Sometimes simple statements, filled with numbers and statistics and the flat, census-based declarations, contain within them an enormous reservoir of pain and suffering and loneliness. That’s probably why we keep them so dry and clinical: to avoid looking at the hurt. Here are a few: In California, getting older increases the risk of falling below […]
Continue ReadingWhen you’re a caregiver it is easy to overwork yourself. Caregiver stress, fatigue, and overall burnout can be easy to dismiss as less important than undivided attention for your aging or disabled loved one. In other words, caregiving has the potential to be all-consuming. But it shouldn’t be so at the expense of your own […]
Continue ReadingGlen describes his stress as “a feeling that someone is gripping the back of my neck tightly. And I’m so tense that I can’t even turn around to see who it is—if I wanted to.” He feels the stress of healthcare expenses, family drama, and even death as he’s dealing with more unfamiliar health challenges […]
Continue ReadingWhen an older adult has a caregiver come to their home to assist them with everyday tasks, the possibilities for staying and aging at home are greatly extended. With the help of client service managers, homes can be updated for safety and accessibility, medical needs and appointments can be consolidated to minimize and simplify care, […]
Continue ReadingRay loved his home. He’d lived there with his wife Doreen for over 50 years. He knew every creaky spot on the hardwood floor, every crack in the walls, and every mark on the bathroom door where Doreen had recorded the heights of his growing children. Since Doreen’s passing, Ray’s children had been discussing talking […]
Continue ReadingChristie was overwhelmed. Ever since her aging mother’s stroke six months ago, she had been her primary caregiver. Every day before work Christie would drive to her mother’s house to help her get out of bed and make her breakfast. On her lunch hour, Christie would dart across town to bring her mother lunch, eat […]
Continue ReadingBeing a caregiver for an aging or disabled loved one takes an incredible amount of strength. It takes strength to physically support them, to offer encouragement and positive perspective, to always be thinking ahead to their needs and strategizing better ways to live and thrive. But where does all that strength come from? Some of […]
Continue ReadingAs we begin a new year, caregivers for older loved ones have a lot on their plates. You are facing another year with resolve and determination, with courage and with love, and with a plan to care both for your loved one and for yourself. This is what is on your mind. What might not […]
Continue ReadingThere are some decisions in life that are essentially weightless—what movie to see, what outfit to wear, where to go to dinner. And there are decisions that will echo through the decades. Choosing a caregiver for an older loved one can seem like it falls into the latter category: something with potentially life-altering consequences. Finding […]
Continue ReadingJenn had been looking after her aging father, Alastor, ever since he suffered a stroke a year ago. When she quit her full-time job as a librarian to be his full-time caregiver, she never could have imagined just how challenging she would find it. Between driving her father to his many medical appointments, helping him […]
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