Category: aging decisions

What You Need to Know About Mental Health in Later Life

An older Caucasian woman sits on a couch looking sad or depressed.

Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood, and yet mental health in later life is often sidelined as other health challenges are prioritized. However, there is a cyclical relationship between physical health and mental health:  The presence of chronic conditions and illness is associated with an increased risk for mental illness, and we know that mental illness, in turn, increases the risk for many types of physical health problems.

The Essential Assisted Living Move-in Checklist

Senior man moving into an assisted living community with the help of his son to lift boxes

Moving a loved one to assisted living can be an overwhelming transition for everyone involved, even when your loved one understands and accepts that they need to move. We have compiled an Assisted Living Move-In Checklist as a resource for families, based on our experience placing individuals in communities and providing ongoing care management and concierge care services.

How to Choose an Assisted Living Community: Critical Questions to Ask

Four senior women stretch exercise bands to stay fit at an assisted living community

Perhaps you’ve seen that your loved one can no longer live alone safely, or maybe you care for your loved one in your home and have realized that their care needs exceed what you can provide. You’ve decided it’s time to find an assisted living community in Maryland that will provide the best care and quality of life possible, while within your budget and at a comfortable driving distance.

Coping with Caregiver Stress: Looking Back, Looking Forward, Looking Within

A mature woman of East Asian heritage relaxes on a couch while sipping tea and looking at her laptop

Now that 2022 has come to a close, it’s a good time to reflect on the year that has passed all too quickly (or perhaps for some, it seemed to drag on forever…) and think about what worked, what didn’t, and what needs to change in the year ahead. Perhaps you’re completely worn out with caregiving and realize you need some outside help. Maybe you have neglected yourself amid all the demands of caregiving. Or are you a “sandwich” caregiver, still caring for children at home while also caring for a parent and wondering how you can do it all in the year ahead?

Five Common Myths About Alzheimer’s Disease

A softly glowing illustrated brain representing the most common Alzheimer's myths

Alzheimer’s Disease is the most common form of dementia. That probably explains why many people often use the terms “dementia” and “Alzheimer’s” interchangeably, but there are real differences.  It’s helpful to think of dementia — a condition that includes problems with memory, reasoning, thinking, mood, and behavior — as an umbrella, with Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) comprising about 70% of the umbrella. However, there are several other types of dementia.

When You or a Loved One Is Diagnosed with Dementia, What Comes Next?

An adult daughter hugs her elderly mother after a dementia diagnosis

A diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease or dementia can be very devastating, challenging, overwhelming, and emotional. Dementia doesn’t just affect the one diagnosed — it often impacts everyone in the family, close friends, and even neighbors and co-workers. However, being informed and getting connected to appropriate support after a dementia diagnosis can help you know what to expect and what to do next. This checklist can help you get started.

Looking Back and Looking Forward

A road leading to a sunrise with an arrow from 2021 to 2022

Each year, many of us make resolutions to become a better version of ourselves in the new year. Many times, these new year’s resolutions focus on the negative — our worst qualities that we want to change, our bad habits we want to break, or our biggest mistakes we hope to rectify. If your past year had major losses, challenges, or setbacks, you may long for “the good old days” or how things once were, idealizing the past and longing for something that is gone. This is very easy to do when thinking about our pre-pandemic lives and the ways things are now, and certainly, many have experienced the loss of family or friends, jobs, and more.