AARP Caregiving Summer Break Contest

AARPTeri · ‎07-06-2018

Summertime often means taking breaks and planning vacations. Both of these can be a bit tricky while caring for a loved one. Have you traveled with your loved one recently or are you planning to?

Share your experience here and you will be entered in our Caregiving Summer Contest 2018 and could win one of the weekly $100 gift cards or a chance for the overall winning prize of $500 gift card. Your story may be advice or inspirational!

Review rules here: https://community.aarp.org/t5/Caregiving/AARP-Caregiving-Summer-Break-Contest-2018/m-p/2023713#M67

AARPTeri

LindaH529222 · ‎08-01-2018

Hi there my name is Linda and I have Parkinsons and my husband has heart problems, so we take care of each other. We got married later in life and are both best friends but sometimes I am forget full and so is he witch startes the arguements. I don't ever get a vaction or a couple day get away be cause we have a dog and 3 cats. The kids are grown and live close but they have jobs. I would love a little trip to the Ocean since i haven't been there in years....maybe if I win the money I will be able to afford a little get away. Thanks for listening

TravisM925203 · ‎08-02-2018

I Look forward to help my mom overcome her health obstacles so we can have a grea summer vacation. Also, many more to come.

dajac22 · ‎08-01-2018

I just got back from a week vacation leaving my dad in a nursing home but my sister was around to visit him. Didn't take a vacation last year. Caregivers definitely need time away.

JavonS183482 · ‎08-01-2018

We took mom to the beach this year but had to change accommodations to be sure there was a ramp and we rented a beach wheelchair to help get her to the beach. I had to explain to my kids, that I know its hard because grandma is not her old self but we should spend time with her while we can. I have such fond memories of this vacation even if there were some challenges!

SadD801599 · ‎08-02-2018

I just thought it was me until I learned of AARP awareness and resources I was going crazy. The only programs I like for my mom is at the Alzheimer's Association in my area. The resources are very helpful and has made me so much more aware. Adult day care under Oasis in Santa Monica was an option but for one month is was so costly last year until I couldn't continue to take her but I did have a chance to breath and focus on business . Now Im going to revisit adult day care and budget plan for her to attend at least 4 days out the month because I'm not doing any selfcare.

hclairec · ‎08-02-2018

My 85 year old Mom loves visiting the National Parks. Last we visited Grand Teton and Yellowstone, this September we will travel to the 5 National Parks in Utah. It's a wonderful getaway for us. Making memories .

RonD882009 · ‎08-02-2018

It's becoming increasingly difficult to travel with my mother because she has more and more needs. I've been looking for a service that has a "fill in" person (or people) so that I can get away every now and then but haven't had much success.

kathye904551 · ‎08-02-2018

Long, hot summer days in the green, rolling hills of Tennessee is what I remember in my Dads last

days of living with me, my kids and my spouse.My father was very ill due to congestive heart failure.But he would leave his oxygen machine and walk our garden every day before the mid

summer temperatures climbed or in the cool of the evening. He was enthralled with the green cucumbers that took over part of the garden. The red Tennessee tomatoes that said pick me! Im ready to be eaten! I like to think he enjoyed those quiet moments treasuring his last days of life with us.I was stressed and tired. It was so hard being a nurse, a daughter and a mother and spouse.

I would not have traded that for anything else in the world.My father and I grew closer but we also fought as well.He established a relationship with my husband who became his best friend. My daughter would ride her tricycle around his chair during his breathing treatments.Family is what matters most in the end of life. I was able to hold his hand when he passed and he was surrounded by the people who loved him the most.So for those of you stuggling do not give up! Its all worth it in the end! Miss you Dad.

BrianM620091 · ‎08-02-2018

Enjoy the little moments. Taking your parents to breakfast, or just sitting in the backyard listening to music together. The little moments are so important, but so easy to overlook.

CarenP946017 · ‎08-02-2018

I enjoy sitting outside in the fresh air with my loved ones with a nice pitcher of lemonade.

bao714 · ‎08-02-2018

I've been the sole caregiver for my mother with Alzheimer's and bladder cancer. The onset of her dementia was not nearly as rapid as it was for my stepfather. His adult children decided to secretly have him interdicted by the courts, withholding service of the notification and clandestinely having him medically evaluated under false pretenses. Once armed with the interdiction papers, they lied to my parents and told them they were taking them to Baton Rouge for lunch.

Instead, they took them 60 miles away to an assisted living center and left them both on the locked Alzheimer's ward, then returned to ransack the house of any valuables. They also froze their joint accounts, effectively denying my mother access to any of the community property amassed over a 30-year marriage.

Because they were not "holding paper" on my mother, I was able to respond to her desperate calls for help from the facility. I drove to Baton Rouge and explained to my tearful and frightened mother that I could do nothing for her husband, but that if she wanted, I could take her home and would move in and care for her myself to make sure that she was safe and well cared for.

That was her reluctant decision, and we have tried to make the best of a very bad situation. She struggles to comprehend the cruelty to which she has been subjected, alternating between "how could they do that to us?" to "they would never do that!" It really is heartbreaking to have to explain over and over to her that her husband will never be able to come home again.

We do the best that we can, each day.

umbrawolf · ‎08-02-2018

Dad suffered a stroke about 8 years ago. It has made things difficult, him not wanting to go out. We plan to take a family vacation this year, it's a hard process, but I think dad deserves it.

