Posted in Alzheimer's, Barnes & Noble Bookstores, abc.com, aging, amazon, authors, boomer, boomer women, boomers, care partner, care receiver, caregiver, caregiver stress, caregiving, church, dark humor, daughters, death, dementia, depression, doctors, dying, elder care, eldercare, elderly, end of life, faith, family, family caregiving, geriatrics, grey's anatomy, grieving, guilt, health, healthcare, home passing, hospice, hospital, inspirational, joy and purpose, kunati, memoir, mid-life crisis, mothering, neurological disorders, neurology, parkinson's, passion, perfectionist, psychologists, publishing, relationships, sandwich generation, senior care, spiritual, spiritual teachers, therapists, trauma, wisdom, women, women's health, tagged alcoholics, carl jung, codepent, grey's anatomy, los angeles times, mid-life, nimh, relationship addiction, therepists, wounded healer on May 29, 2008 | 2 Comments »
Do you need to be needed?
Carl Jung called it, “The Wounded Healer.”
Caregivers, whether they come by it willingly or are drug into their caregivingroles, become accustomed to being needed. It’s comforting and satisfying to know that you have a purpose.
But what do you mean when you say, “wounded healer?” Is that a bad thing?
Wounded healer [...]
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Posted in Uncategorized on May 28, 2008 | No Comments »
Alzheimer’s scares people.
You hear that dreaded diagnosis and you imagine yelling, screaming, chaos, and then silence.
Whether the diagnosis is for you or a loved one, it’s now more dreaded than cancer.
Many people are afraid to talk with someone who has Alzheimer’s.
Notice I didn’t write, “talk to.” So many times, we talk to or talk at [...]
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Posted in ALS, Alzheimer's, Barnes & Noble Bookstores, USA Today, abc.com, adult day cares, affection, aging, amazon, authors, book club, book reviews, books, boomer women, boomers, boston, brain, breaking point, cancer, care partner, care receiver, caregiver, caregiver stress, caregiving, community care, death, dementia, depression, doctors, dying, elder care, elder rage, eldercare, elderly, emotional, end of life, faith, family, family caregiving, geriatrics, golden years, grieving, healthcare, home passing, hospice, hospital, inspirational, intimacy, joy and purpose, kunati, memoir, mothering, mothers, neurological disorders, neurology, pallative care, parkinson's, relationships, sandwich generation, senior care, spiritual, transformation, trauma, will to live, women's health, writing, tagged boston legal, james spader, william shatner, Michael J. Fox, team fox, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, USA Today, Ted Kennedy, malignant brain tumor, sailing, maya angelou, power of prayer on May 22, 2008 | 2 Comments »
Last night, the television show Boston Legal had one profound moment relating to Alzheimer’s.
The premise is that one of their leading characters, Denny Crane (played by William Shatner) has early Alzheimer’s. He’s a brilliant attorney who has never lost a case–and he’s part owner in firm. The other law partners are hesitant for Denny [...]
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Posted in Alzheimer's, aging, authors, biology, bookstores, boomer, boomer women, boomers, breaking point, cancer, care partner, care receiver, caregiver, caregiver stress, caregiving, daughters, death, dying, elder care, elderly, emotional, end of life, family, family caregiving, fight or flight, geriatrics, grieving, guilt, health, healthcare, heart disease, home passing, hospice, hospital, inspirational, kunati, medicine, mothering, mothers, neurological disorders, pallative care, parkinson's, relationships, sandwich generation, spiritual, transformation, wisdom, women's health on May 20, 2008 | 2 Comments »
Rattles
Mother has what they call the death rattle.
Every time she takes a breath there’s a rattle. Technically it’s congestive heart failure—the fluid around her heart is building up and her body can’t process it, so it’s filling up in her lungs.
I remember when Mother said she had a little kitten in her chest when [...]
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Posted in Uncategorized on May 19, 2008 | No Comments »
At one of my first booksignings, a quiet middle-aged woman with long brown hair walked up to my table. She had her two granddaughters, about four and five years old with her, and I saw “her” in their cherub faces–plump, creamy skin, intense blue eyes–it was like seeing her reborn with all the play and innocence [...]
