The National Institute on Aging states that over 1 in 4 seniors suffer from a fall each year.
Our Zanesville community, situated only 52 miles from Columbus, wants to change that statistic for our residents. We've put together this list of fall prevention tips that are easy and effective.
With a few mindful changes, you can gift yourself a safer lifestyle. Keep reading to learn how!
Having confidence with every step you take is one of the best senior safety tips. Timid steps tend to lead to an uneven balance since you're thinking about each step rather than moving through the motion.
Shifting your weight to the other foot is more of a danger if you're afraid of each step.
Practice walking with extreme confidence around your senior apartments. By overselling your confidence in a safe area, you'll be more likely to feel a higher sense of confidence when you're out and about.
Avoiding falls in seniors also requires better muscle strength. When you can trust your body's strength, you'll automatically feel more confident and achieve better balance.
This doesn't mean you need to overexert yourself lifting weights. Gentle exercise can be a better alternative because you won't leave yourself feeling weak after a workout. Weaker muscles lead to a higher risk of falling.
Instead, try balance exercises for seniors that also improve your overall strength, such as:
A crucial thing to keep in mind when starting any new exercise regimen is to go slow. Listen to your body and take breaks often. Also, ask a friend to join you so that you can have a partner on your fitness journey.
Are you worried you might slip the next time you get in or out of the shower? Do you have to constantly avoid tripping over the edge of a rug?
These common concerns are the reasons assisted living safety focuses so much on open floor plans and clear walkways.
Another way to boost your overall safety is to install things like:
Take a moment to look around your home and note the places where you have the most difficulty. By installing these kinds of safety measures, you could improve your safety and comfort within your home.
The way lamps light up your apartment can have a direct impact on your risk of falling.
If the lights are too harsh, they can create deep shadows that hide potential hazards. If the lights are too dim, you won't be able to maneuver through your home with confidence.
Adjust the lighting to ensure you can see all aspects of your apartment without any trouble. Try using brighter bulbs if adding more lamps isn't possible.
Don't forget to consider low-level lighting as well. Sometimes the best way to offset difficult shadows is by being creative with your light placement. A small LED light strip on the floor can be enough to bring better safety during a nighttime trip to the bathroom.
The soles of our shoes can have a huge impact on our balance. Your favorite shoes might do well with your home's flooring, but that doesn't mean they're able to grip other flooring.
Getting footwear that is specifically made to be non-slip is your first line of defense against falling.
If you have trouble finding suitable shoes, talk to your doctor. They can often help point you in the right direction.
Did you know that seniors are encouraged to get their eyesight checked at least once a year? This practice can help catch changes in your eye health before they become a problem. It also helps keep you better protected against the risk of falling.
If things look even a little blurry, it can affect the way you maneuver around an obstacle. A small bump you're not expecting can be enough to lead to a fall.
To prevent this from happening to you, schedule a visit to your eye doctor regularly.
Sometimes, strengthening muscles or practicing balance techniques isn't a possibility. Certain conditions and symptoms can stop you from performing regular exercise regimens. Plus, building up muscles and balancing skills can take months.
Walking aids are the perfect solution to help you prevent falling in these situations. These tools give you extra balance you might not have otherwise.
The key is to find the style of walking aid that suits you best. The styles include:
You may struggle to walk with one style but find another style to be a breeze. Try not to get discouraged if you need to test several walking aids before you find the right one.
One of the most vital fall prevention activities you can do for your safety is to plan for any potential emergencies. You should always be confident in knowing who to call or what to do if you do happen to fall.
No one should be left to figure these kinds of things out during a stressful situation.
Come up with a versatile plan that you can easily enact if the worst should happen. This not only will help you feel more confident and secure, but it will also help your friends and family feel better about your safety.
The most important of all these fall prevention tips is the idea that confidence leads to better safety. If you can feel secure in your senior community, you'll decrease the likelihood of a fall.
At Clay Gardens Place Assisted Living, we put safety above all else. We'll go through your lifestyle and medication to ensure that you get a personalized care plan that lets you thrive during retirement. We can adjust your apartments and amenities to help prevent future falls.
Contact us today and schedule a tour with us!