Building Lasting Friendships in Your Retirement Living Community
When you envision an overall healthy lifestyle, you are more than likely thinking about physical activity and maintaining a healthy diet. While these are critical components, it certainly is not the whole picture.
Another one of the key elements to healthy aging is socialization. From reducing feelings of loneliness and anxiety to keeping the mind active and engaged, socialization has a significant impact on our overall health and wellness.
From a young age, we have been building friendships and relationships, and that should continue throughout our lives and into our retirement years. However, for some older adults, various factors can make it more difficult to maintain social relationships. Fortunately, moving into a retirement living community like Uplands Village can help.
Like with any move or transition, it is common to be nervous about forming a new circle of friends. Our team at Uplands Village wants to share a few tips with you about how to build lasting friendships and meaningful connections in your new home.
Call on Past Experiences
Most of us have dealt with some type of transition in our lives. Whether we moved with our family at a young age and had to change schools or started at a new job as an adult, we’ve had to adapt to new people and surroundings.
It’s important to remember that transitioning into a retirement living community is similar to any other move you have made in your life. While this is a new experience with different people, it is a similar transition. Think of your move into your new community as just another life transition.
How did you make new friends when you transferred schools? What did you do to make connections with your colleagues at your new job? If you approach this transition with the same mindset as you have with all the other moves you have made in your life, you will be able to draw from these past experiences and form your circle of friends as you did then.
Participate in Community Activities
Building friendships with other residents will be a lot harder if you spend your days alone in your residence. Instead, take advantage of the activities, events, and other engagement opportunities that your retirement living community has to offer.
These communities make it easy to connect with like-minded individuals. All you have to do is find something in the community that interests you; chances are, you will meet someone there who shares at least one of your interests, and you now have a solid foundation for building a friendship.
At Uplands Village, we offer a variety of activities and community amenities throughout our 500-acre campus. Some of these include:
- Fishing, kayaking, and canoeing opportunities on numerous lakes, ponds, and streams
- Connected walking, hiking, and biking trails
- On-site fitness center
- Guided exercise classes such as tai chi, yoga, and dance
- Indoor aquatic center with lap pool and water therapy pool
- Pickleball court
- Woodworking shop
- Crafts and pottery
- Community gardens and parks
- Lifelong learning institute
Hang Out in Community Common Areas
Even if all you are doing is quietly reading a book, choose to do so in one of your community’s common areas. Your chances of meeting someone are far better here than they are in your residence. For example, if you are reading a book – a fellow resident may walk by who has already read it, stop to introduce themselves, and talk to you about the book.
Use the common areas of your retirement living community to make yourself open to engaging with others. You do not have to spend all of your time here, but taking advantage of these spaces every now and then could help you form your circle of friends.
When you first move into your new community, remember to be patient. Everyone socializes and forms friendships in different ways. So take your time and do not get discouraged if it takes a little longer to make new friends.
To learn more about all that our retirement living community in Pleasant Hill, Tennessee, has to offer, visit our website or contact a member of the Uplands Village team.