After Care-giving Ends

If you are caring for a loved one or friend, some day that will end.  It may end with your loved one being cured of his or her disease.  As we talked about a couple weeks ago in my blog post, "In the Hands of the Lord," it may also end in the death of your loved one.    In that eventuality, you will then have to begin the process of picking up the pieces of your life and finding new purpose in your life.  This is something we do not wish to talk about, but it is often a part of the care-giving process.  Hence, we need to discuss it.

Today I am posting a link to an article that was published in Guideposts magazine over three years ago about my experiences the first months after my husband's death.  I had cared for him for over four and a half years, and that time period was a huge transition for me.  This article documents my journey to finding purpose in my life again.  It is written in first person, but was actually written by a Guideposts author (even though I am a published author myself) after an extensive hour and a half interview with me.  I also suggested changes and had input in the final copy.  Although I would have changed the wording a few places, it certainly reflects my emotions and feelings at the time.  Click on the link below to read it.

https://www.guideposts.org/friends-and-family/caregiving/caregiver-burnout/the-gift-of-caregiver-respite?fbclid=IwAR3rfWUer0E__BvLErCFqZM0xe3w7HjOaT2cu4B7tnVEl1xT6bjB