Ferndale Assisted Living & Retirement Community

ASSISTED LIVING

Defining Assisted Living Near Ferndale

Assisted living relates to housing and services for people - usually seniors and disabled - who need some level of help with daily care and activities. They may need assistance with things like dressing, bathing, taking their medicines, and cleaning. But they do not need the medical care that a nursing home provides. Assisted living allows residents to live more independently and actively.

Assisted living communities sometimes have other names, such as adult care or residential care. The two categories The Willows encompasses are:

1. Communities that support independent living and 
2. Communities that have the added support of on-site medical staff

Most Ferndale seniors who enjoy living active and independent lives do not require constant assistance nor medical care. Their sense of independence is too great and they do not desire help with everything. But they do yearn to live and move around freely, on their own, retaining control of their daily routine while eliminating trivial worries and problems.

Will The Willows Senior Living Community Meet Your Requirements?

Features of senior communities that make this possible should include daily meal serving, housekeeping, physical exercise programs, social activities, transportation, communication and easy access to medical services. This is why Willows is so attractive to seniors even outside of Washington State - it’s what makes the core structure of an independent care senior community. Communities that support onsite medical assistance tend to fall under the category of nursing homes.

How Our Community Assists Its Residents

At The Willows, we maintain a number of features and activities that help our residents stay happy, fit and focused on healthy living. Among them is our LifeMinded program for seniors, which motivates participants to work on their social and physical skills by participating in group events. Our restaurants provide diverse and healthy diet programs while our housekeeping staff keeps all housing units clean. Some senior communities are designed to accommodate those who require medical and general assistance. These usually include licensed nurses, assistance and counseling on medication, but also round the clock monitoring of health status, making them more similar to nursing homes. Persons with serious health issues or who are in declining health would be best served by places that offer these types of services.

The Willows succeed in balancing between offering independent living and assisted living services in an approach that allows seniors to be in control of their lives and actually not feel old. This way, we make sure that as our residents’ needs and preferences change, they stay satisfied and healthy while building and maintaining an independent and active lifestyle on their own.

Different folks require different types of services, and it’s difficult to come up with one model for all clients. The most important thing is to determine the amount and type of care you or your loved one needs. From there on, we can easily determine if what we offer meets your requirements. We believe that our Willows assisted living center offers the finest senior care available in Washington State, but we want people to live where they will receive the care that caters to their personal preferences. Feel free to contact us today so we can work out the details together.

THE VALUE OF STAYING INDEPENDENT AS WE AGE

As we grow, mature and age, one thing always stays constant - our pursuit for independence. That feeling of building responsibility for our future and paving our own paths. And while there’s no denying this is a great virtue, there comes a time in our lives where it can hinder our progress and quest for happiness.

Most retirees these days fall in love with the idea of living in their home as they get old. Just resting at a familiar place you can call home.

It sounds tempting at first - with so much free time and less stress, you can plan and manage your day as you please and do the things you like. Unfortunately, that’s just in theory. In reality, however, aging by yourself at home can become a huge challenge. 

Housework never ends, chores never get done, health issues come and go, and there’s just too much to worry about every day. And while pressure mounts and worries multiply, our bodies get more and more tired. Increasing the chances of injuries, exhaustion, and even serious medical problems. Not to mention chronic psychological stress.

For this reason, many senior citizens these days choose to move out of their homes and spend the rest of their lives in senior housing communities, so they can forget about their problems and worries, focusing on spending their free time as they please, all the while making new friends and nurturing their social skills.

Benefits Offered By Independent Senior Living Communities

A typical Independent Senior Living Community is built and organized as a huge complex consisting out of multiple housing units. They are usually divided into apartments, bungalows or rooms fitted with assisted living in mind. These spaces are organized with the intent to make their residents’ lives as easier and pleasant as possible by providing them with everything they need. This includes companionship, since these housing units usually have multiple tenants, and thus encourage socialization and group activities.

These types of campuses offer many benefits, which come in a variety of services. The Willows, for instance, offer services in transportation, housekeeping, security, wellness programs and numerous leisure group activities to ensure its residents’ needs are fulfilled and their lives made easier and happier.

Aging in place, and everything that comes with it

As explained, the idea behind these types of communities is to minimize potential problems, risks and worries for the aging person and provide them with more free time to enjoy activities they like. The Willows pays much attention to designing and running its Independent Senior Living Communities so that its residents feel even better than at their own homes. With organized transportation and immediate assistance available in all of our housing units, including assistance at the push of a button, for fast and reliable communication with our staff.

What makes The Willows stand out from the rest?

For decades now, we have been running The Willows as a family business. With around 3 decades of experience and great feedback from our clients and partners, we take pride in encouraging both our staff and our residents to actively socialize, help each other out and build long-lasting relationships. Residents’ happiness and safety are our primary focus! At the Willows, going the extra mile is a habit we’ve built to ensure you can make the most out of your retirement.

We invite you to pay us a visit and take a detailed tour of the surrounding area and the premises itself. We will be glad to answer all of your questions, introduce you to our staff and most importantly - let you talk to our residents, who will explain and confirm why they consider moving to the Willows the best choice of their lives.

NUTRITIONAL AND DIETARY ASSISTANCE

Recognizing the impact of a healthy diet, especially in old age

It is widely known that exercising and socializing are key to maintaining mental and physical health in later stages of life. But one thing most of us seem to forget is the importance of nutrition. Considering that everything that makes up our bodies is imported by food, it becomes clear that what we eat literally defines and transforms our body. And it can have an astonishing effect on how we deal with illnesses and aging itself.

