Caregivers, How are you Making Seniors Smile?
I know you have heard that smiling can be contagious. Smiles can make someone’s day. Smiling can brighten someone’s pain. Smiling can change someone’s perspective on a situation. We should want to put a smile on someone’s face. We all should want to be a rainbow in someone’s world. Life has been hard lately; separated […]
Caregivers, Do You Burn the Candle at Both Ends?
Who can relate? Who wants to relate? Burning a candle at both ends is an accident waiting to happen. The idiom implies, “To exhaust one’s energies or resources.” Without acknowledging overtiredness in the caregiving space, it can lead to errors, mistakes, injury, and death of a loved one. So, shining a light on this topic is […]
Caregivers: Are You Unofficial or Official
The topic today comes from a conversation I had with a dear friend. The goal of caregiving is to help loved ones reach their final goal. For many years, the space she called home was no more. She continued to age gracefully while living alone; however, health challenges created the raw reality that living on […]
Caregivers-Caregiving, and Weather
Today is a great day to discuss caregiving and weather. It’s a rainy day in Texas! I love the rain. My garden loves the rain. My lawn loves the rain, and my lawn maintenance company loves the rain, too. When we think about the weather, we must also care for our older adults and loved […]
Pets in the Caregiving Space
I will never forget the look on my mother’s face when Joey came through the door. Let me explain. Five years before mommy’s passing, we had to give Joey away because Joey’s actual owner became pregnant, and my caregiving duties and employment schedule at the time did not make me a good dog owner. With […]
What Caregiver Activities Have You Adopted for Your Loved One?
Today on my walk, birds caught my attention. May I reflect? Birds represent happy memories of days past. Memories of birds that would frequent (and still do) my backyard, with their agenda, even though I have no idea what their plan was, outside of feeding on the goodies I provide. So many birds would come […]
When is Hospice Appropriate?
The subject of hospice is an uncomfortable one. Why, because losing a loved one, up close and personal is hard. None of us have crystal balls giving us the inside scoop of life expectancy or how a life-limiting condition will complete our earthly exit. When I placed my mother in hospice, it was the most […]
Caregiver: Abuse, Physical, Verbal, Emotional, Suicide.
Murder-suicide! Yes, it happens! We do not want to think about it or talk about it, but it happens. It can occur in a person’s home, a nursing or group home, an assisted living center, and even the hospital. When the pressure of caregiving leads to the end of the road, we have not done […]
Caregivers: What is in it for me? Have you ever asked that question?
Caregivers, be honest…have you ever asked the question… why me or what’s in it for me? Giving up your time, resources, independence, and sleep is a lot of giving up. Wouldn’t you say? It is a valid question. We are humans of autonomy. We go about our day managing our personal and professional world, working to […]
Take the Blinders Off-Your Parents Are Aging!
I am the first to admit; I looked the other way as my mother was aging. The first sign I could recall was her getting dentures in her fifties. My daddy died when I was eleven years old. He was 46-years old. He went to work, came home, enjoyed lying on the floor in front […]