The Transition from Child to Caregiver and How to Handle It
One of the biggest challenges of watching your parents’ age is becoming their caregiver. A key challenge on both sides is the change from your parents being in charge to the child becoming in charge in some capacities.
Many aging adults struggle with this sense of lost independence and the fight over who is in control of decisions about their well-being, safety, and care. Some children watch their parents gradually lose their decision-making capacity because of age, dementia, medications, and other factors like stress, illness, injury, and anxiety. There are important steps that you can take to help make this transition easier. The first step is to start talking about it as early as possible—before your aging parent begins to lose their decision-making abilities.
Make sure that you have the conversation before anything does happen, so you’re prepared for what the aging adult needs and wants. This includes talking about:
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- Future living arrangements and preferences
- Health care preferences and advanced directives
- Financial planning, budget concerns, and management of assets
- End-of-life wishes and funeral arrangement
- Emergency contacts and important document
- Support needs for daily living and potential in-home care
- Preferred communication methods and staying connected
- Legal matters, such as power of attorney and wills
Make sure that you give your parents or loved ones the opportunity to lead the conversation and explain their wishes and concerns in their own words. This means having an open mind as well, because a parent may have a different idea for what they want as they age than what you want for them. It might be difficult to listen to them discuss what to do after they pass or hear their advanced directives, but just because you are talking about it doesn’t mean it’ll happen tomorrow. This discussion just allows us to prepare for what’s to come.
McGregor Is Here to Help
If you need guidance on talking to a loved one, or you want to explore options for your parents at McGregor’s senior living communities, please reach out to our team. We’re here to help.
Sources:
Care.com
