Death and dying

Older woman in a wheelchair wears a gray sweater. She has short, salt and pepper hair and has a appears happy. A younder woman, presumably her caregiver, is bending down to listen to the older woman. The caregiver has long brown hair, white skin, and has her hand on the wheelchair push handles.

How Involved Should Families Be When Elders Live in a Senior Living Facility?

Over the course of 15 years, five of my elderly loved ones lived, for various spans of time, in a nearby nursing home. I...

Middle aged man with dark skin and shaved head, has hands placed on top of bent head. Grief is written on his downturned face.

Breaking the News That a Loved One is Going on Hospice Care

When the paperwork was finally signed to get hospice care for my dad, I was grateful. There would now be a routine of care...

Gray haired woman wearing black jacket seen from the back with head bowed. Background is of dark, low hanging rain clouds

When One Parent Dies the Other Often Needs a Long-Term Care Plan

Long-term marriages generally evolve into a support system so efficient that even adult children hardly notice changes in their parents. If Dad’s hearing is...

Image shows blurred dark alter or table. ON tip are rows of votive candle holders, some with lit candles and some empty. We see a total of five flames, three in back and two in the foregroud.

Mixed Emotions: Grief and Relief When the Loved One You Cared for Dies

When my mother died in a local nursing home, my “career” of visiting this exceptional facility nearly every day for almost 15 years ended....

Brown haired woman lying back on bed with hands covering face in emotion and tears.

Hindsight Can Be a Blessing or a Curse for Caregivers

They say hindsight is 20/20. But things from the past that may seem “clear” to you now can still be distorted by difficult emotions...

Image shows a curtained background with a happy older couple in the foreground. T he man stands with his arm around the woman's shoulders. He has gray hair and a white beard and wears a blue and white plaid shirt. The smiling woman has short white hair and is wearing a scoop-necked blouse or gown in a small blue print on a white background.

Admitting Loved One to Hospice Is Emotional, but Understanding Process Helps

Dear Carol: I’m crushed and uncertain how to move forward. My wife, 74, has spent years battling cancer with some success and a reasonable...

A woman covering her face with her hands as if she's crying. We see her long brown hair and both hands with long fingers and red nail polish covering her face.

Coping with Alzheimer’s Caregiver Burnout

You watch your once mentally sharp loved one decline before your eyes. Their uncontrollable behaviors, mood swings, outbursts, confusion, and memory loss are heartbreaking....