A goal that my clients bring up in meetings time after time is that they wish to stay in their own homes for as long as possible. Many people, however, find the cost of bringing help into their homes to be daunting. Elders are increasingly turning to their adult children for in-home care. As...
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Statewide Transition Conference for Parents
The Arc of Massachusetts is holding a transition conference for parents of children with disabilities between the ages of 14 and 22. Attendees will be able to choose from a variety of workshops focused on the best practices of creating seamless transitions from school into the adult world.
The conference will take place from 8:00...
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Caregivers are Depressed
Interesting concept in this article - one of those things that you don't think of on your own, but when someone else verbalizes it, you say, "of course." The idea is that caregiver stress is in part driven by a tension in the caregiver's own psyche between giving up who she has been,...
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Department of Public Health Survey on Health Needs for People with Disabilities
This landed in my inbox. It took about 5 minutes to fill it out. Due date is May 31. Here are the details:
Help influence health care in Massachusetts! The Health and Disability Program, part of Office of Health Equity at the MA Department of Public Health (DPH) is conducting a health...
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Caregiver Holiday Wish List
My favorite columnist, Michelle Singletary (The Color of Money) has done it again. She always has something spot on and practical to say. This week she cuts to the chase when it comes to caregivers - they are tired. They don't want bling or stuff that will end up on a shelf....
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Thrown into the Deep End
Did you see Michelle Singletary’s column this weekend in the Boston Globe? I like her column, The Color of Money. She writes in a straight-forward, honest manner, with guidance targeted at “regular folks” like myself.
This weekend she wrote about essentially being thrown into the deep end of the...
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More Reasons to Write up a Caregiver Contract
I've been writing a lot about caregiver contracts lately. That's because they represent the ideal solution for so many families.
Many children become part-time or even full-time caregivers for their aging parents. Sometimes a child needs to be paid for this - usually that is the only way she can afford to leave her...
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Paying Your Children to Care for You? Put it in Writing.
As they need more help with daily tasks, many parents prefer to have their kids helping them rather than hiring an aide. And many children want to be helping their parents, if only they could afford to quit their job.
One solution is for the parent to hire the child. I discuss...
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Always Keep Time & Expense Records When Helping Another
So many children, nieces and nephews, and good neighbors pitch in to do heavy lifting for an aging or disabled family member or friend. You may be running errands, cleaning out a basement, doing weekly grocery trips. We do these things on a volunteer basis, usually receiving just reimbursement for purchases made. And...
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Caregiver: Care for Yourself, Too
Caregiver burnout is a dangerous side-effect of dedicating your time and energies to the care of a loved one. All the physical activity, combined with the worry, isolation, and frustration, make for a dangerous recipe. Families frequently come to me when Mom got sick from the exhaustion of caring for Dad. Another common scenario...
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