I Love taking care of her she is 86 she has dementia and she had half
of her hip replaced she can not walk yet.I have read some stories on here
Why do some of you complain?.dont for get who took care of you when you
were little or when you could not do anything
From my own experience dealing with siblings who do not help or understand is the most stressful part of having my Mother living in our home. Loss of privacy is a very close second. We are fortunate in being able to afford in home help so I can somewhat continue doing the things that are important to me; my grandchildren, volunteer work and travel. The isolation would be very difficult for me if I were not able to get out a few days a week. This has been a total lifestyle change for my husband and I.
Had I found this board 2 years ago, I would have made other arrangements immediately for Mother and saved myself from lots of stress (physical and mental) and heartache. Being with me or elsewhere is not going to change Mother's situation and I will still be very involved in seeing she is safe, comfortable and well cared for.
I love taking care of my Mother; however, I love my husband, children and grandchildren and will not give them up for anyone. It is only through God's grace and strength I have been able to all that needs to be done for Mother.
I wish you the very best and pray your caregiving continues to be a very positive experience in your life. Caregiving 24/7 is more than one person is able to sustain for any real length of time. I hope for your own health, you are able to recognize that point in time before it is too late for you to have a life of your own.
One thing I like about this group is that I can talk about the bad days. A cg is going to have those days when demands are greater than the abilities of the cg. It is nice to have a place like this to come to on those bad days. People here know about those days and listen without judgment. I don't know about others, but I appreciate someone to vent to. I can't do it to family or neighbors.
Most people on here do so much for their loved ones, but there is a shortage of cgs for the cg in the outside world. I consider a lot of people on this group to be cgs of cgs. We all need someone to care about us, even if it is just our imaginary online friends.
There is constant interruptions, the phone ringing, health care workers for both of them in and out... and if I didn't have this sight to come to to 'complain', I would not have a place to put my human feelings.... in order to be a good caregiver, I need to address the human part first....
I hope you have not set yourself up to not come back and share when and if things get hard... because it does get hard... interrupted sleep for days on end, so If I'm a 'complainer' I am very very grateful for all the other complaining caregivers, it helps me to not feel alone or that I am a bad person, it helps me to know that what I am feeling is normal.... to get support, encourgement and hugs from people going thru the same thing is priceless to me.... I could not do this without them.... I have been on this sight for years.... and there is also a lot of gratitude shared on here, a lot of laughter, friendships made, and it is people like JessieBelle that I can count on to get me thru hard sad days....
I really like what you said, JessieBelle, about caregivers of caregivers... never thought about it that way before,,,, but who better to understand us than another caregiver.... thanks for saying that....
You call it 'complaining', we call it loving and supporting each other... I wish you well with your caregiver life.... it's not for sissies......
care about their mom.
I think I had a knee jerk reaction to the word 'complain', as the world at large sees what we do as an easy job, just taking care of the old folks, how hard can that be.... they have no idea.... so this sight was created for us to have a place to identify with others, to be understood, to have a safe place to have our feelings without being judged... to get and give much needed support for your daily struggles...
Please come back and let us know your story.... we are here to help and to understand... sometimes, for me, just knowing others understand how I feel is worth more than words can express....
It sounds like you need this safe place for yourself as well, hope we see you again....sending you my caregiver survival kit,,,,,, love, hugs, angels, and chocolate..... let us hear from you...
Some parents have children and spend their entire lives loving them and not loving them, conditionally.
The lucky people are the ones that have wonderful loving relationships with their parents and cherish the opportunity to care for them in their declining years
Come on over for an hour, I'm sure you'll even appreciate your situation more than you do!
AND-we all need to laugh with one another about our elders' and our own situations.
When my parents were raising me (and my 6 sibs) there were many times my mother complained. Many times she expressed frustration. I never concluded that she loved me less or that she would take less good care of us because of it. And she used to say, "Just wait until you are a parent!" And when I did become a parent, there were times I complained about it and was frustrated with it and vented to friends who were also parents of youngsters. I know for a fact that didn't mean I didn't love my kids, it didn't mean I wasn't glad to take care of them, it didn't mean I regretted having them. It is just that some days or some hours ARE HARD, DARN IT!!
Do you have children? Did you never complain while you were raising them? If not, that is pretty amazing. If your own mother never had moments of complaining about the challenges of motherhood, that is pretty amazing. And if you are caring for someone -- anyone, but especially a loved one -- who is slipping away memory by memory with the cruel disease of dementia and you never ever feel the need for venting or complaining, well, all I can say is that is absolutely amazing.
I hope that helps you see things from someone else's perspective. If not, no big deal. I hope your caregiving experience continues to be good.
But this forum has been a great asset to me . I feel like I am not in this alone. Because lets face it. This is a hard job..maybe the hardest one I have ever taken on. Complaints turn it to solutions and there are so many out there we can learn from. God Bless