Reading Time: 2 minutesHere’s my latest article for the Sunrise Medical Live Quickie blog about choosing an accessible vehicle. I’m still deep in the throes of this process […]
Kill or Be Killed – Not a Joke!
Reading Time: 3 minutesIn the midst of the holiday season, I want to remind family caregivers and those family and friends who surround them that considering ending the […]
Caregivers: The Next Generation
Reading Time: < 1 minuteTeva has published my latest article, How Should We Raise the Next Generation of Caregivers? on their new website, tevapharm.com. This article discusses what traits […]
How Many Wheelchairs Are Enough?
Reading Time: 2 minutesI’m excited to announce that I have a new occasional writing gig creating content for the Sunrise Medical Live Quickie Blog — my first article […]
Grieving For My Lost Life
Reading Time: 5 minutesIt has been six months since my last post — daily life continues to frustrate my efforts to write. Plus, February 11 marked 6 years […]
Caregiver Time Management – Always a Work in Process
Reading Time: < 1 minuteI’m back! Well, I didn’t actually go anywhere but time has flown by, and I unintentionally took a sabbatical from writing as my last post […]
Fear, Fatigue, and Failure
Reading Time: < 1 minuteHere is my latest article for lifeeffects.teva. I tried to explore the principle worries that cause caregivers to be in a constant state of anxiety. […]
A Plan to Help Family Caregivers
Reading Time: 5 minutesThere are many initiatives underway across the nation to help family caregivers. They range from expanding insurance coverage to paying a stipend to the caregiver […]
Good Riddance to 2021
Reading Time: 3 minutesMy end of year post has several purposes not least of which is to say, good riddance to 2021. I’m happy to see it go! […]
5 Tips to Get The Most From Your Doctor
Reading Time: < 1 minuteMy most recent article published by lifeeffects.teva gives you 5 tips to get the most from your doctor as a caregiver. Effectively communicating with your […]
There Are These Moments…
Reading Time: 4 minutesMost of the time, since arriving back home in mid-2107, J has been sleepy, quiet, and expressionless, but then there are these moments! Moments reminiscent […]
Regaining Independence
Reading Time: 4 minutesJ’s disabilities turned out to be worse and more long-lasting than initially thought and regaining independence in any activity has been challenging for her. I’m […]
Building a Better Caregiver
Reading Time: 4 minutesI have a recipe for building a better caregiver. It turns out that my 13-year-old daughter is having a profound impact on my worldview affecting […]
The Timeline Part 2 – The Aftermath
Reading Time: 4 minutesI published “The Timeline Part 1 – The Stroke” on Aug 12, 2017, six months after the event. Now, four years after J’s Feb 11, […]
Male Caregivers Deserve Better!
Reading Time: 3 minutesOkay, I get it. I’m a 60+-year-old white guy which puts me in a demographic that is clearly out of favor, on multiple fronts. Much […]
4 Tips to Avoid Control Issues
Reading Time: < 1 minuteLifeEffects.teva has published my latest article: 4 Tips to Avoid Control Issues as a Caregiver. This article deals with how your inner control-freak and obsessive-compulsive […]
Family Caregivers Need the Vaccine!
Reading Time: 4 minutesFamily caregivers need the vaccine sooner rather than later! Understandably, the initial rollout of two COVID-19 vaccines prioritize health care workers and residents of long-term […]
“Are You Okay?”
Reading Time: < 1 minuteMy latest post “Are You Okay? 3 Communication Tips for Caregivers” is published on the Life Effects caregiver site. This is an important article on […]
Becoming Better Caregivers
Reading Time: < 1 minuteMy latest article published on lifeeffects.teva provides tips on how men can become better caregivers. Remember that my original premise for this blog was to […]
Letting Go of “Perfection”
Reading Time: 4 minutesI have a hard time letting go of perfection. The last 3+ years have been a difficult journey learning to care for J, knowing what […]
Chapter 1- Do We Need to Move?
Reading Time: 4 minutesAs promised, I’m starting a journal recording our adventure looking for a new accessible home hence this is Chapter 1. Our current living situation is […]
In Search of the Perfect Ponytail
Reading Time: 3 minutesThis blog is written primarily for men, and while I hope most of the articles are of interest to both men and women caregivers, this […]
obi – The Dining Robot
Reading Time: 5 minutesJ is unable to feed herself, at least not without becoming frustrated and tired, and creating a mess – which our dog loves. Her problem […]
My Wife is Hard to Dress!
