Amy Bovaird suffers from Retinitis Pigmentosa, a progressive vision disorder. Yet she is the primary caregiver for her aging mother. Below is an example of how Amy finds hope in her daily adventures – even in a pair of pink slippers. “Make sure you don’t drop my hearing aids,” my mother warned, as she did …
What a crazy week! I worked at the day job 10-12 hours, rushed home to water the flowers before they bent their sad little heads and shriveled up, exercised a bit, ate a few bites – then sat down at the computer to write, fell into bed and did it all over again the next …
Recently, I met a woman whose son died in a tragic car accident. One minute he was alive with plans for a wonderful future. The next minute, he was lying in a coffin. A terrible event with intense grief. For families with loved ones who suffer from Alzheimer’s, the grief comes in small steps. We …
Throughout the pre-wedding activities, Mom functioned well. She attended bridal showers, listened to all the exciting plans and smiled for the photographer. But we knew our 85 year-old mother might create a few problems on the actual wedding day. It was my job to get Mom dressed, drive her to the church and make sure …
As a child, I thought my mother was literally ten feet tall. At 5’8”, she towered over me both in height and in authority. During the last few years, osteoporosis has reduced her to almost the same height as me, 5’4”. Now we look at each other on equal footing, although I still emotionally look …
Because I am the Long Distance Caregiver in our family, I see Mom only on major holidays or when I manage a few days of extra vacation. The hard part is that I rarely see my family and miss them all the time. Yet the positive aspect is that I easily observe the changes in …
As our loved ones journey through Alzheimers and/or dementia, it’s important that we keep in regular contact with the rest of the family. Even though we live hundreds of miles away, we still have a significant role to play. I call my sister each week and my brother about every other week. My sister is …
A friend recently encouraged me to define my role as a long-distance caregiver. How would a defined role help me deal with my guilt and anxiety whenever I drive away from Mom? But the more I thought about it, the more I liked the idea. Define my role and maybe even give myself a job …
She accidentally became a nurse. Her life’s ambition and the prophecy from her high school yearbook stated that she would someday become a famous writer, weaving thousands of words into paragraphs and books. But World War II interrupted everyone’s plans, so she signed up to become an army nurse. The only way she could afford …
We’re at the conclusion of our series on the lessons that Alzheimer’s Disease can teach us. A review includes: patience, each day counts, make positive memories and strongholds endure. Finally, we come to Part 5. Eternity Matters. We tend to live so intensely in the present, in our busy lives on earth that we sometimes …