Walking in Circles

End of Life, Overwhelm, Uncategorized

My father’s death was a whirlwind, just two weeks from diagnosis to death. That’s how it was with his pancreatic cancer. My mother’s death was very different. She had vascular dementia, and when she died, it was the culmination of months of not...

When Everything Feels Like Too Much: A Message for Caregivers

Common Challenges, Overwhelm

Ask people how they’re doing while waiting in line at the grocery store. How many will tell you they’re exhausted?There’s the doomscrolling, the relentless news cycle, and that nagging feeling that even the simplest things have become unnecessarily...

Supporting Your Care Partner Through Tragedy

Common Challenges, Overwhelm

One thing is for sure in life: Hard things happen. When they happen to our parents or care partners it can be difficult to know how to best support them. Missing Last month I was flying from Nova Scotia to Newfoundland to see my two favorite 91-year-olds, Mom and her...

Caregiver Guilt: 10 Powerful Ways to Reframe, Heal and Find Peace

Overwhelm, Uncategorized

Caregiver guilt has hung around me for years. I have numerous things I feel guilty about, and I can add new reasons every day. I may have broken a promise, lost my temper in frustration, spoken unkindly, made a mistake, or even worse, felt like I neglected my loved...

3 Strategies to Overcome the Most Stressful Part of Daughterhood

Overwhelm

There is almost nothing in life more stressful than feeling like you are 100 percent responsible for a situation over which you have zero control. This is happening a lot these days in my house because somehow, somewhere, my daughter has grown into a teenager and I’ve...

Caregiving During the Holidays is Not a Hallmark Movie

Overwhelm

On Christmas day, 2021, I took my parents’ dog for a walk by myself. My Dad’s nausea was bad that day and my mom’s grief was worse. My own children and husband were 800 miles away. All around me happy families seemed to be strolling along, multiple generations...