To anyone who is new and posting here:
We are a group of non-professional former and current caregivers.
AgingCare friends: let's tell new posters what they need to know upfront.
I'll start.
1. Don't promise your parent that you will never put them in a nursing home or other facility. Instead, say "I will never abandon you; if you need more care than I can provide, I will see that you get it. "
I feel the same way. I was merely adding to Cali’s comment.
Cali made great points!
When advising others, we should realize there are many ways. They want to know what options are available, and we tell them. They don't have to do things exactly. We are just opening up ideas, to give them a way forward, and hope and support.
What I wanted to comment on is your statement about, "It's kind of like those who hold up "I need help" signs on a street corner. Probably 95% don't really but, there's always those other 5% that do - how do you truly distinguish which is which?"
I used to chat with this guy online years ago after I got divorced, in 2001 I think. He had a job, a nice apartment, all the comforts of life..........but he'd go BEGGING on the street corners to make money & he made A LOT of it that way! After the evening was over, all of the 'beggars' would meet up at a local Denny's to COMPARE NOTES and count their 'earnings'!!!! Whoever got the most $$$$ that night bought the meals for everyone! What a racket, huh?
The way I determine if a person holding up a sign asking for help REALLY needs help is..............if he has a grocery cart with him filled with all of his belongings. THEN I feel he's truly homeless and in need of $$. Otherwise, if he's wearing Adidas sneakers and has a cup of Starbucks next to them, he's like my online friend...........a petty thief.
I am not hinting at anything. That would be passive aggressive. I spoke directly to the matter.
Of course, anyone is free to believe whatever they choose to believe.
I agree that it is laughable and only a small amount of people. You can’t take it very seriously.
Many more people are helpful.
I agree. As the saying goes, ‘Consider the source!’
It started because this person did not appreciate that as she put it, ‘I was friendly with a proclaimed atheist on the forum.’
As I have said many, many times, ‘What difference does it make?’ Absolutely none to me.
I know that this will sound facetious but I truly don’t care if someone wants to worship a frog in their backyard! LOL
How does that harm me? It doesn’t. People can believe whatever they choose or not believe anything at all. It doesn’t matter to me.
I see people for who they are. I don’t set a certain criteria or have certain expectations of them like being a ‘Christian’ to be friendly with them.
These posters know that I will either call them out or blow them off.
I don’t need their approval. I know who I am. I could give a rat’s a** what they think of me.
By the way, I do not maintain private conversations in private messages with anyone who isn’t intelligent enough to see beyond themselves.
This behavior started long before the pandemic! It’s a personality issue.
I hate isolation but my personality hasn’t changed.
Basically, I think the best way to handle it is to respond civilly, let them know you will report the inappropriate comment and ask it be removed.
THEN make lemonade of lemons. A sense of humor is likely the best tool to get us through life's vagaries, large and small.
I am not publicly ‘mocking God’. Yes, a poster actually private messaged me and accused me of this!
LOL, I was also accused of standing in the way of someone’s ‘salvation’ due to being an independent thinker! Give me a break!!! I hardly think I have that much influence in someone’s life!
Isn’t this a caregiver site? When did it turn into a religious site? There are lovely religious threads that posters can participate in. No one is stopping them from doing that. Although they may even start trouble there!
I will say that their are various types of believers and non believers. Some are interesting, intelligent people, others are are like brainwashed cult members!
I am not anyone else’s judge, nor do I wish to be.
I respect people who are honestly sincere in their beliefs. I have no respect for hypocrites.
I honestly don’t care what faith a person is. I don’t care if they don’t believe in anything at all. None of it matters to me. I respect all people, regardless of personal beliefs.
I have been this way since I was a child. It simply never mattered to me.
The same goes for people who have different political beliefs.
Or gay, straight, whatever?
I am a ‘Live and let live’ type of person as long as it causes no one else any harm.
I wholeheartedly agree with everything that you just expressed.
Who doesn’t hate bickering? You used the correct word.
No one should object to a different point of view or a healthy debate. We are able to learn from these conversations.
I find it ridiculous to have regular posters on the forum that believe that they are the resident geniuses and experts. It’s disturbing for anyone to see this, let alone a new poster. I left as a poster myself due to certain shenanigans. I came back due to the wonderful posters.
It’s the online forum in general that creates this environment.
It’s nice to have a place to ask questions, vent or have discussions.
Some feel it is a place to say things to others that they wouldn’t have the nerve to say to someone’s face.
I don’t have Facebook but I know the same thing happens on any online forum.
