Saturday, November 27, 2010

The Gray Tsunami

Babyboomers are aging and graying at alarming rates these days.

Caregiving of them is necessary.

Five years is the average number of years caregivers spend caring for an ill spouse, parent, child, sibling or friend.

That's according to, Passages in Caregiving: Turning Chaos Into Confidence by Gail Sheehy.

She should know.

She spent 17 years as a caregiver for her husband who was afflicted with cancer that led to his death.

Her latest tome is a handbook that has an exercise program I plan to use with seniors as a pastor and fitness instructor.

There's also a list of things to do when someone I love enters the final phase of living.

This memoir of her marriage shows how she continued to live well after her husband's death.

The labyrinth is the metaphor Sheehy uses for eight stages or "turnings" caregivers confront from the diagnosis to death of a loved one.

AARP indicates that 65 million Americans are caring for someone who is ill or living with a long-term disability.

Roots and relationships run deep for families who care for one another.

Sheehy has done a world of good with her latest guidebook for caregiving.

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