Caregiver Lessons

No Place Like Home for Aging Parents? Maybe, Maybe Not (Follow Up)


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Leslie Peters was my guest on a recent blogtalk radio show I host (http://www.blogtalkradio.com/solie/2009/11/07/no-place-like-home-for-aging-parent-maybe-maybe-no). I asked her to provide me with a “list” of questions that would help aging parents and their adult children screen potential senior living accommodations. She…

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The Talk of Life: Organic Legacy, Out Loud

“What’s so important about saying it out load?” I was asked a few months ago during a Q&A session at the end of one of my presentations that talked about ?creating an organic legacy? Good question I replied. What is…

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End of Life Conversations: From A Doctor’s Perspective


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My wife Janet shared with me a very moving article about end of life conversations from a doctor’s perspective entitled: Talking Frankly at the End of Life. Here is the link. One of the most important aspects of the article…

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Too Close For Comfort: Navigating the increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease


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Alzheimer’s disease extracts a toll across generations. Its diagnosis in an aging parent creates an immediate crisis for the offspring who must come to terms with their increased risk of winding up with the same affliction. New high tech imaging…

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Magical Thinking and Aging Parents

Aging creates complexity and emotional burden. Aging parents find themselves facing situations and decisions that are hard to figure out and even more challenging to manage. They feel overwhelmed and understandably look for ways to simplify complexities and ease burdens.…

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Caregiver Brain Changes


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Much has been written about the brain issues of aging parents. Less has been written about the brain issues that impact middle age adults. Given that the majority of caregivers of aging parents are middle age, it is important to…

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What I Know Now: Lessons From Looking Back


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Last June I was interviewed by Nell Bernstein, Senior Editor at Caring.com about what “I would have done differently” in caring for my mother based on what I know now. Below is my response: Talking With David Solie June 2008…

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My Mom Hates Me


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I receive a steady stream of emails from adult children who are trying to work with angry older parents. In most cases, these caregivers are trying to find the best solution to a difficult situation(little or no planning, last minute…

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Staying Afloat–New Book Review


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I just finished reading a new book by Sheryl Karas, MA entitled The Spiritual Journey of Family Caregiving. It is a compendium of newsletters she wrote from 2000 to 2005 while serving as a “family caregiving consultant” for a non-profit…

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Needs Overload: Preferred Choices


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Here is a question I was asked from a caregiver who is feeling overwhelmed: How do I respond to my 89 year old father who demands much of my attention and doesn’t understand that I have other responsibilities besides him?…

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