Sometimes people continue it because they find the topic interesting or feel it could be of interest to other readers who are in the same situation.
A couple of instances months ago, everyone was responding trying to offer suggestions and "poof" the OP disappeared from the thread only for me to see they had started one or two others and were now just focused on those. It looks like they've disappeared altogether.
I finally am learning when to give up. Sometimes it's hard. It's kind of like those who hold up "I need help" signs on a street corner. Probably 95% don't really but, there's always those other 5% that do - how do you truly distinguish which is which?
(or was it biblical scripture? Bill Murray? Newbies?--I don't even like that word, newbies).
Did I say something evil about parents? I hope not; mine were spectacularly wonderful.
Yup, I am an atheist. My atheism isn't a choice I made; I was born not believing and just haven't happened to believe in my 78 years.
As to honoring parents, I believe that our parents deserve our love and respect to the degree they sheltered and nurtured and loved us to the best of their ability. It is our parents choice to have us and we come to them completely helpless and needy, dependent on them for our every need. The manner in which those needs are met, or attempted to be met, often equals the manner in which they are honored by us when we have grown in my experience.
If I said something mean I hope whomever I said it to will let me know; I am always happy to talk (as we ALL know).
and PS: I have utterly no idea what's happening at this point, but reading down it looks like AgingCare DOES, and I trust them implicitly. Why don't we let them iron it out without using names that can cause further division.
Great point about the fourth commandment!
There is also a scripture that says for a parent not to provoke a child.
Where is Smeshque? LOL
Sorry, I can’t say exactly what book of the Bible it’s in. Smeshque is fantastic at quoting scripture. I should have looked it up before posting.
Anyway, it’s an important scripture that made an impression on me and it certainly isn’t brought up as often as the fourth commandment.
By my reading, it means not to dishonor or embarass that parent in the public square.
It does NOT mean that you need that you need to give up your livelihood to care for that parent.
My advice would be not to get discouraged and ignore. Hell, from the get go, my BFF called me a troll.
Everyones view and perspective is important so do not feel bad. There are good people here.
IMO there's no rhyme or reason to what the admins allow or disallow, some stuff I've found very offensive has been left while many report that innocuous comments have been removed.
You've probably have been on the forum longer than I have. What I've noticed is that for a long time I saw basically the others who've been on the forum for a long time too posting and now I've seen quite a few new people join or else I've added a couple new categories on my profile page which is exposing posters I've never heard of before. Sometimes I think it's an adjustment for some to accept that their are new ones who are having input. It's no different than being the new kid on the block, new kid at school and so on.
You are right in your statement everyone has the same right to post on this forum as it belongs to "AgingCare" and no one else can stake a claim to it. It doesn't just happen to you. I've read enough comments from people who have posted a question (something I've never done) only to see some of their responses to a person who has given advice feel taken aback by what was said and some who have left the forum altogether etc.
There have been many times I would liked to have "joined in" on a discussion thread but, sense I would not be welcome as it's between others who go back and forth between themselves. I also know what it feels like to have followed a person's story with genuine concern, may have even sent them an occasional PM asking how things are going only to be completely ignored. I've even seen something else that's kind of funny (funny ha, ha - not funny, strange) but, I'm not going to go there.
So with all of that being said, I've learned to just move on and go about my day - because I do have a real life which does involve caregiving and honestly don't have time to worry about the "why's" from complete strangers.
I'm sorry that this is still a "sticking" point for you and hope you can just keep doing what you want to do in regards to the forum!
Thank you for checking in with me as you are very nice folks. I'm now working nights in a temp job. Once done with this job, I'm back to seeking new work, so that's why my posts are turned off until further notice.
Patathome01
That is what my 2nd paragraph is referring to. That specifically and other settings that change your experience with what you get, how you get it and stuff that I don't understand but, I know when I change settings I am sometimes lost on finding information.
U r welcome.
Thank you, that point I would not have thought of - them posting a couple times because they can't find the original post.
I'm not sure if I'm understanding your second paragraph right or not.
I have seen when AC moves some questions to discussions on many occasions so I understand that.
And I've also seen many, many times what you said about some answers are more helpful to others than the OP.
Thanks for the explanations!
Depending on the settings you have on or off, how long it's been since someone posted, etc. The thread can be a bit buried.
Then AC will arbitrarily change questions to discussions and that creates confusion.
I have been here for a couple of years and it is cyclical of drive by posters. Fortunately the answers are mostly helpful to others, so no harm done.