The workplace is an environment that provides face to face interaction. A retiring boomer exiting the workforce and having to say goodbye to colleagues may give room for loneliness to creep in. Loneliness in aging could also be the result of other factors like bereavement, illness and distance from friends and family.
Companionship is a necessity for seniors as they age. With the evolution of technology shifting communication to mobile phones, face to face communication is becoming rarer. This creates a dearth of human interaction for boomers that is exacerbated in retirement.
The Age UK reported on a survey of 225,000 UK senior citizens who went without face to face interaction for weeks. A number of factors contribute to the difficulty of having face to face interaction which includes being shy to have a conversation and being worried the other party won’t respond well. This suggests that society needs to engage seniors in activities that can lead them to interact with people and provide ways they could also contribute to it.
BoomersPlus’ focus has always been about bringing a sense of fulfilment and purpose to boomers through employment and volunteering opportunities. Also, Boomersplus partners with organisations for boomers to take up volunteering opportunities which can get seasoned professionals who are out of the workforce interacting with people again. It is as easy as signing up and filling out a profile. Properly used, technology can bring you one step closer to having a more positive face to face interactions that could boost your overall lifestyle.
Aside from creating an environment for boomers to interact, we have an individual responsibility to be friendly to boomers by creating a comfortable environment for interaction to take place. Small gestures like smiling, asking boomers how their day is going make a lot of difference to their day.
It is important that semi-retired, fully retired boomers and seniors know there are many services available to them that can improve their lifestyle and health. Share with a senior today.