Older Adults - Recovery and Resiliency

Recovery for everyone is about having choices, being satisfied with life, living where you choose, (depending upon circumstances,) and having friends and other people in your life. Resiliency can be defined as an innate capacity that when facilitated and nurtured empowers people to successfully meet life’s challenges with a sense of self-determination, mastery and hope. The resiliencies you have and those that you develop will help you to cope with the changes brought by aging.

Older adults face special challenges. Some people first experience mental illness when they are older, while other folks have had a lifetime of experience with mental illness. For those who first experience mental illness later in life, life experience has likely given them a "toolbox" of coping skills. The coping skills they have successfully used in the past will assist with facing the new challenges of a mental illness and rebuilding life as a contributing member of the community.

Recovery is also about regaining a sense of dignity. For those who have had a lifetime of mental illness, learning about the possibilities of the recovery journey can be a healing experience.

Older adulthood may also be a time of declining physical health, loss of loved ones, and other losses. Everyone who ages must find ways to honor what is lost and figure out what is theirs to contribute to family and community. This is also true for people who are coping with mental illness.

Important goals in promoting recovery and resiliency for older adults include:”Important goals in promoting recovery for older adults include:

• feeling reasonably satisfied with life despite losses
• feeling a sense of control over life’s decisions
• engaging in the same types of meaningful activities as non-disabled older adults
• living in a setting that promotes optimal functioning and independence

The King County Community Services Division has programs for some older adults. Find out more.

Also see: Wellness and Health Living for Older Adults.