Questions to Ask Yourself Before Becoming Your Parent’s Caregiver

Posted On 21 Feb 2017
http://www.aplaceformom.com/blog/2-24-14-caregiver-questions-to-as/

By : Sarah Stevenson

Are you ready for the demands, responsibilities – and rewards – of becoming your parent’s caregiver?

Ask yourself these questions first.

Becoming Your Parent’s Caregiver

It’s an all-too-familiar scenario for millions of adults: Dad and Mom are getting older and can no longer complete their day-to-day activities without some assistance. “But” they say, “please don’t put me in a home.”

Many seniors prefer to age in place, but when a senior parent’s health declines and they need immediate or sudden help, then we may be faced with the critical decision of whether or not to provide that care ourselves.

Many of us do end up deciding to become family caregivers, a demanding role that often includes advocating for your loved one, coordinating providers and performing home medical care tasks.

In fact, over 65.7 million Americans currently provide care for a family member or loved one, according to the National Alliance for Caregiving , and 36% of those are caring for an elderly parent.

Being prepared for the role of caregiver means taking a lot of different factors into consideration. You will need to ask yourself hard questions about how your own availability and caregiving capabilities will affect your ability to provide effective care — for your loved one and yourself.

Asking these questions early will help you prepare for a role that, for many adults, comes as a sudden surprise, leaving them feeling like they aren’t ready to be caregivers. This was the case for Martha Stettinius, author of “Inside the Dementia Epidemic: A Daughter’s Memoir.” She spent eight years as primary caregiver for her mother, who had Alzheimer’s disease, and many of the demands of caregiving came as a surprise:

“I never imagined that I would become not only the main provider of her appointments, clothing, food, shelter and transportation, but also her primary source of entertainment and engagement,” Martha says.

“I thought that if I just tried hard enough I could be all things to all people.”

She found herself juggling the roles of employee, mother and wife, as well as handling all the requirements of caregiving.

“Like all caregivers, I did the best I could with the information and support I could find, but I know now that I would do a number of things differently if I had to do it all again.”