It is an ambition of every senior citizen to be self reliant, not living reliant on external factors to help them in their daily activities. Senior citizens desire to live self reliant as long as possible first in their mobilities(walking, driving, jogging), second, being financially stable, third being connected socially with respect to their children, friends and neighbours. There are always a lot of factors which make senior citizens inevitably get dependent. With the massive improvements in healthcare in India, there will be more senior citizens than those under 15 years of age in 2050. This would propel the nation to look after the needs of this senior generation and being self reliant would be of paramount importance. Continue reading to know what it is to be a self reliant senior citizen and how 60plusIndia is helping them achieve it.

What is being self reliant as a senior citizen?

Being self reliant can be defined as being reliant on one's own powers and resources rather than those of others. To put it simply, being self reliant is being able to look after oneself without external help. Senior citizens often find it hard to be self reliant due to factors like degrading health, minimised source of income, lack of esteem, etc. An ideal self reliant senior citizen would be one who could do their daily chores of activities themselves with minimal support. The reason any elderly person would wish this is that they can save a disproportionately huge amount of money getting spent on their healthcare and being self reliant saves them from getting depressed, sad and purposeless which is highly likely if a person is too much dependent. 

How to be a self reliant senior citizen?

The shift from being dependent to a self reliant senior citizen definitely can not take place overnight. In fact the longer the time which one has spent being dependent, the harder it is to go back to being self reliant. Yet, there is hope. The best way to be a self reliant elder is to start preparing oneself beforehand while young to be ready in three major aspects - Mobility, Financial and Social connectivity 

Mobility: Prevention is better than cure! Everybody takes mobility for granted until they are forced to depend on help for mobility. Older adults are plagued by higher levels of physical and cognitive disabilities that result from the aging process and chronic diseases. Losing independent mobility leads to exclusion from the community, prone to higher rates of diseases, high chances of being socially isolated which overall turns to a highly dependent person living a poor quality of life. The ideal way to have mobility is to exercise and keep oneself fit. It is a fact that mobility function is jointly linked with cardiovascular and muscular fitness and therefore exercise can have an important role in preventing mobility impairments. Note that mobility disability and declines are often transitory and not a permanent condition. Hence strive to take necessary measures to keep yourself fit and active to have increased mobility as you grow old.

Financial: It is not how much money you make, but how much money you keep is what counts. The major thing that makes senior citizens to be unfavourably dependent is their lack of a source of income. Children of senior citizens would support them financially, but no parent would ever want to be a burden for their children. If a senior citizen's healthcare expenditure is high, it would create obnoxious situations. This can be avoided if one plans his/her finances properly with long term budgeting and saving for emergencies. 

Social Connectivity:  Seniors who are socially connected have a strong sense of belonging, which has positive impacts on health, well being and confidence in being self reliant. There are many barricades for a senior citizen to be socially connected. Like, lack of knowledge of using technology, physical limitations, relocations, busy family members to name a few. Being self reliant means to be able to get connected with those they love. Seniors with social connection have many benefits over seniors without, and experience many mental and emotional health benefits.

By 2050, 20% of India’s population will be above the age of sixty. As the number of senior citizens all around the world increases rapidly, the number of people striving to live a self reliant life will be increasing too. Being self-reliant during the later years of their lives in mobility, financial and social connectivity makes them live their lives more peacefully and at better terms compared to their dependent counterparts. Now that you know what it is to be a self reliant senior citizen, go ahead and live the rest of your life to the fullest! 

Author: Team 60plus India

Keywords: Self reliant, Senior citizens

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