Cultivating a Culture of Empathy and Compassion at Hillside Terrace

Empathy and compassion are essential components of effective caregiving. Our assisted living staff receives training on how to communicate effectively with residents, listen attentively to their concerns, and provide emotional support.

Promoting mental health and wellness is so important in assisted living. This requires a holistic approach that addresses unique needs and challenges of their residents. At Hillside, the mental well-being of our residents is important, we ensure they thrive in an environment that feels like home.

 

Learn more about how Hillside Terrace promotes mental health here.

 

Allow Your Loved One to Live Comfortably - Hillside Terrace Assisted Living Ann Arbor 

 

When your aging parents move into an assisted living community, you won’t have to worry if someone is there to help get them back on their feet. If you’re interested in learning more about assisted living in Ann Arbor at Hillside Terrace or scheduling a tour, contact us today! 734-761-4451

Promoting Mental Health and Wellness at Hillside Terrace Senior Living

The move to an assisted living facility is a significant life change for your loved one. It often involves leaving behind familiar surroundings, friends, and routines, which can trigger feelings of loss, isolation and anxiety. Additionally, many residents may be coping with chronic health conditions, limited mobility, or cognitive decline, further increasing their vulnerability to mental health issues.

At Hillside Terrace Senior Living in Ann Arbor, we promote mental health and wellness by:

1. Establishing a supportive environment

2. Providing access to mental health services

3. Encouraging physical activity

4. Fostering meaningful engagement 

5. Supporting healthy nutrition

6. Cultivating a culture of empathy and compassion

Learn more about how Hillside Terrace promotes mental health here.

Allow Your Loved One to Live Comfortably - Hillside Terrace Assisted Living Ann Arbor 

 

When your aging parents move into an assisted living community, you won’t have to worry if someone is there to help get them back on their feet. If you’re interested in learning more about assisted living in Ann Arbor at Hillside Terrace or scheduling a tour, contact us today! 734-761-4451

Hillside Terrace Partnered with Japanese Martial Arts Center in Ann Arbor

Every two weeks residents at Hillside Terrace Senior Living attend classes geared toward older adults at the Japanese Martial Arts Center (JMAC) in Ann Arbor. All classes are tailored for different levels of fitness, injury issues, and mobility ranges. 

At Hillside Terrace, we offer many opportunities for physical exercise including: NuStep, daily exercise class, volleyball, bocce ball, and a walking group.

You can combine purposeful exercise and healthy lifestyle habits at any age. It isn’t necessary for adults to drastically alter their current lifestyle to reap the physical and mental benefits of exercise. You just need to make a few tweaks that can have a larger impact on overall health. We can help you live a longer and happier life!

Learn more about the benefits of martial arts in your golden years here.

Make Hillside Terrace Senior Living Your Home Away from Home! 

If you’re interested in learning more about assisted living in Ann Arbor at Hillside Terrace or scheduling a tour, contact us today! 734-761-4451

Best Types of Martial Arts for Your Aging Loved One

Tai Chi – This is a soft type of martial arts that is comprised of flowing movements. 

Jiu-Jitsu – This martial art involves a lot of groundwork, strengthening your entire body and can improve your overall hip flexibility.

Wing Chun – This is a martial art that focuses on open-handed strikes instead of close-fisted strikes.

Learn more about the benefits of martial arts in your golden years here.

Schedule Your Tour Today! 

Hillside Terrace provides an “aging by choice” philosophy. We work with your family to create the best possible living situation for your senior relative. Our housing, dining, and care services will make your loved one feel at home! 

If you’re interested in learning more about assisted living in Ann Arbor at Hillside Terrace or scheduling a tour, contact us today! 734-761-4451.

Ask Yourself These Questions When Your Parent Refuses Help

 Are you frustrated that your parent refuses your help?

A Place for Mom suggests that you “ask yourself some of these questions when it comes to your parents’ behavior: 

• Are they acting this way out of habit?
• Are they worried about losing their independence?
• Are they suffering from depression or anxiety?
• Are they confused or do they have dementia?
• What are some things they may be fearing?”

Identifying the root causes of your parents’ behavior can help you identify the best way to make positive changes.

Learn more about what to do when parents’ refuse help, here.

Still have unanswered questions? Schedule a tour at Hillside Terrace Senior Living to get all your questions answered by our friendly staff.

Respect in Elderly Care

R.E.S.P.E.C.T. Whether it’s in catchy songs or in kids’ shows, respect has always been important to our relationships. And why shouldn’t it be? Regardless of skin color, financial status, body type, or age—everyone in every walk of life should be respected. That doesn’t end just because someone goes to an elderly care facility! So what behaviors are considered “respectful” towards the elderly? When it comes to elderly care, here are our ideas:

• Refer to the resident by their first name
  

Unless a resident specifically asks to be called by a nickname, we’ll call them by their first name. Calling someone “gramps” or “grandma” might not bother some people, but for others it may be unflattering. We’ll always ask what our residents want to be called. 

• Communicate clearly and politely

What are the rules? What are the procedures? We’re upfront and clear about all our processes and procedures. We’ll always try to be polite—asking for a resident’s opinion and always knocking before entering unless there’s a medical or personal emergency. We work hard to respect any boundaries a resident may have.

• Allow a resident to make choices

We allow our residents to make choices. Whether it’s the food they eat or the clothes they wear, they’ll always have the first say. Retiring to an elderly care facility shouldn’t mean the end of individuality and personal freedom! You and your loved one deserve to be treated with the best in care and—you guessed it—respect!

