How To Create Safe And Comfortable Apartments For Seniors: Essential Tips For Aging In Place

Your home is a place where you and your loved ones live and grow together. You feel safe and independent in your home, which makes it your top priority. And this is the reason you crave this place even when you grow older.

However, aging in place is more than just a priority. It becomes a way in which you feel comfortable and try to maintain your dignity in familiar surroundings.

So, to support this lifestyle, you must look after your home and change the space with time as well. Try to create safe and comfortable apartments for seniors, as it is essential to safeguard yourself at this age in that space of yours.

Ways To Create A Safe And Comfortable Home For Seniors

To create a safe and comfortable home for seniors, you can consider the following:

Prioritize Fall Prevention In Layout And Flooring

Falls are the only reason that a senior fears the most because they can cause you damage from which you might never recover again. It is one of the most common safety risks in senior living spaces.

Therefore, you should put all your focus on reducing the chances of slipping or tripping off. You can make your home safer and fall-proof by removing the rugs around the house, fixing any kind of loose wires or just anything that obstructs your path while you walk.

Flooring is also important to look at when you want to avoid the risk of falls. Go for better flooring options like vinyl, cork or rubber, which makes an excellent choice if you want to keep yourself from falling. This is because they are soft underneath your feet and feel less slippery as you walk on.

Set up handrails in hallways or narrow spaces so that you can support yourself while you walk around. You can also consider widening your doorways and plan your furniture arrangement in a way that you keep most of the spaces open, that would allow easy walking.

Optimize Lighting for Visibility and Safety

You already know that visibility is what we need to see what is happening around us. Without proper lighting in your house, you are putting yourself in danger. You might trip and fall, which can be easily avoided if you had better lighting at your home.

Your eyesight naturally gets weaker as you get older. So, you should maintain proper lighting at your home so that you don't meet with accidents while you perform your daily routine.

You can fix these by increasing ambient lighting in the major rooms of your apartment. The major rooms include living spaces, bathrooms, hallways, and your kitchen. To do this, you can use ceiling lights or wall-mounted lights that cover larger areas.

You can use the task lighting in the places where you work. Try placing these lights under your cabinets or the stove area in your kitchen so that you can get better visibility.

Motion sensor lights are the best things that you can get for your home. You don't have to struggle in the darkness at night looking for a switch. The sensor switches on the lights automatically once it senses your presence in the room.

Enhance Bathroom Safety and Accessibility

Bathrooms are often watery and have limited space, which makes the floor slippery and can pose a serious problem. If you want to keep yourself safe in the bathroom, consider resigning.

Install grab bars in places near the toilet and inside the shower or bathtub area so that you can get extra support while you sit or stand.

You can also replace your traditional tubs with walk-in showers, as doing this would allow you to take your bath without having to lift your leg over the high edges and reduce your chances of slipping.

Use non-slip mats and textured floor tiles. It will help you prevent slips. You should avoid glossy or polished surfaces to prevent falls when the floor gets wet.

Lastly, go for raised toilet seats. It can help you reduce strain on your knees and back. Also, you can install a handheld shower to make rinsing easier after you are done using the toilet.

Senior-Friendly Kitchen Modifications

You need to be in the kitchen at least three times a day. This makes it very important for you to consider and redesign it to make it senior-friendly.

Therefore, you can change the way you store your kitchen items by adjusting the way you store your essentials. Try to keep everything at your waist height so that you don't have to bend or raise yourself to reach it.

Use sliding drawers and cabinets. It makes it really easy for you to get your things out without stretching out or bending. Meanwhile, it also helps in efficient storing and is comfortable to use.

Next, use anti-fatigue mats. You can place these in your cooking area or in front of your sink so that you can ease the pressure on your feet while you stand in a single place at a time.

Lastly, use lightweight kitchenware; do not place heavy pots or sharp tools on high shelves. It can be hazardous for you. Go for lightweight kitchenware and tools to reduce strain on your body while you are cooking.

Ensure Ease of Navigation with Smart Design Choices

Your living space should be free from clutter as it would make mobility easy for you. Therefore, you need to go for smart design choices that would help you achieve the same without much effort.

You can do this by choosing furniture with rounded edges so that you don't bump into the rounded corners.

Keep your sidewalks clear and wide. Maintain at least three feet of space between furniture so that you can move freely. This becomes necessary if you are somebody who walks unaided or uses a cane or a walker.

You can also organise your household items in such a way that you reach the tools and equipment that you use the most easily and within reach. For example, keep your medicines in the bedside cabinet, your umbrella right by the door side in a holder and so on.

Conclusion

You can easily maintain safe and comfortable apartments for seniors by designing your houses in a thoughtful and practical manner. You just need to adjust your layout, lighting, and accessibility and build a place where you can easily thrive and grow every day in a better way.