How to Make New Friends After Retirement

 

While you settle into your new assisted living community, you may find it a bit lonely at first. It’s nothing to be embarrassed about as many older adults have felt this way at one time or another. It can be difficult to leave a local group of lifelong friends and make new friendships, especially in your senior years. Here are some valuable tips to make fast friends from our assisted living team in Pitman NJ. 

Join a club or group activity 

Joining a club or engaging in group activities are the best ways to meet people with like-minded interests. Here at Pitman, we have many clubs available for our residents to join, such as the Garden Club. Our associates are available 24/7 to encourage and provide assistance to residents who would like to actively take part in community life. Not to mention, playing a cognitive game with a new friend like a puzzle can not only sharpen your social skills, but also sharpen short-term memory and problem-solving skills. 

Be more tech-savvy

Technology is the way of the world now. It’s been especially helpful during the pandemic when face-to-face meetings aren’t always the safest option. Many assisted living communities, including UMC, have tackled the challenge of creating an abundant social life for seniors during COVID-19. It hasn’t always been easy, but technology like Zoom and Facetime has really helped our residents stay connected to family, friends, and other residents. We’ve also used this technology to host group activities safely, such as our monthly virtual trivia competitions. 

Ask assisted living associates for help 

If you’re still not sure how or where to start, ask assisted living associates for help! As mentioned above, the associates are available around the clock to help with not only medical needs, but personal needs as well. Making new friends definitely qualifies as a personal need, as well as an essential one! At UMC at Pitman, we believe in enriching all aspects of our residents’ lives – including their social lives. This is why we strive to provide many diverse activities to suit the interests of all residents. 

Community life in Gloucester County, NJ

Making the transition to assisted living can be an adjustment, but when you retire in a great town like Pitman NJ, our residents find that making new friends comes easily with all the fun activities available onsite. Our assisted living residents also have access to all the activity the surrounding community offers, through onsite transportation options. 

If you’d like to see if we’re the right assisted living option in Gloucester County, New Jersey, or would like more information about our active community life, please contact us today.

Original content posted on https://pitman.umcommunities.org/2021/02/22/how-to-make-new-friends-after-retirement/