So don’t be worried about your loved one needing care. If your loved one needs elderly care in Ann Arbor give us a call today! We’re happy to help! 

How to Make Great Tasting Food for the Senior Palate

Worried all the nutritional concerns that come with older age will turn you cooking bland? Cooking for a senior who’s even pickier than a toddler? Want to make tasty food that meets all your senior nutritional needs?

Good nutrition can be a great medicine, keeping us strong and active throughout our senior years. But as certain medical conditions start to creep in with old age, it might be recommended that you cut out certain foods you used to rely on for flavor in most of your dishes. 

But that doesn’t mean your new menu has to be bland or unappetizing! To make tasty food suitable for your nutritional needs, check-out our helpful guide to cooking for the senior palate:

• Replace bad fat, like saturated and trans fat, with the good, like monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats found in avocado and nuts. 
• Substitute pureed potato or cauliflower for cream in recipes likes soups and pastas for a creamy texture minus fat and calories.
• Take a class to get out of your cooking comfort zone and find some good ideas for meals you never considered before. 
• Include naturally sweet foods, depending on blood sugar needs, but avoid added sugars and sugar substitutes. 
• Cook softer meals like soups, stews, and braised meats for satisfying, complete, easy-to-eat meals. 
• Cut salt without losing flavor by adding fresh herbs, spices, onions, garlic, wine, or vinegars. 
• Incorporate healthy snacks and smoothies to supplement diet and add a nutritional boost. 
• Recreate comfort foods and other favorite dishes to entice anyone with a lack of appetite. 

With these tips, you’ll practically be a gourmet chef! Or at least you’ll be pleasing anyone you cook for and keeping them healthy, too. If you have more questions about cooking for seniors or hospice care in Ann Arbor give us a call today. At Hillside Terrace, our family shares life with yours. 

Combating Senior Isolation This Winter!

Want to help yourself or a loved one avoid isolation as winter approaches? Need help fighting winter isolation for a senior in your life? Want tips to help preventing winter isolation from experts in hospice care in Ann Arbor?

Past their sixties, the older a person becomes, the more likely they are to live alone. As mobility and other health concerns become more of an issue, living alone can lead to a greater risk of isolation. In winter this can be a particularly big issue when many seniors worry about slippery conditions and moving around in bulky clothing and visitors may be less likely to stop by.

To help you combat senior isolation this winter, we’ve put together a list of our top 7 tips to stay connected! 

1. Build a Network: It might be harder for family members to visit a senior in winter, so ask neighbors to check-in on them once week. You can also utilize other modes of communication, like phone calls or connecting online, to fend off isolation. Try putting a weekly call in your calendar to help you remember!
2. Keep Them Nourished: Nutrition is incredibly important when it comes to keeping seniors feeling their best, but meal prep and cooking can become a real challenge. Help seniors stay nourished by arranging meal or grocery delivery. You can take a big task off their to-do list and free up their time for socialization and activities. 
3. Get to Know Community Services: Make sure seniors are familiar with the local senior center, senior transportation options, and other senior services in the community. AAA can be a good resource for discovering and locating all that’s available in the community. 
4. Tackle Medical Concerns: Being proactive addressing health and medical conditions will help seniors feel more confident to get out or take visitors at home. Help out by making appointments for them, arranging for medical supplies to be delivered, and etc. 
5. Mobility Assistance: Keep encouraging and reminding seniors to use their aids like canes, walkers, hearing aids, glasses, etc. to keep them moving and engaging with others easily and safely.
6. Transportation: Offer and arrange rides to appointments and activities. You can use community senior transportation services, private services, or simply call a taxi!
7. Consider Assisted Living: A facility designed to keep seniors healthy, active, fulfilled may be the best bet to combat senior isolation and other concerns that become too much for family members to take on. 

With these strategies to combat isolation this winter, the senior you’re caring for should get through the season happily and confidently. If you have any questions about helping a senior through winter or other needs from assisted living to hospice care in Ann Arbor, give us a call today. At Hillside Terrace, our family shares life with yours. 

5 Hidden Costs of Family Caregiving

Are you finding it hard to make ends meet while caring for your loved one?

Caregiving can be a big expense. After all, assisted living communities can be quite expensive, so it must be cheaper to do it yourself, right?

Wrong!

Here are a few benefits you could be missing out on by being your family’s caregiver, according to A Place for Mom:

1. Lost wages- Caregivers frequently have to give up on their own career to take care of their loved one, missing out on an average $143,000 in lost wages.
2. Decreased employability- Caregivers find that it’s difficult to find a new job when their time as a caregiver ends.
3. Increased health care costs- Caregiving can take a toll on your physical and mental health.
4. Lost savings and retirement- Out-of-pocket expenses can really add up! The National Alliance for Caregiving and Evercare found that a stunning 47% of working caregivers reported having used up all or most of their savings.
5. Reduced productivity- Caregiving not only effects the caregiver, but the economy too. MetLife found that American businesses lose an estimated $34 billion each year due to employees’ need to care for aging loved ones.

Get Started Today: Schedule a Tour!

We can help your family create peace of mind. When you’re at home you’ll know your loved one is taken care of and in good hands. Hillside Terrace – “Where our family shares life with your family!” Come see the difference we can make when your family shares life with our family. Schedule a tour of Hillside Terrace today– a facility for hospice care in Ann Arbor.

For more information about hospice care offered at Hillside Terrace, visit us at HillsideTerrace.net, or contact us here!