Did you know that November is National Family Caregivers Month? Don’t feel bad if you didn’t because it was news to me.
You might remember my father-in-law passed away earlier this year. The past two years of his life there was a lot of care-giving as his health deteriorated.
We weren’t alone. More than 42 million people in the US are providing care for an older relative or friend.
Our family was fortunate because the family could afford assistance for every day tasks like helping my father-in-law bathe. Between hospice, home health, his girlfriend and children he was able to live out his life in the home he shared with his late wife and beloved pets.
It wasn’t always easy because his sons didn’t know how or really want to provide personal care. Who’s really ready to help your parent clean up after using the restroom?
We are grateful our family had the good luck to approach his care as a village. It made sure he got the care needed without burning anyone out.
I was glad to learn there is support and wonderful resources for caregivers at the AARP Caregiving Council.
A few of my favorite ones include:
- Free eBook: Juggling Work and Caregiving
- 10 Tips for Caregivers During the Holidays
- 12 Resources Every Caregiver Should Know About
- Prepare to Care (Caregiving Planning Guide for Families)
It’s important that caregivers take care of themselves first. If you are one and not doing something for yourself, please stop and do something about that.
Before the month is up, let the caregivers you know how much their work is appreciated and share the resources at the AARP Caregiving Council site. Even better, help them get some time away to take care of their own self.
Disclosure: I’m pleased to partner with Midlife Boulevard to bring you this important public service information about National Family Caregivers Month.
You’re very lucky that your family can afford to pay for your father-in-law’s long term care needs. A lot of people are not fortunate enough to have enough funds or have purchased long term care insurance. This is a pressing issue that needs to be addressed right away and by means of the resources you’ve shared, I’m pretty sure that a lot of people will appreciate this particularly those who are providing informal caregiving.
I strongly agree with you that caregivers need to take care of themselves in order to become an efficient caregiver and provide high quality care to your loved ones. It’s quite a challenge but with these resources, caregiving will not be a problem anymore.
My condolences on the loss of your father-in-law. It’s really such a great thing to have the care that lets you stay in your home.
And that video of the mother and the daughter gets me every time!
Thank you, Anne. We are thankful he was able to stay in the home. The hospice experience was very positive.
I really like this video as well; it conveys the changing relationship between parents and children so poignantly.