We’ve all heard of vitamins, minerals, fats and proteins, the key components that help our bodies develop, grow and stay strong and healthy. But not many of us understand the exact mechanism behind this, nor how big of an impact proper nutrition can have on our physical, and mental health as well.

Vitamins are synthesized in our bodies from chemicals known as amino acids. These substances are largely found in fruits and vegetables. Furthermore, the way our digestion works is that it lets benevolent microorganisms in our guts to break down huge chunks of food and turn them into soluble building components. But these bacteria require fibres to thrive and function. And it is exactly fruits and vegetables that carry the most fibres out of all foods.

But what about proteins and energy?

Besides amino acids for synthesizing vitamins, our bodies also require a lot of proteins to maintain themselves, and fats to harness energy. And while regular meat may sound like the perfect candidate, it turns out that nowadays, most of these are full of additives, hormones and saturated fats. Most of these compounds have either a neutral or negative impact on our digestion, our cardiovascular health, our immune system and our overall metabolism.

So it’s no wonder more and more wellness coaches and medical professionals are pointing out the benefits of diet plans based on seafood. Some locations at sea are polluted, as experienced fishermen wil tell you, but we get our ingredients from reputable sources and they go through rigorous tests in order to be certified. 100% natural!

Unlike regular meat, fresh seafood is not plagued with artificial additives and is rich in fatty acids, which benefit our bodies. Used by our bodies to regulate the immune system and metabolism, fatty acids represent one of the most important nutrients, especially in people who are prone to inflammatory responses and diseases.

Ferndale senior citizens can rest assured that their diets are in good hands if they choose to join the Willows Bellingham senior community. All of your nutritional needs will be met, no matter what.

The Willows Bellingham takes pride in creating healthy, yet delicious dishes

With so much knowledge, research, and data on the importance of nutrition, we have come up with a detailed diet plan that enables our residents to enjoy their favorite meals while still maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Our cooking staff is skilled in preparing all sorts of specialties involving fruits, vegetables and seasonal herbs. 

A diverse mix of Mediterranean and traditional Asian cuisine offers plenty of delicious recipes while retaining their nutritional values.

We like to encourage our residents to socialize as much as possible, which is why we enable them to consume their meals however they please, whenever they choose. The Willows’s dining spaces are specially designed and adjusted so our residents can experience the nature around them while enjoying some of our delicious dishes. 

Also, whenever someone feels like dining at home or throwing a private event, they can always count on our non-stop room service. All of these commodities come pre-included in the monthly rent.

FITNESS & WELLNESS ACTIVITIES

Most of us enter retirement with a bunch of plans and things to do, thinking that extra free time will work to our benefit. And yes, in the beginning, it can be pretty neat. But as years come and go, we find ourselves having difficulties with everyday tasks. And while it’s easy to blame it on aging, the fact is that most of these issues can be prevented or partially avoided. 

One of the key parts of your daily living will be maintaining a healthy exercise routine and learning to adapt to new circumstances, developing new movement patterns, and stimulating your body to preserve and promote youthfulness.

It is known far and wide that physical activity boosts our immune system, helps us stay strong and agile and regulates our metabolism. But what most of us forget is that it also has numerous positive effects on our mental health as well.

Staying fit is essential for both the body and the mind

For seniors, starting a fitness program can be a challenge, but it’s achievable with good habits. The strength of your muscles and bones plays a key role in your ability to continue exercising, so be sure that you’re getting enough vitamin D and calcium. You will also soon realize that exercising positively affects your mental health, and there is a good reason behind it.

In order to become and stay happy and relaxed, our bodies need serotonin. And for our serotonin levels to be regulated as intended, our daily physical activity needs to be high enough to stimulate our organs, especially the brain and the digestive system. Exercise indirectly and directly enhances our endocrine and cardiovascular system as well. Many modern diseases and conditions are a direct result of poor blood flow. Maintaining a healthy cardiovascular system ensures that nutrients get to all of your bodily cells, and exercise can indirectly help your heart by ensuring your blood, veins, arteries and capillaries stay clean, lowering the amount of pressure your heart needs to exert to keep pumping.

Exercise helps our bodies regulate and boost the immune system, cell regeneration and coordinates the way our bodies respond to illnesses. By maintaining a healthy workout routine, we are actually maintaining the mechanisms that protect us from harmful pathogens and thus prolong our cells’ lives.

The importance of LifeMinded living

Understanding the importance of regular exercise, we have developed our own program called LifeMinded, which consists of five categories. The first one includes yoga, dancing classes and walking, with various outdoor activities. 

The second pillar is brain fitness. Many scientists today agree that how healthy our brains are can influence the rest of our bodies. The brain expends around 20% of all energy we take in, even though it makes up for only 2.5% of our body weight. It is a powerhouse that regulates almost everything in your body.

Our brains need activities that include leisure, socialization, and mental challenges, encouraging participants to maintain and use their wits to solve complex problems.

Social connection makes the third form of LifeMinded program, and is carried out through various social activities, workshops, parties and holding live events that we host on a weekly basis in order to encourage our residents who want the opportunity to expand their relationships.

We also believe in making a difference to be the best motivation for all, and therefore implement it in our LifeMinded program. It is designed to show our residents that they still have more than enough time and abilities to develop new skills, discover their passions and make in impact on their community and the world by funneling their energy into creativity.

This is what makes the Willows your top choice in Bellingham and for Ferndale residents looking to move towards the best retirement possible.