How Would You Like to Live in a Retirement Community at the Age of 43?

As we get to midlife some of us may be thinking of a retirement community as an option for the future. Or perhaps we are dealing with parents who are moving into, or should be moving into, a retirement community.  We want to do what’s best for them but do we stop and think about how it might feel to make such a move?  We can only imagine because unless we physically take that step, it isn’t real.  Do we understand the emotions involved, the social fabric of the community, the physical environment, the services that are offered unless we ourselves spend time there?  

My mum lives in a retirement community in Australia.  I can be there and notice how she spends her days, how she interacts and connects with the other residents but I can never feel the emotions of actually having to live there. Mum doesn’t like it, for a number of different reasons, never has, and never will, even after having lived there for some 20+ years.

Finding the best retirement community, either for yourself or your parents, can be an overwhelming task. I found it fascinating when the publisher of the magazine Sourcebook:Your Guide to Retirement Living decided to move into such a community, at the age of 43, to experience senior housing options first hand.

If this is a topic you have an interest in, you may want to visit his blog at http://www.retirement-living.com/publisher/ and follow his experiences. Makes for interesting reading!