Whether caregiving for a family member, friend, or neighbor, anyone who has been in the role of caring for another understands that stress is a natural part of the journey.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) stress can be defined as “a state of worry or mental tension caused by a difficult situation. Stress is a natural human response that prompts us to address challenges and threats in our lives. Everyone experiences stress to some degree. The way we respond to stress, however, makes a big difference to our overall well-being.” …
Once you get beyond the sentimental value of your belongings, you are still up against the logistics of how to get things out of your nest. Some stuff is easier to pass along to family than other stuff. Options for what’s left over: Sell, donate, or just “get rid of it!”
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Image courtesy of Allyson Valentine Schrier
Last month, our colleague Wendy looked at the difference between Alzheimer’s and dementia. One of the types of dementia Wendy listed was Frontotemporal Dementia, or FTD.
Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) is not well-known, but it’s been in the news recently. In February, the family of much-beloved actor Bruce Willis announced that he was diagnosed with FTD.
A year earlier he had been diagnosed with aphasia, a condition that affects the ability to speak and to understand language. The symptoms have since progressed and are no longer limited to difficulty with communication, leading to his more recent diagnosis of FTD.
What is Frontotemporal Dementia or Disorders (FTD)? …
Actor Bruce Willis has Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD). What is FTD?Read More »
What is a long-distance caregiver?
Anyone who cares for a parent, other relative, or for a friend can be a care partner. If you live an hour’s drive or more away from a person who needs your support, you’re a long-distance care partner or caregiver.
What can a care partner do from a distance?
Each situation is different, but a long-distance caregiver role may include: …
Spend time with Herb “ConsumerMan” Weisbaum and it will always include a pearl of wisdom. Herb lives, eats, and breathes consumer news.
After 22 years and about 6,500 daily consumer tips, recently Herb hung up his headset for the last time and retired from Northwest Newsradio (KNWN). Thankfully, he’s still writing for Consumers’ Checkbook and hosting their bi-weekly Consumerpedia podcast. If you visit Herb’s ConsumerMan website, you can sign up for his free weekly newsletter and stay up to date on the latest consumer news.
“It’s just enough to stay busy but leaves me with plenty of time to have a little fun, spend more time with the family, and do some charity work,” Herb shared recently on the ConsumerMan Facebook page.
How did Herb find his way to reporting consumer news and to Seattle? I had the pleasure of interviewing Herb recently and learned his story. …
Herb “ConsumerMan” Weisbaum Helps Us Be Wiser ConsumersRead More »
Change is the only constant. And as we enter our later years, it seems the changes are more frequent. Before writing Life Is in the Transitions, Bruce Feiler interviewed 225 individuals to gain a sense of the ways people navigate disruption across the lifespan. He found that we experience roughly thirty-six transitions in a lifetime, averaging one every twelve to eighteen months. Often several pile up at once, especially when we are older. Common transitions for older adults include a shift in health or ability, a marital change (death or divorce), a new housing situation, or a drop in expected income. …
The family of former U.S. President Jimmy Carter made an announcement recently that following a series of short hospital stays, he is forgoing further medical treatment, has returned home, and entered hospice care.
What is hospice care? Hospice is a comprehensive, holistic program of care and support for terminally ill patients and their families. Hospice care changes the focus to comfort care (palliative care) for pain relief, symptom management, and quality of life instead of care to cure the patient’s illness. (SOURCE: CMS.gov) …
It’s not unusual to hear the terms dementia and Alzheimer’s used interchangeably, though they are not synonymous; they have different meanings. Dementia is an umbrella term that describes a broad range of symptoms; dementia is a syndrome, not a disease. Dementia is a decline in cognitive function that is typically not reversible. …
What’s the difference between dementia and Alzheimer’s disease?Read More »
This past December, one week after her 64th birthday, a childhood friend had a fatal heart attack. To be honest, I’m still in a bit of shock over this loss, as she had been part of my life and significant events for over 50 years.
My friend’s death prompted me to learn more about symptoms and risks for heart attacks in women, as well as prevention. This is good information for men too! …
Time for a Heart-to-Heart About Women’s Heart Health*Read More »
The most common reason to move in later years is to be closer to children and grandchildren. Regardless of your reason for relocating, unless you plan to live with family, there will be many hours of the day when you are just plain newbies in town. How will you spend your time?
If proximity to younger kin is compelling your thoughts, clarify the role you want to play and see if it’s a shared vision. If you have hopes they will help as you get older, be sure to discuss that, as well as any childcare expectations they may have. Also think through if they need to relocate (e.g., job transfer), what will you do then? …