Category: Uncategorized

The Caregiver Learning Curve

Why do we instantly expect ourselves to know everything when we first begin to provide care for a loved one? We don’t make such assumptions about other endeavors; for instance, doctors, teachers, lawyers, financial planners—as well as many other professionals—receive years of education before they’re even allowed to practice solo. Occupations ranging from pilots to…
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The Handwritten Release

Writing letters is almost a lost art these days. Even the event of putting pen to paper has somewhat diminished from the universal activity it once was. But before we let it go completely, let’s consider how putting pen and paper together to express our thoughts may actually benefit the writer—even if the person it’s…
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The Memory Care Triangle

In general, our society tends to frown on adultery, although it does seem to turn up a lot—in both fiction and in real life: Jane Eyre’s Mr. Rochester is only too happy involving himself in relationships with any woman other than his legal wife; Frank Burns and Margaret Houlihan participate in what was undoubtedly one…
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Power of Attorney: What Is It and Why Do You Need It?

 Your loved one has just been diagnosed with dementia, and because the condition is so advanced the doctor has no choice but to declare them “incompetent”—meaning they are no longer able to manage their own affairs due to their medical condition. At this point, someone else is going to have to step in to do…
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The Resuscitation Question

In my previous post, I started a blog series in order to more closely examine the estate planning documents every person should have; I began by investigating the difference between the living will and the last will and testament. This post, the second in the series, will address the delicate subject of resuscitation, specifically focusing…
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Living Will vs. Last Will: What’s the Difference?

The estate planning documents—vitally important but often ignored—can be a bewildering subject to tackle. As a caregiver, I saw firsthand how important it was that plans had been established before my grandparents were both diagnosed with dementia; and the more time I spent caring for them, the more I came to understand how bad it…
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The Purpose in the Repetition

By our very nature, we humans are storytellers. The sharing of information in the form of a story is so deeply ingrained as to be part of our very fabric. In Volume 3 of her fantastic educational series The Mystery of History, Linda Lacour Hobar quotes one of the west African griots—men who memorized their…
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The Overstimulation Minimization

Traffic. A crowded room. A busy restaurant with a long wait and lots of loud people in the bar cheering every single time a ball goes through a net. Do the thoughts of these things make you feel anxious or agitated? Some will, some won’t, but almost everyone has felt apprehensive in a bustling or…
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Eye Speak to You

“Look at me!” These words get your attention, don’t they? An imperative phrase, this expression makes you look up to see who’s speaking. Something about that sentence just stops you in your tracks and makes you do just that: look directly at the speaker. These were the words that could strike terror in your heart…
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The Gospel Truth: Jesus’ Ministry to Caregivers

Happy 2022! It’s a brand-new year, and the mental “reset” this affords all of us cannot be overstated. During the Holiday break, my family and I have been enjoying Angel Studios’ crowd-funded hit The Chosen. Watching the very ordinary—yet simultaneously extraordinary—way Jesus interacts with all kinds of people has been deeply moving as well as…
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