Keeping healthy is very important as an older adult. From making sure to exercise regularly to maintaining a healthy diet, all these steps will keep you in good health for longer. And while physical health is vital to help you sustain a healthy lifestyle during older age, it’s important to also ensure you stay healthy mentally, too. Keeping your brain active and staying social in those latter years is so important.
In fact, loneliness can often have a detrimental effect on your health, mentally and physically. In fact, there is research that we have discussed before that when your brain is not in a positive way, you can be at a higher risk of conditions like dementia.
Of course, as an older adult, the chance for socialization can decrease. When people retire, they often find their social life is impacted. In addition, people moving away to live closer or with family can leave people feeling more isolated. And when friends and family members pass away, it can leave people without a social circle.
And this can then be detrimental to your physical and mental health. Therefore, here are three ways to maintain social connections as an older adult.
Volunteer
A lot of people struggle to find that same level of socialization when they stop work. They can miss that interaction, and they feel they can’t maintain those social connections. A lot of empty nesters find they end up feeling lonely too.
With this in mind, it can be a great idea to look at volunteering in the local area. You will be surprised by how many opportunities are available, which will not only boost your skills but also help you to build social connections.
It can give people a real sense of purpose, whether they use skills they have built over the years in their career or working among younger people, giving them vital experience and helping them to build their own skills.
Working with a team and helping others can really benefit an older adult and their mental health. You can look online or ask at local community centers to find opportunities in the area that will work for those in retirement.
Joining local community groups
Meeting new people can be a minefield in later years, as well as the thought of doing new activities. But a great way to socialize while also keeping your brain healthy is local community groups. There are lots of groups around in the area where you can socialize with others who are similar-minded and have shared interests. They often have regular meetups, and you can interact with the group.
You can find groups that have a range of social activities, so you can find something that actually works for you. Whether you want to go to an art workshop or a book club, there are plenty that will help to keep your interests flourishing in older age.
There are also groups out there where you can just socialize and enjoy others’ company every week. A regular group keeps routine and stops people from feeling lonely in older age, and a lot of people make friends with whom they then do other activities as well.
Join an exercise group
Exercise is not just good for your physical health, but it also works well for your mental health. It helps to boost your self-esteem and confidence, as well as helping you to feel more positive about life.
Attending an exercise group can help build social connections as an older adult. You will get to meet other people who will support and encourage you while you exercise. Having that group of support opens up new social connections and keeps people feeling happy and healthy in older age.
It doesn’t have to be an intensive physical activity too; there are walking groups in the area where you can go for a short walk with a bunch of people. Gentle and structured outdoor activities can be especially beneficial for both mood and social engagement. This encourages opportunities for friendships and helps you to get to know new people too.
You can maintain social connections as an older adult by getting to know the neighbors in the area. Just arranging a weekly coffee with a neighbor in the area can help stop loneliness. A lot of areas have a neighborhood group that you can find out about online, and they often post about activities happening and meet-ups, as well as how they support people in the area.