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Many solo agers use technology to help address the challenges of aging alone.
Technology for Daily Life
Some solo agers like to use an app to help with daily reminders, to receive a free daily "check-in" or to keep a schedule for things like exercise. One person asked a trusted contact to add the capacity to "track" their phone so someone knows where they are or can find them if needed.
Technology for Social Connection
Technology for Social Connection
Some solo agers use the internet to foster or maintain social connections. One person told us that she and a friend arrange to do things online together, such as take the same senior college class, but they have never actually met in person.
"A retired professor who is 10 years older than me, we get together at least once a month. Often, if we want to, we keep in contact by email."
Technology for Safety
Other solo agers use technology to help feel safe while doing daily tasks. Some carry a phone everywhere, not just outside, but inside, too. Others have found that a smartwatch works better to provide a feeling of access to a trusted contact in case of emergency.
Connection to the Internet
Not everyone has stable, reliable, or fast internet or cell phone service, especially in rural areas. Lack of access can pose an added barrier to human connection, with implications especially for solo agers. One person shared with us that she only has cell phone service if she sits down in a certain place in her house while talking. Someone else told us that she only has access to the internet if her WiFi is working, because cell towers do not provide a steady signal where she lives.
"I'll carry my phone on me. And then, after I had open heart surgery last year, my daughter ... got me an Apple watch and she programmed her phone number. All I'll have to do is shout out her name and say, you know, 'Call my daughter, Siri.'"
"My daughter insisted that I get a [smart]watch so she could be alerted if something happened to me."
"There are apps as well, so that you can ask for a daily check-in call that will either be routed to your primary contact or it will notify the police if you don't respond by a certain time during the morning."
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