How Often Should You Call Your Senior Loved One in Assisted Living

As we grow, our parents grow older. While it’s a natural process of life, sometimes it’s hard to see your senior loved one age and transition to an assisted care community to maintain their well-being. When that happens and when you just can’t see your loved one every other day, the sadness and guilt may creep in. 

Your senior loved one may expect you to call and ask about their health and everyday life. However, it’s sometimes hard to know how often you should call them. Are you calling them too often, or is it barely enough? There’s not a set-in-stone number since every individual is different and has different circumstances. 

So in this post, we’ll help you know the right balance of how often you should call your loved one in assisted living. 

5 Factors to Consider How Often You Should Call Your Loved One in Assisted Living 

There is no straight answer for how many times you should call your senior loved one. However, if you take the following factors into consideration, you can come up with a good estimate.

1. Your Loved One’s Personality 

Every individual is different. Some are more comfortable with frequent hangouts, calls, and socializing while others like to stay reserved. It’s important to know what your senior loved one’s personality is. Are they an introvert or an extrovert? Do they like to keep conversations short or do they like taking long calls? 

At the end of the day, you want to make them feel comfortable at all times. If they have an introverted personality, frequent calls can push them out of their comfort zone.

2. Their Activity Level in the Community

Assisted living communities organize dozens of events and activities every month, providing a busy social calendar for residents. You need to make sure your calls don’t interrupt them in their activities. If they actively engage in assisted care activities all the time, chances are your call will find them when they are in the middle of something. 

However, that doesn’t mean you call them every other week or every other month. They may still have a lot to share with you about their day, especially after being active in community events. You can call them every other night just before bedtime when both you and your loved one are free to talk about their day.  

3. Health Status 

Sometimes the state of your loved one’s health determines how often you need to call them. If they’re going through some serious health issues, they’d need more emotional support from family. So you would need to call them more often. If they’re healthy and participating in various assisted living events and activities, then calling them two to three times a week would work.

4. Previous Communication Patterns Before Assisted Living

Apart from their current health status, their previous communication patterns can also be taken into consideration. Before moving away, how often would they like to call or keep in touch with you? However, this is not always the case. Some seniors don’t communicate much when they’re not separated. But when they move away, they may miss you more. So don’t disregard calls entirely based on their previous communication patterns.

5. Their Preference and Comfort With Phone Calls

Lastly, your senior loved one’s comfort and preference are the deciding factor. Some people are not comfortable having long, frequent conversations on the telephone, especially when they are out of topics to talk about and there’s a minute’s silence on both ends. 

When you’re talking to your loved one on the phone, you can tell by their tone if they’re comfortable or not. They’d feel more relaxed and confident when they’re comfortable, whereas if they’re not comfortable with phone calls, they would feel rushed and distracted. 

Worried About Staying Connected With Your Loved One When They Move to Assisted Living? Explore Adante Assisted Living Today

All in all, you should call your loved one more often if they express loneliness and feel withdrawn or if they are going through health changes. Generally, you should check in daily and ask about their well-being. However, if they are more confident and participating in activities or if they mention that you’re interrupting their activities, you should call less often.

Here at Adante Assisted Living, we offer a range of activities and amenities to keep your senior loved one engaged and happy. We offer a maintenance-free lifestyle where our caregiving staff takes care of all the household responsibilities of your senior loved one, such as cooking, housekeeping, and apartment maintenance, which leaves them with more time to talk to you. 

Want to learn more about our offerings? Schedule a visit to Adante Assisted Living today.