Caregiving

When Siblings Disagree on Elder Care: A Solutions-Oriented Approach to Communication

“It seems like a long time since we’ve had something to argue about,” said Genevieve about her and her brother and sister. “Of course, we used to argue when we were kids. But now it’s like that all over again because we can’t seem to agree on much when it comes to decisions about Dad’s care. I can tell that we’re all caught up in emotions—a lot of different emotions.”

How to Plan for Emergency Preparedness for Seniors in the San Francisco Bay Area

When my cousin and her family of four small children got caught in the 2017 Hurricane Harvey in Houston, they weren’t rescued from their flooded home by official rescue personnel; they waited in the attic until a friend came with a boat to take them to safety. Sometimes, the quickest, most reliable assistance comes from our friends and community connections—especially during disasters when there are a lot of people in need of help.

Mindfulness Meditation and Dementia: Experience the Benefits

We may not always be aware of it, but our way of relating to life is dependent on our way of relating to time. Breakfast comes before lunch and dinner, for example. If we haven’t already shopped for food in preparation, we know we’ll have to take care of that need before those meals. On a deeper level, our past experiences help to develop our personalities, and they provide a context for how we relate to people, places, and things around us—and how we relate to ourselves.

What Is Hospice Care at Home? The Benefits of In-Home End-of-Life Care

The day before my dad died, everyone in the family went to see him. It was a coincidence, more or less. His health had been up and down, and home hospice had been set up for him. The weather the next week was supposed to be miserable, record-breaking rain in San Francisco, so everyone wandered over to the house that day to say, “hi,” and spend some time before the storms hit.

Granny's Got a Gun: How to Prevent Senior Suicide

Earlier this month, we celebrated Grandparents Day, which took place on Sept. 10. That date also marked the beginning of National Suicide Prevention Week. If these events seem unrelated, brace yourself for bad news.

The Progression of Dementia: How Can Caregivers Recognize the Signs?

I was helping my friend move into town recently, and for two days, we were unable to put the bed together because he had misplaced the special screws in the packing process. They were somewhere among the diverse piles of boxes. He was sure he’d stashed them in a safe place, but that fact didn’t make him feel any better during those two days of wondering and turning around and then wondering again.

Support at Home Offers Financial Assistance to Afford Home Care in San Francisco

Sometimes, the people who fall through the cracks aren’t the ones we’d necessarily expect to. But that’s how it has been for approximately 14,000 adults with middle-range incomes in San Francisco. These adults, some of whom are living with disabilities, face unique challenges when it comes to having access to the home care they need because their incomes surpass the federal poverty threshold, which disqualifies them from obtaining subsidized benefits, but they don’t make enough to pay for private home care.