Seniors Planning Ahead for Thanksgiving

As we age, families can scatter, spouses or friends die, and we're left with an increasingly smaller social circle. How can we deal with the isolation and loneliness during family holidays like Thanksgiving? The key is to plan ahead.

If you absolutely don't want to spend the day alone, tell more-distant relatives, friends, co-workers, and neighbors that you'll be alone for the holiday. Chances are, you'll get an invitation from someone willing to open up their home and include you in their celebration. If you've gotten such invitations in the past and always turned them down, now is the time to step outside your comfort zone and accept the hand of friendship being offered. If a number of your friends or neighbors are single, why not start a new tradition? Invite them over for a pot luck Thanksgiving at your place and celebrate together.

Another possibility is to find a way to help others who may be alone for the holiday by serving at a soup kitchen or delivering hot meals to the elderly. In the week before the holiday, keep an eye out in your local paper for activities scheduled for the day.

If you don't mind celebrating alone, plan a special meal anyway to mark the occasion. Sleep in late because you feel like it, not because you're too depressed to get out of bed. Finish a project you've been meaning to get around to; hang those pictures, finish that knitting project, reorganize that closet. It'll give you a sense of accomplishment. Go for a walk in the crisp fall air. Watch the football game or a favorite old movie. The day is yours to do with as you will, so pamper yourself and enjoy it.