It can be hard and emotional to move an elderly parent from their home to a place where they can get help. As the oldest son, I felt responsible for my mother’s health, and the move made me feel guilty, sad, and like I’d lost something.
One of the hardest things I had to deal with was the emotional toll of getting rid of mom’s things and moving her out of her long-time home. She had a lot of memories and important things in her home that were hard to give up. In the end, there is no easy way to help her get rid of things without making her feel like she is throwing away memories. Surprisingly, it was hard for me to think about mom leaving her familiar home and getting used to a new place to live. Once we agreed that all this stress would be worth it in the end, we set out to find the right mover.
The first problem I had was deciding what kind of mover to get. I’d heard that “smaller is better” in this case, but I didn’t know what services they provided, so I went to find out. We thought about hiring a senior move management company to make the move as easy as possible. I didn’t want to have to make a lot of phone calls and keep track of a lot of people. These companies focus on working with older people and know how to deal with the special challenges and feelings that come with downsizing and moving. They helped with things like getting rid of clutter, organizing, packing, unpacking, and planning the move. One of them even offered to reset all of her technology and hookups so she could keep using her gadgets. That was a godsend. All of that interested me because I have a busy life with my own family and a busy work travel schedule.
We chose a senior move management company after getting quotes and talking to companies (HaloSeniorSolutions.com). This was a great on our part for a number of reasons. First, they gave us the knowledge and tools we needed to make the move go as smoothly as possible. They had worked with older people before and knew how to handle fragile and important items with care. They also served the building where my mom was moving to, which gave her even more peace of mind. Finally, we used their real estate team to help us sell my mom’s house, which took a lot of stress off of us. It was so helpful to have one company handle every part of the sale and move. FYI – My siblings don’t live close by so this was all going to fall on my shoulders and even though they wanted to help, the logistics of getting us all together was going to be a nightmare.
HALO had a variety of services that were made to fit mom’s needs. If we didn’t know where we were moving mom, they could have even put us in touch with a service that would have helped us find the best place for her. They really did think of everything!
In conclusion, a senior mover specialty company can give the child and parent the knowledge, resources, and physical help they need to make the move from home to assisted living as smooth and stress-free as possible. I was surprised by how many other resources they put us in touch with and I had forgotten that moving involves a million little tasks. I believed they helped us avoid a lot of common problems. In the end, it took mom about two to three months to really feel at home in her new place, but it’s now “home” and she’s made a lot of friends. Even though it’s not perfect, it’s a much healthier and safer place for her to grow old, and we sleep better at night knowing that.
Halo Senior Solutions has helped a lot of older clients move out of their long-time homes and into retirement communities or homes that are more suitable for aging in place. They offer a comprehensive move management service, full service real estate services (through HALO Realty Group) and if they don’t do it, they know a trusted resource that can help you.
