Being seen helps caregivers seek support

Being seen helps caregivers seek support

Over lunch the other day, a dear friend was talking about the fact that she has been caring for her mother since her dementia diagnosis 14 years ago. She shared key points in her journey, like when she moved her mother into residential care, and how now, many years later, her mother no longer recognizes her.

In her role, she does extensive public education on care for seniors. She told me that, in talking with another speaker she’ll be joining on a panel, she came to a remarkable realization. She was sharing with him some details of her mother’s journey and the grief she is feeling as she continues to watch her mother slowly die.

He reflected back to her that it must be difficult witnessing her mother’s decline and asked her what she was doing to support herself.

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Empowering caregivers: A vital necessity for our future

Empowering caregivers: A vital necessity for our future

Emma Heming Willis, wife of Bruce Willis, recently posted on Instagram a compassionate statement about the learning that can come from the tragic passing of Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa.

She noted, “Mr. and Mrs. Hackman’s’ passing made me think of the broader story, that caregivers need care too. That they are vital, and it is so important to show up for them so they can continue to show up for their person”.

Many of you may know that Ms. Willis transitioned to the role of caregiver for her husband, actor Bruce Willis, after he was diagnosed with aphasia and then frontotemporal dementia (FTD).

Her message is an important reminder of the invaluable role family caregivers play in the health and well-being of their loved ones who may be aging, ill, or dealing with a disability.

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Support for family caregivers is on the way

Support for family caregivers is on the way

Today I can count more than 20 friends or relatives who are acting as family caregivers for their loved ones. It’s probably the highest number I can remember in my adulthood.

My cousin’s wife is caring for her husband, who has oral cancer and is undergoing chemo and radiation. My girlfriend is caring for her husband with vascular dementia, and the husband of my niece, who has long COVID, is caring for my niece and their 3-year-old.

Not withstanding the marriage vows to love and care “in sickness and in health,” each caregiver never expected they would be tending an ill or disabled loved one.

In situations like these, the focus is on the person being cared for. And of course it should be. Who could not feel for a man not able to speak or swallow as his children, 6 and 8, look on?

Or my friend’s husband who has had three strokes and is in tremendous fear of the next one? Or my niece experiencing vertigo, mind fog and migraines that leave her

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