The moving process can be a really challenging one – no matter who you are or what shape you’re in! It doesn’t matter if you’re self-moving or hiring professionals, everyone is going to experience some kind of stress or emotional turmoil from packing and relocating. Additionally, moving can also be a physically strenuous process for anyone – especially if you have heavy boxes to move.

For these reasons, this huge process can be even more stressful or strenuous for older adults. Heavy furniture or bulky item lifting, sorting your things and belongings, packing or moving various things around the house, plus all of the emotional aspects that come with moving can be a huge undertaking and disruptive event. Because of the emotional and physical demands needed for this drawn out event, moving can be a huge undertaking, and can be even undoable for older people and senior citizens. 

Beyond the physical, emotional or sentimental factors involved in moving can also be even harder to deal with as you age. If you’re starting the process of moving out of a home you’ve maybe shared with  your family or children for the last several decades, or are just relocating from a home or area you’ve lived in since you were a child, it can be really hard to adjust and let go – never mind trying to sort through and declutter everything you’ve accumulated over the years. 

Despite all of this, try not to get overwhelmed by the amount of things to do or coordinate during a move. If you’re looking to pull off a senior move, follow these easy tips to make the process a little bit easier. 

Hire a Professional Moving Company

If you’re an older adult, it’s not a good idea to try and pack and move all of your items yourself due to the strain and general physical demands the process requires.

Moving heavy furniture and awkwardly sized items can put you at risk for serious injury or otherwise hurting yourself, and this can be especially dangerous if you’re already living alone. To avoid straining or injury, and also to streamline the process and make it easier for you, consider hiring professional moving services.

It’s important to make sure you’re receiving the best deal and expertise when coordinating your move professionally, so make sure to do thorough research into what you need from your company. Look into movers that specialize in senior moves, or that at least offer professional packing services on top of their normal offerings. 

Begin Planning as Soon as Possible

Start the planning process as early as possible to avoid stress and confusion. To avoid feeling overwhelmed and be able to approach moving day with a lot less stress, start clearing out clothes and decluttering your home as soon as possible. This will not only allow you to lessen the amount of things you need to move, but also allow you to start the emotional process of letting go of some of your things you’ll be leaving behind, as well as transitioning out of your home. 

Create a Plan

The best way to keep yourself organized and your moving process on track is by creating a step by step and detailed plan of action to figure out what you need to get done and by when. This is also helpful for packing timelines, and for scheduling movers. 

Declutter

As is the case with any move, go through your things and figure out what you’ll be donating, selling, throwing away, or just getting rid of in general. 

Start your decluttering efforts early on in order to have enough time to go through and sort all your items, and figure out what’s coming with and what isn’t. Give yourself enough time for both this process and for packing so you don’t have to rush. 

Emotionally Prepare Yourself

Adjusting to a new home is very emotionally stressful, and can be difficult for anyone. If you’ve lived in your past home for an extended period of time, make sure to give yourself time to emotionally prepare and adjust to leaving your home and starting life in a new one. Give yourself time to not only move, but settle into your new space.

If you’re an older adult or a senior citizen who is embarking upon a move soon, make sure to take time for yourself and don’t rush. This is a stressful process, but can be made a lot less so with the proper planning and care. This is a huge transition, so take it easy and give yourself time. Good luck!

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