TimB717458 · ‎08-02-2018

Caring for loved ones who are sick can be tricky and difficult at times. But it is also lots of fun. Before we travel we check with the doctor, map out our route, plan for appropriate activities and places to eat that are safe for our loved one, book safe lodging and then try to enjoy ourselves immensely! I know many of us have a sick loved one who needs care and having a vacation together can sometimes be better than having a vacation without them. I just want you all to know that I am happy and thankful for what you are doing for your loved one(s), keep up the great work! It's well worth it!!! 😄

EmilyD787733 · ‎08-02-2018

I spent some time living with and taking care of my Grandmother after college. Going on vacation was not an option, so I did my best to turn that summer into a fun stacation. My Grandmother loved going out to eat, so we ate in restaurants more often then at home, usually joined by my Mom, and often by my step-father and brother as well. It was a way to make us both feel a bit pampered and for someone else to watch after me a moment, plus my mother being there took some of the pressure off of me when it came to caregiving. If only for an hour or so at a time.

Not everyone can travel, so it's important to break when and where you can.

ClarkK173885 · ‎08-02-2018

We go on day trips, so my parents get away for a day. We don't go to far, but get to the beach, the mountains or just somewhere different

DasfdsfadsfA588553 · ‎08-02-2018

Hi Caregiver Community,
In an effort to take a “mental break” from the constant bombardment of the same questions that were posed by my Aunt (continuously...God bless her) I wrote “her story” in a small booklet. Whenever, I needed a break, I would give her the booklet so she could read her story (with amazement and delight) that answered all of her routinely asked questions. My favorite part was when she would read that she was 90 years old. Each time (just like most of the women I know), she would deny that truth... “90 years old...that can’t be true” she would exclaim emphatically...I would laugh each and every time! Affording Auntie the opportunity to read her “book” both calmed and entertained her, giving me or other caregivers the mental break that was so needed from time to time. RIP, Auntie Ida!!

ArtH670267 · ‎08-02-2018

We always spend our summers in Maine fishing and hiking. It brings us all closer together with our busy lives.

InfinityA233465 · ‎08-02-2018

my favorite part of summer was taking care of my grandma and taking her out to nice places and taking her for walks on the weekend , just spending time with somebody you love and whos in need for care is truly a experience

MaryD340268 · ‎08-02-2018

Hi I'm Mary D, It's been over a year that I would take care of my 99 year old Mother and that was the best time doing it with her. It didn't matter where we were but spending time together was very special. Life is unique and is only one. Take care everyone.

EmmaL404513 · ‎08-02-2018

During the summer we usually like to go camping. It's nice to try and get as much of the family out together as possible.

SherriT3642 · ‎08-02-2018

Vacations as a caregiver only become a hinderance if you let them.The time for me is used to have fun and relax with loved ones,no matter the situation fun can always be had!

rc28277643 · ‎08-02-2018

Traveling is always a mission. looking for the right hotel room that has the accomodations your loved one needs. Packing the equipment needed, making sure medications are filled and dr app before they go to make sure tthey are healthy enough to travel.

TimR460883 · ‎08-02-2018

I'm new to AARP, but I've hesrd nothing but good things about it, As I get older planning for trips is a double edged sword. First with retirement comes the free time to travel, but, also the worries of do I have enough of my prescriptions to last through the trip and if I get sick while travelling how hard will it be to find help.

Anyway, I look forward to a long relationship with AARP now.

CaraR562821 · ‎08-02-2018

Yes, we have considered traveling with an elderly relative who needs care due to Alzheimer's. We are first consulting with her doctor to see if that is something she would be up for. I will post more later.

ShawnaP144752 · ‎08-02-2018

My granny had AARP andit was the best thing at her age that someone could do. They are very helpful and conciderate.

ShawnaP144752 · ‎08-02-2018

My granny was always there fo me and AARP too! They helped her with so many things and its close to my heart.

Kelly1159 · ‎08-02-2018

My Mom will be 80 this year and she doesn't get out of the house like she used to. I go visit her frequently for well checks and so on. She loves to swim so we go swimming in the lake and then go for an ice cream treat.

EileenG660910 · ‎08-02-2018

As a caregiver most of my life between children, my mom and now my neighbor who is 90 years old and has no family i have always had to find few mi utes whenever available to take time for me. I would after dinner sit o porch for 30 minutes and read to relax. This gives you the strength to be able to give yourself to others.

KatyH464635 · ‎08-02-2018

Hello, I am a caregiver to a wonderful women who is a friend of the family. She is 82 years strong and living her life to the fullest. We are able to venture out and explore new restaurants and places around the St. Louis area while still finding time to keep up with her hobbies of quilting and painting.

@AARPTeri wrote:

Summertime often means taking breaks and planning vacations. Both of these can be a bit tricky while caring for a loved one. Have you traveled with your loved one recently or are you planning to?

Share your experience here and you will be entered in our Caregiving Summer Travel Contest 2018 and could win one of the weekly $100 gift cards or a chance for the overall winning prize of $500 gift card. Your story may be advice or inspirational!

Review rules here: https://community.aarp.org/t5/Caregiving/AARP-Caregiving-Summer-Break-Contest-2018/m-p/2023713#M67

KaylaH711439 · ‎08-02-2018

My summers involved going to the playground with my grandmother or going in the kitchen and helping her make food until she came down with a disease that hurts her if she stands up for too long or uses her hands for too long.