Category: Navigate and negotiate the service maze
Blessing or a curse
My father became very ill very quickly – one minute he was driving himself to the hospital, the next he was never returning home. I don’t know if this was a blessing or a curse. At least it didn’t drag on. To compound the situation, […]
My mother was now living by herself
After my father passed away my mother was now living by herself. After 60 odd years living together to now being alone created new pressures. When she was in hospital for a couple of months with heart problems, we came to an agreement that when […]
I will never get over this experience but I can heal from it
I’m Leigh.I looked after my Mum for 5 intense months; there were times when I slept on the floor in a sleeping bag to be nearer to her. In the end she was going blind and she had stopped eating and I knew these were […]
Understanding how the system works
My father’s health was getting progressively worse, and his needs were quickly increasing as I tried to find additional in home support. Eventually he ended up in hospital, and it was then clear he was unable to return home. After some issues, the hospital found […]
Caring for my husband, who is a veteran with PTSD
Caring for my husband can be particularly stressful, as he has been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result of his time in the army and now a Borderline Personality Disorder. At times it got so bad that I threatened to leave. I […]
A Young Carer
Hi I’m Kathy I care for my granddad who is 78 years old, I have been caring for him since I was 15 but only officially became his ‘carer’ a year ago. Even though he has 5 children of his own and 20 grandchildren, I’m […]
I have been caring for my wife with MS for nearly 25 years
Hi I’m Tony my wife was diagnosed with MS at a young age and I have been caring for her for nearly 25 years. Just last week she became violently ill and she was rushed by ambulance to the hospital. It turns out she had […]
I am an only child and I always knew that caring for my dad would be my responsibility
Hi my name is Emma, I am an only child and I always knew that caring for my dad would be my responsibility when he deteriorated. He was a Vietnam vet and had kidney problems as a result of his exposure to Napalm. He got […]