Reading Time: 3 minutesIf left to me, my wife would wear sweatpants and a t-shirt every day because she is hard to dress. Thanks to the pandemic, and […]
Common Knowledge is Dead!
Reading Time: 4 minutesI yearn for simpler times when there were things most people believed to be true, common knowledge, even when they were not. George Washington chopped […]
Pandemic Preparedness Lessons
Reading Time: < 1 minuteMy latest article, “4 things the pandemic has taught me about preparedness” is now live on lifeeffects.teva. This article discusses being prepared to all types […]
Too Many Hats!?
Reading Time: 4 minutesOne thing that the COVID-19 crisis has brought to the forefront is adding additional roles to the ones I was already handling before the stay-at-home […]
Are Male Caregivers Different?
Reading Time: 4 minutesI planned to write two blog posts since before I created this site. As the intent of this blog was to address the dearth of […]
Staying Sane – Part 2
Reading Time: 2 minutesHere is my most latest article for Lifeeffects.teva which builds on my recent post about staying sane. I know you have many choices from which […]
Staying Sane in an Insane Time
Reading Time: 5 minutesor How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Pandemic I thought I’d break away from my usual topics, in light of all that […]
How I Manage My Day
Reading Time: < 1 minuteHere’s my latest article published on lifeeffects.teva that discusses how I manage my day as a caregiver. One thing I didn’t say in the article […]
Coronavirus Avoidance
Reading Time: 3 minutesAs any self-respecting blogger would do, I have to jump on the Coronavirus avoidance advice bandwagon. First, remember that I am not a medical professional, […]
The Hidden Costs of Caregiving
Reading Time: < 1 minuteMy latest article for lifeeffects.teva discusses the unexpected and hidden costs of caring for people with chronic conditions. I’d love to hear what kind of […]
Surviving Chronic Illnesses
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn November 2018, Alex Belth, the editor of Esquire Classic, published an article in Men’s Health magazine, How Our Relationship Survived When My Partner Got […]
Training is Essential
Reading Time: 2 minutesHoward Glickman, senior contributor at Forbes Magazine, regularly writes about caregivers. His most recent article, Compassion isn’t enough for family caregivers. They need training too, […]
7 Tips for Traveling when Caring for Someone
Reading Time: < 1 minuteLifeEffects.teva has published my article on tips for traveling with a disability or chronic illness. This article explores my experiences working with J to be […]
The Importance of Family
Reading Time: 2 minutesAs we enter the holiday season, it’s important to recognize the importance of family. I’m not brazen enough to think I can add something new […]
The Proverbial Last Straw
Reading Time: 4 minutesThe poor little innocuous plastic drinking straw is under attack in the war against pollution. The problem started when a 9-year-old did the math and […]
Navigating Long-Term Care
Reading Time: 3 minutesI spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about long-term care and worrying over who will take care of J if (or when) something happens […]
Women Like To Have Their Faces Washed!
Reading Time: 6 minutesThis blog was created to discuss the difficulties of being a male caregiver, especially when the person needing care is your spouse and a female. […]
Loneliness Affects Both Survivor & Caregiver
Reading Time: 4 minutesLoneliness isolates both the survivor and the caregiver resulting in depression.
May is Stroke Awareness Month
Reading Time: 2 minutesMay is national stroke awareness month kicking off a variety of activities meant to increase awareness about identifying a stroke, recognizing risk factors, and supporting […]
Every Little Bit Counts
Reading Time: 4 minutesI am often searching for a cause. I’m driven in part by my desire to give back, sometimes by thinking I can make a difference, […]
“Why Can’t I Die?”
Reading Time: 4 minutesAmazingly, the short break I intended to take back in October to recharge for the new year turned into a five-month hiatus. Now I’m back, […]
A Grab Bar That Goes Where You Need It
Reading Time: 3 minutesI struggled for quite a while with selecting and installing grab bars around the house to help J steady herself.
7 Tips For Male Caregivers (or Not)
Reading Time: 2 minutesA blog post about wellbeing evoked a strong insightful reaction.
Navigating Customer Service & Support
Reading Time: 5 minutesNavigating Customer Service is one of the most important aspects of caregiving. Without reliable products and services, our lives and our patients lives are at risk!
Reducing the Stress of Hiring an Aide
Reading Time: 5 minutesHiring a home care can be stressful. You may be able to learn from my experiences.
Amazon – Best Friend or Ultimate Evil?
Reading Time: 3 minutesIs Amazon taking over your life or are you resisting?
Minding Your Meds
Reading Time: 3 minutesMedication management is one of the top three functions for a caregiver.