Living your best life independently in your later years can sometimes be interrupted by health challenges and other problems.
Here at Devon & Cornwall Care Services, our carers encourage a positive outlook to tackle these obstacles when they arrive, so that your ‘best life’ can still be lived and your independence is protected.
Your mental, as well as physical, wellbeing is a vital contributor to this - to motivating, achieving, and keeping that independence. These are some of the things you can do to help:
Connect with others in your community, friends, or family. This builds a sense of belonging and self-worth. It gives you an opportunity to share how you are feeling and you can share positive moments that you have in your life.
Try and be physically active, get those endorphins going! Enjoy some fresh air and take in nature. Dartmoor is the perfect place to experience this. Learn a new skill (you are never too old!) even if it’s a new recipe to cook or signing up to an online course. All of this will give you a great sense of achievement.
Give to others and showing kindness even if it’s just a ‘thank you’ to someone or letting someone know how important they are to you. Research has been conducted on this subject and it has been proven that those small acts of kindness can lead to an improved mental wellbeing.
Bring mindfulness to your life. Being aware of the present moment, seeing the positives from life when at times this can be difficult. Living as independently as you can and living that ‘best life’ in the present moment, with your friends and with your family.