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Posted in ALS, Alzheimer's, Borders Bookstores, affection, aging, amazon, book club, book reviews, boomer women, breaking point, care partner, care receiver, caregiver, caregiver stress, caregiving, community care, daughters, death, dementia, elder care, eldercare, elderly, emotional, end of life, family, family caregiving, geriatrics, grieving, health, healthcare, hospice, humor, inspirational, law of attraction, marriage, memoir, mothering, neurological disorders, neurology, parents, parkinson's, psychologists, publishers, relationships, sandwich generation, senior care, seniors, speaking, spiritual, support groups, television, walking, will to live, women, women's health, tagged Alzheimer's Association, fundraisers, karate, Michael J. Fox, mountain climbing on May 16, 2008 | 6 Comments »
You can’t watch someone you love struggle with a disease and not be affected.
But what can you do?
As a caregiver, family member or friend, you can’t make it go away.
Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s are two debilitating diseases that are slow and grueling and take a toll on people’s spirits, and affects everyone around them. For some, they [...]
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Posted in Uncategorized on May 16, 2008 | 1 Comment »
Dealing with end-of-life issues is bound to kick up thoughts and questions about what you believe.
For some, it’s a time of deepening faith. They might return to their childhood traditions, in part, to please their parent–or because it’s comforting.
Others have found their own faith whether or not that includes attending church regularly. There are less [...]
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Posted in Alzheimer's, adult day cares, affection, aging, amazon, book club, book reviews, books, boomer, boomer women, breaking point, care partner, care receiver, caregiver, caregiver stress, caregiving, church, community care, daughters, dementia, depression, doctors, elder care, eldercare, emotional, end of life, family, family caregiving, geriatrics, grieving, guilt, healthcare, home passing, hospice, hospital, humor, inspirational, intimacy, joy and purpose, law of attraction, marketing, marriage, memoir, menopause, mid-life crisis, mother-in-laws, mothering, mothers, nerves, neurological disorders, neurology, pallative care, parents, passion, perfectionist, prayer, relationships, sandwich generation, senior care, seniors, sex, spiritual, spiritual teachers, walking, will to live, wisdom, women, women's health, writing on May 15, 2008 | 1 Comment »
There’s a new kind of caregiver out there.
She (or he) is a savvy caregiver, isn’t a martyr, and doesn’t look defeated (all the time).
She (I use the feminine pronoun to apply to everyone) has her act together (in some respects) and isn’t going to let her life and her plans be completely derailed–and yet she loves [...]
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Posted in ALS, Alzheimer's, adult day cares, aging, amelia island, authors, book reviews, bookstores, boomer, boomer women, brain, breaking point, care partner, care receiver, caregiver, caregiver stress, caregiving, community care, daughters, death, dementia, depression, elder care, elder driving, eldercare, elderly, emotional, end of life, family, family caregiving, geriatrics, grieving, health, healthcare, home passing, hospice, hospital, mothering, nerves, neurological disorders, neurology, pallative care, parenting, parkinson's, relationships, sandwich generation, senior care, seniors, sex, women, women's health, tagged family care, urinary tract infections, american medical association, pain, bladder infections, care facilities, nursing homes, prostrate care, kidney infections, kidney stones on May 13, 2008 | 6 Comments »
If you’ve ever had a bladder infection (the common name for UTIs), then you know how very painful they can be.
If you haven’t, let me describe one for you:
Many times, you don’t realize right off what’s wrong.
You’re edgier than normal. You feel “different down there,” but you’re not sure. Then, you get [...]
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Posted in Alzheimer's, affection, amazon, books, boomer women, care partner, care receiver, caregiver, caregiver stress, caregiving, dark humor, daughters, death, dementia, dying, elder care, eldercare, emotional, end of life, family, family caregiving, geriatrics, grieving, guilt, health, healthcare, home passing, hospice, humor, inspirational, kunati, marriage, memoir, mother-in-laws, mothering, neurological disorders, neurology, relationships, sandwich generation, senior care, spiritual, wisdom, women, writing, tagged acceptance, boomer, forgiveness, Grief, inspirational essays, memoirs, memorials, mother's day, mourning, remembrance, stories, woman on May 12, 2008 | 5 Comments »
Dear Mother,
This is my fifth Mother’s Day without you.
I should clarify: without you physically here.
You are indeed, here.
I talk to you and listen to you more than ever. Never thought I’d say that.
Your stories, wisdom, advice, and crazy sayings all come out of my mouth.
Your stories, wisdom, advice, and all crazy sayings come out of [...]
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