You Need Backup So We Found the Perfect Power Pack
You play the power position in so many people’s life so you certainly can’t be without backup. This battery pack is the perfect tool for your busy life. Compatible with iPhone 4-6S+, IPad and Android phones and tablets, it has two USB connections. $54 from Amazon.com.
It’s Not You, It’s Them: 4 Strategies for Family Caregivers
Pamela Wilson, author of the new book, The Caregiving Trap: Solutions for Life’s Unexpected Changes sent us some tips for maintaining “balanced emotions while caregiving.” I can’t keep my emotions balanced on a perfect day, never mind while caregiving, but I’m always open to advice. Overall, she cautions caregivers not to take caregiving personally. Great […]
Why Family Caregivers Are Unemployable, and Why You Should Hire Them Anyway
Truth is, I’m unemployable. At least that’s how I feel on days like the one I had yesterday. Yesterday, I had to take my father to a 10 a.m. appointment. I left my house at 9:30 and got to his assisted living facility at 9:45. He wasn’t ready. I called the man we were meeting […]
8 Tips for Balancing Caregiving and Career
One weekend last summer I got a call that something was wrong at my parents’ house and could I go check on them immediately. I left the house the next morning and didn’t return for a week. It turned out they were both sick and in seven days I admitted my father to the ER, […]
Join Our Twitter Chat TONIGHT 11/17
TONIGHT on Twitter we’re talking about how to balance caring for aging parents with career, kids and life. Please join us as we discuss how to get flexibility at work, how to prepare for a crisis, ways to practice self care. Follow me @hello_ladies and use #workingdaughter. I’ll be giving away some of my favorite […]
The Working Daughter Interview: Phyllis Myung
Phyllis Myung is a freelance communications and social media consultant and a blogger at Napkin Hoarder. Phyllis is learning to prioritize self care, but still struggles with caregiver guilt. Where and when do you feel most competent? Probably at church – the expectation is not to be perfect, so I feel like I can stand […]
Dear Caregiver, What You’re Feeling Is Normal
Dear Caregiver, I want you to know that what you’re feeling is normal. It’s normal to feel like caregiving is a burden, not a blessing. It’s normal to want this all to be over. It’s normal for hating yourself for feeling that way. It’s normal to enjoy aspects of your parent’s age and illness – […]
In Fact I Do Want to Build a Snowman
As a working mother, I get it; last winter was almost our undoing. My Facebook feed was full of friends clinging to sanity like a snowflake clings to an eyelash. These women were done. Done with the shoveling. Done with the cabin fever. Done with arts and crafts and glitter and glue guns. Done with the hats and mittens […]
Book Review: Being Mortal a Must-Read for Caregivers
A nurse practitioner who works with the elderly told me Being Mortal by Atul Gawande is, “perhaps the most important book of our times,” and I agree. Gawande, a surgeon at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital and a bestselling author, gives us an unflinching look at illness and death and suggests a better path forward […]
10 Questions to Ask A Senior Living Referral Agency
Perhaps you’ve wanted to approach your parents and talk to them about moving to senior living. The house is too much for them to manage, or the staircase is getting long and steep. They are isolated and you’re too far away to support them. But before you broach what could be a difficult conversation, you […]
I’m An Adult Now
When did you first know you were an adult? SheKnows asked me that question and I answered here. It had nothing to do with mothering and everything to do with daughtering. What was your aha moment?
Caregiving is a Gift
Caregiving is a gift. I hear it all the time. “What a gift it is to care for the people who cared for you.” “How wonderful to be able to give back. What a gift.” “How rewarding. What a gift.” These platitudes are usually uttered by two types of people: those who have never been […]
