MorningStar

Too often seniors mistakenly believe that moving into assisted living means an end to their independence and their life as they knew it. We want to reassure you that at today’s assisted living communities like MorningStar at Jordan Creek; nothing could be further from the truth. Aging.com explains that while changes in a person’s ability to care for themselves can be caused by underlying medical conditions, studies show the importance of seniors receiving the assistance they need with the ADLs (activities of daily living). “Functional status and the ability to care for oneself have a significant impact on a senior's quality of life. Unmet needs for help with activities of daily living can lead to malnutrition, poor personal hygiene, isolation, illnesses like urinary tract infections (UTIs), and falls.” Another benefit of getting the help you need when you need it, is it actually gives the person a renewed sense of independence and lets them feel like they are once again i...

  MorningStar at Mountain Shadows is designed to allow our residents to comfortably and safely age in place. By offering luxury amenities, wellness programs and activities, and a broad range of care services, we support the whole person – mind body and spirit. The amenities at our beautiful community include a fireside patio and strolling paths as well as an in-house salon for hair-styling, manicures and pedicures, a fitness room, library and much more. We also have a Bistro, and along with our beautiful restaurant-style dining in our main dining room, we offer residents a private dining area for intimate dinners with family and friends. We consider it part of our job to find creative solutions that can extend the stay of our residents even when their health conditions change, and often are able to give them a quality of care at a lower cost to families. For assisted living residents, an individualized care plan is determined (based on five levels of care) after a thorough ...

  If you are the main caregiver for an elderly family member who requires help with the activities of daily living (ADLs), it may be the job is becoming too much for you.  The Nov/Dec issue of Today’s Geriatric Medicine cites a study by the “National Alliance for Caregiving and Caring Across Generations,” which states that more than 11 million American adults are considered sandwich generation caregivers and bear the responsibility of simultaneously caring for their children as well as an aging family member.  In total it is believed there are approximately 40.4 million unpaid caregivers for adults 65 years and older in the United States consisting of adult children, spouses, relatives or friends.  In addition, 61 percent of those caregivers are employed, including nearly half who work full-time and juggle their own family responsibilities.     For most people caregiving is a labor of love but there is no denying it can be challenging.  Whe...

    While some people seem to not turn gray until an advanced age, most of us see our first gray hair sometime in our thirties. Experts say in time, everyone’s hair will turn gray, and with each decade after age 30, your chance of going gray increases by 10 to 20 percent. For those blessed with a very long lifespan, their hair will most-likely go completely white. The process is gradual as each strand of hair a follicle produces remains the same color it starts out as. For instance a strand of blond hair stays blonde regardless of how long it grows (we typically keep a strand for up to 3 ½ years). Gray hair and eventually white hair is caused as our follicles produce less and less color as we age. However, not all gray hair is a result of “age-related graying.” In some cases, experts say stress may play a role in how quickly someone grays. They point out that most likely it is not the stress itself that makes hair go gray but rather it triggers “a common condition c...

  If you are looking for the best senior living Des Moines – West Des Moines offers, we encourage you to learn more about MorningStar at Jordan Creek. Our leadership team always welcomes phone calls and email inquiries regarding our community. In addition, we have a very informative website that focuses on many of the different aspects of our community as well as provides some background on our company. For instance, our home page offers a great description of our community, brief comments from our Management Team, a map showing our location as well as a Gallery of pictures to illustrate the detailed attention to welcoming spaces and beautiful design. Our home page also has a button to Amenities that describes many of the community’s resort-style amenities. Clicking on Suite Amenities highlights the comforts within our 56 private assisted living suites and 29 suites devoted to the individualized care of residents with memory impairment. Our suites are available in studio, o...

  The Mayo Clinic reminds older adults it is important they take proper precautions to prevent falls.  Medical conditions, the resulting medications needed, and a more sedentary lifestyle can result in weaker muscles and balance problems that can lead to a fall.  Also please keep in mind, a fall for an older adult can cause injuries that are very serious such as a broken hip, head trauma, or in the most severe cases, death.    However, the solution to preventing falls is not to stop moving.  The medical experts at the Mayo Clinic explain being inactive is bad for our health regardless of how old we are and it is vital that we keep moving.  To that end, they suggest a commonsense six-part plan to keep seniors safely mobile.     Their first recommendation is to set up an appointment with your doctor.  Bring to the visit a list of all your medications, and be prepared to discuss with your doctor any side effects of the drugs...