Independent Living Skills

What does independent living mean?

Independent living means that you are in charge of your own life. Independent living means that you live the kind of life you want to live in your community. It means that you choose and control your own supports and direct your own life. Independent living means that you are free to make decisions about your own lives instead of somebody else making decisions for you.

It doesn’t mean living alone or not having help.

You can figure out your support needs for the other things in your life, and for the things you want to do in the future.

  • List the supports you already have for whatever it is you want to do.
  • Then ask yourself, when I go to college/get a job/ move somewhere new, how am I going to get those supports?
  • What are new things I will need supports for?