Mental Health

The indoor image shows a bare white wall with shading. The foreground shows a dramatically frowning older man with a bald head and no glasses. His head is slightly tipped upward to show off his frown. He's wearing a navy blue suit with a white shirt and red knotted tie.

How to Cope With an Older Adult’s Complaining and Negativity

You took your mom to the doctor, and she’s upset with you because the appointment took too long. You helped Dad with the yard...

The foreground of the image shows older female hands, one holding a white cup for tea or coffee. The person is wearing a print dress with a black background and lots of color in Green and red, much like Christmas. The blurred background could be a Christmas tree.

8 Ways to Ease Caregiver Stress

Most of us lead frantic lives. That’s the nature of the world today. When you add to that the job—for it is a high-stress...

Providing Care for Family Members Involves Sacrifice: Is It Worth It?

One question that is often asked on the AgingCare.com Caregiver Forum is, “How do I deal with the reality of leaving behind the life...

The background is a blurred outdoor view. In the foreground, we see a women's had and shoulders from the back with only a slight view of her ear and cheek. She has salt and pepper chin-length bobbed hair and is wearing a dark gray sweater. Her head is bowed forward in grief.

When a Caregiver Secretly Wishes It Would All End

Most caregivers are decent folks who care deeply about their elderly parents, spouses, and other loved ones who require their assistance. As so many...

The image shows an unfolded napkin holding four Christmas cutout ginger cookies with decorative frosting. The napkin sits on a light wood table and we can see the edges of holiday decorations.

Celebrating Special Occasions When a Loved One Has Dementia

Every family has their own favorite special occasions that they enjoy celebrating. Some may not be big into Halloween, Valentine’s Day, or Independence Day,...

An outdoor view with semi-cloudy sky, green grass, and a multi-storied, red brick building in the foreground. One sees cement walks and a crosswalk in front.

How to Get Over Feelings That Prevent You From Visiting the Nursing Home

People cite numerous reasons for why they hate visiting nursing homes. Some can’t stand funky smells, others find the sight of disengaged, listless seniors...

A medium-brown natural deck floor serves as a place to display a hammer, a pliers with orange handles, a black handled screwdriver. a black rolled measuring tape, and other tools.

Maintenance & Repair Services Let Older Adults Stay At Home

Whether the need is regular home maintenance or some small remodeling job, in the past it was hard to get many companies to even...

The image shows a dark wood background like a rought table. Stting against this background is a white oblong rock with rounded corners and little smiling faces drawn on in black. Int the center, someone printed in block letters: GRATITUDE.

Tweak Traditions to Make this Holiday Season Realistic and Rewarding

Dear Carol: I’ve spent decades caring for all the older adults connected to our families. Now, only my father-in-law and my mom remain. They...

The image shows late fall leaves hanging from a branch in the foreground with a blurred background.

How to Stay Sane During the Holidays as a Sandwich Generation Caregiver

If one can believe the old Westerns, frontier women were the ultimate multi-taskers. They could rock a cradle with their foot to quiet a...

The cover of "Melted Away: A meooir of Climate Change and Caregiving in Peru by Barbara Drake-Vera. The image shows a colorful left margin using a South American theme. The main cover shows lots of blue sky and low clounds over snow capped montain peaks with foliage and then dry grass near the front.

Caregiving and Climate Change Deftly Interwoven in “Melted Away”

While there are hundreds of books on general caregiving and specifically, dementia care, I usually leave the reviews to the phenomenal group Alzauthors. My...