As regular readers of this blog know, I spend a lot of time writing about the importance of planning ahead for life’s transitions. Recently, a client asked me to help develop a strategy for dealing with his adult daughter who simply refused to engage in the transition planning process he was trying so hard to complete....Read More
A new client was recently referred to me by her friend and neighbor due to concern that her friend’s affairs were not in order. The client and her husband are in their late 80s. The husband recently suffered a fall, leading to a series of medical problems from which he was not expected to recover. ...Read More
People are living longer these days due to medical and other technological breakthroughs. Because of this, many people wrongly assume that they can put off getting their affairs in order for a few more years. However, exactly the opposite is true. Why? While living in a time with wonderful medical advances means that many of...Read More
When it comes time to care for an aging relative, especially a parent, it usually works out best for everyone if family members can set aside their differences. When a family first approaches me in search of caregiver coaching and support, I try to get a handle on where each family member is coming from...Read More
We’ve all met that person who carries on about how worried he is about the future or who talks about being afraid of what will happen to her. How often do we find ourselves thinking (or saying), “Why don’t you stop talking about it and DO something?” Why is it so hard to overcome worry...Read More
Are you a baby boomer? If you answered “yes” then you are probably staring a life transition in the face. Is that face scary or serene? To some degree, that’s up to you. Life transitions, such as getting married, having a child, changing jobs, dealing with health issues, getting divorced, taking care of aging parents,...Read More
There is a terrific article in the May 25, 2009 issue of Forbes, “How To Set Up A Multi-Generational Household.” The author, Ashlea Ebeling, writes, “One of the side effects of the economic contraction is that Americans are about to rediscover the virtues of three-generation households. This is how families used to take care of...Read More
Caregiving is all about control. As the caregiver, you want to control everything so that “nothing bad” happens. The person being cared for wants to remain in control so that they continue to feel like a complete person. If you can remember that control is at the core of every action and every reaction, it...Read More
One of the hardest parts of long-distance caregiving is keeping all of the balls in the air. The more organized you are, the less stressed you are. Checklists and calendars are a great help, and there are many wonderful tools available to facilitate communication between you and the person you are caring for, as well...Read More
