Tag Archives: home-healthcare
I’m glad I’m old, or: We’ve got to get organized!
When Mom sees something she regards as crazy or stupid on television, a standard response is, “I’m glad I’m old!” That exclamation has also been used to summarize her reaction to various current events. Over the years, I’ve interpreted the remark to mean something like: “The only relief I can imagine from exposure to this […]
Super Sunday: A caregiver’s version
Dear Reader, this post will be mercifully brief–and not because I’ll be watching the big game. I’m going to celebrate a super Sunday here at the homestead by quitting early for the day (or night). Mom and I will watch a favorite old show on the DVR and have a special treat. Spouse will watch […]
A sampler of recent ups and downs: The caregiver drag
We’ve been bouncing between opposites on the emotional spectrum as though we’re doing a weird, out-of-control dance. The caregiver drag. Spouse had been fighting an inflammation for weeks. Down! With antibiotics and diet changes, it seemed under control. Up! Then, in the wee hours of Wednesday morning, he developed a new and scary symptom. Down! […]
Glimpses back across stages of caregiving
Caregiving changes as time passes. This is a process that unfolds in stages, each of which has its own challenges and rewards. Watching a clip of the 13-episode Ruth and Erica (link below) from YouTube’s WIGS channel, I’m reminded of the housekeeping and driving issues that emerged during the stage: part-time caregiving from-a-distance. OFFENSIVE OFFERS […]
Moonlighting caregivers: Making madness
Is it better to be a stay-at-home caregiver? It depends, of course. Can the caregiver afford to relinquish paying work? Does the caregiver want to keep a job in which years of education and experience have been invested? Should the caregiver swap the social stimulation of the workplace for the personal satisfaction of doing lifesaving […]
Special needs: Caregiving as coaching
This is my fourth installment of using The Emmys we’d award: TVs best caregivers, 2013 (link below) as a lens for examining different aspects of caregiving. The “Best Special Needs Caregiver” award went to Parenthood’s Kristina Braverman (Monica Porter). In the episode, I’ll be right here, Kristina encourages her son, Max (Max Burkholder), while he makes a speech. Max is […]
Giving care: Mind matters
How much does caregiving attend to the mind and heart, as well as the body? It’s probably easier for us to communicate about and cope with chronic physical conditions. Physical illnesses are more likely to have known causes and cures. When we suspected a few weeks ago that Mom might have an infection, a test […]
Being prepared: What if something happens to Caregiver?
Making end-of-life decisions is difficult. Deciding about powers of attorney, health care directives, and trusts or wills raises many questions. Who can we count upon to act on our behalf? What kind of care and death do we want? Who deserves, needs, or wants any resources we’ve accumulated over the course of our lives? Whether […]
He’s not a caregiver, but he played one on tv
Family caregiving is such a personal and private endeavor. There are tens of millions of caregivers. Yet, until immersed in caregiving, many of us don’t realize how many of us exist. We do our work at home, or while shuttling to and from institutional providers, or while commuting between paying jobs and caregiving duties. It […]
Respite: Time away from caregiving
A post in a caregivers’ forum compared the writer’s circumscribed life doing at-home long-term care to that of Anne Frank’s confinement. Please don’t be outraged at the comparison. In context, it seemed reasonable. The comparison acknowledged the significant differences between the two situations. Oddly, I’d thought of Anne Frank in my caregiving situation, too. ALWAYS […]
Cape Cod caregiver 