in the first couple of days, even, is to meet with the staff.
More specifically, ask to speak to, in an informal setting, the staff who will be working directly with you and get to know a bit about them and build an initial rapport. All staff at reputable nursing and care homes are specially trained and specifically picked to talk, introduce, and build rapport with their residents.
Stay in Contact
These days, the best way to keep in as constant contact as you would like with your close friends and family members is with the use of a phone, but if you do not have access to one, have never wanted one, or else simply do not feel comfortable using one, there is a range of other options.
When a loved one visits, schedule when they are next coming and always write it down in a diary or a notebook; this will prevent double dates, as it were, and will keep you looking forward to the next time you will see that particular loved one.
