Why We Decided to Use an Agency Keeping mom at home is the core of our care plan. After dad died, I struggled with how to make that happen safely and affordably. Mom needs 24/7 live in help, but I needed to keep working. (Jump to Lessons Learned) Concerned about finances, I figured hiring someone directly (private pay) would be less expensive. And it can be. What I didn’t … [Read more...]
Medicaid’s Five Year Look Back: 6 Tips On How You Can Prepare Now
Don't spend down to $2,000 and THEN apply! Medicaid is one of those words that can bring out powerful emotions in people. No one wants to go on Medicaid, but here is the reality, it provides health coverage to more than 4.6 million low-income seniors. And part of that healthcare is paying for seniors to live out their lives at home, in Assisted Living or Skilled Nursing … [Read more...]
Discharged From Rehab – Now What?
Leaving Rehab with a long list of equipment and lifestyle modifications – it’s overwhelming. Rehabilitation allows you to regain strength, manage a chronic illness, or relearn activities of daily living. Typically, you are not back to “normal” after your stay. Which is why a discharge care team starts planning your release almost the moment you enter the facility. … [Read more...]
How Best Can I Love and Live With Mom, A Person Living With Dementia?
One Alzheimer's Caregiver Story. Shelly’s mother has Alzheimer’s and she has been her primary caregiver for years. Her mom is a wonderful woman that often thanks Shelly and her other caregivers, despite the fact that she doesn’t know who they are. But this loving behavior wasn’t always the case. There was a time when the violence was so bad (pinching, pushing, punching and … [Read more...]
Caregivers Put Aside Your “To Do” List and Re-connect with Your Senior
Caregivers share ways they create special moments. Making time to step away from all the caregiving tasks and spend quality time with our aging loved ones is a universal problem. I first wrote about this in March with the post: Today I am her daughter and not her caregiver. Since then I have been gathering suggestions from readers on how to make time to be with loved … [Read more...]