OCT 2020 - Highway DBN

Promotion
Challenges and opportunities
for seniors … in a pandemic
The pandemic took us by surprise. Who would have imagined that within the space of a few weeks,
the world would transpose from ‘normal,’ to a ’locked-down’ environment? Retirement experts,
Kloof Retirement Villages, share some ideas on how to turn challenges into opportunities.
A legacy of challenges
Some of the seniors who were worst
affected by the pandemic included
those who had decided that, although
alone, they would continue to live in
their own houses. Being unable to go
out or even receive visitors for months
on end can be extremely lonely and
depressing. Some were unable to go to
shopping malls for essential foodstuffs.
Had they have been in a retirement
complex however such errands could
have been arranged for them. So too
for those nervous of going to medical
centres - most retirement facilities have
on-site medical care available.
A legacy of opportunities
It wasn’t all bad new though. Some
previously unconsidered opportunities
presented themselves, including:
• Eureka moments! For example, the
realisation that all the clutter we were
tripping over as we negotiated our
locked-down ‘caves’ was unnecessary
and in the way!
• We were forced to take up art or
hobbies in order to maintain our sanity,
bringing about a realisation for many
of what we had been missing. Passions
and pastimes that could improve
the rest of our retirement years were
revealed to us.
• An awareness that self-reliance is a
perquisite for a contented life in an
unpredictable future.
• Friends and even relatives who we
perhaps haven’t contacted for decades
are valuable and we needed to reestablish
contact with them before it is
too late.
• The risk of procrastination! Some seniors had previously placed their names on
retirement facility waiting lists, but when suitable units became available, they
continually delayed purchasing.
And so, it would seem that the pandemic’s legacy has left us with some benefits as
well. Lessons have been learnt and we have been left with choices to make. Now is
the time to convert challenges into opportunity. If you haven’t opened a box in five
years – get rid of it! Donate excess things to family or the needy and re-establish
meaningful relationships with important friends and relatives.
We now also know that COVID’s may not depart and could either take up permanent
residence or become a seasonal visitor. So perhaps when considering whether to
move into a retirement complex, instead of adopting an ‘in the future’ attitude,
perhaps the future is now? Put your name on a waiting list and don’t think to yourself
‘maybe next time’!
Written by Henry Spencer BA, MPhil (Cum laude)
Author, public speaker and Gerontologist. Consultant to Kloof Retirement Villages.
34 Get It • Highway • Berea • Durban North October 2020