A caregiver yearned to take a bird photography class with her local museum, but she needed help. There was no one…
Over a year and a half ago, President Jimmy Carter announced that he was entering at-home hospice care, which is…
Choosing an elder care facility or retirement home for an ailing loved one can be a decision fraught with confusion…
One of summer’s delights can be cozying up to a good book. By delving into a character’s adventures, readers not…
What if stress is a good thing? Stress stems from caring about the events and activities in our lives. If…
As a serious and dedicated caregiver, one of the best things you can do for yourself and your loved one…
Caregiving can be challenging, overwhelming, and exhausting. Yet, when caregiving ends, emotions are fraught too. Not only do caregivers feel…
First, a note of thanks to you! 🙏 We have entered our 10th year helping to bring some sunshine to…
Take a few seconds to consider the past month. How has your holiday season been? Joyful? Exhausting? Fun? Lonely? Or…
Some of the most precious years of my marriage happened after my husband, Don, had a stroke that left him…
🎃 Halloween is an odd holiday. Blend it with caregiving and you’ve got a spooky combination. 👻 Death and delight combine…
For many caregivers, the most stressful challenge to providing in-home care is the physical strain that caregiving puts on their…
As children, our parents can seem all-powerful. We go to them for advice, love, and acceptance. Yet, as they age…
One of the easiest ways to get away from the world is by opening a book. This can be particularly true…
One in five Americans is a caregiver, and about one fourth attend to more than one person, according to the…
When someone’s health declines, one or more loved ones may step forward to become caregivers. Yet quite often, even several…
Caregiving isn’t easy – in fact, it can be grueling. But sometimes, making seemingly minor lifestyle changes can uplift your…
When President Jimmy Carter shared the news that he had chosen hospice care, he also reminded Americans that death is…
Caregiving can be an ever-shifting challenge as a loved one’s health issues demand new treatments, new supports, and new routines.…
Caregiving can be a full-time job, but some caregivers have full-time jobs already. So how do they balance both? The…
My new life as a caregiver happened suddenly. My husband had a stroke, was paralyzed from the neck down, and…
Caregivers often forget to prioritize their own care. An ill loved one’s needs may seem more urgent, but even in…
When Anne’s father was dying, she couldn’t visit him. Pandemic restrictions at the nursing home meant that only her sister,…
When the health of a beloved friend or family member falters, the responsibility for their care may fall on people…
Sometimes caregivers feel invisible. They may toil alone, often with a loved one who, due to physical or cognitive issues,…
We all get angry. We can’t help it. It’s part of being human. Yet, as a caregiver, that emotion can…
Grief and death generally go hand in hand. Yet grief can also come early, when death has yet to occur.…
Most of us have likely heard the truism: If you need something done, ask a busy person. But a corollary…
A new year can be a time for both gratitude and remembrance, but also anticipation for what the coming months…
If you’ve ever seen the movie Fiddler on the Roof, then you’ve heard the word “tradition” sung with a verve that you’ll…
What scares you most as a caregiver? The ailing health of your loved one? Not having time for yourself or…
One of the most challenging aspects of both life and caregiving is change. Change is a constant for all of…
One of the easiest things we do in life is sleep. Once embraced in its warm folds, we recuperate, replenish,…
The demands of caregiving can make exercise seem like an unachievable challenge. Perhaps you can’t leave your loved one alone,…
The past year has been a challenging one, particularly for caregivers. In addition to the normal isolation and stress of…
Internet crime skyrocketed by 69 percent last year, and the elderly and disabled were one of the prime targets for…
Just over a year ago, change swept through the world. Active people were suddenly spending their days at home. Confusion…
Sometimes the challenges of caregiving leave little time for caring for yourself. When your loved one’s needs are overwhelming,…
The past year has been a challenge, but it has also brought to the fore many helpers, from hospital workers…
The holidays can be a time of family, festivity, and fun. For some, they may also create loneliness and money…
Last month’s blog on the importance of laughter received such positive feedback that I thought the topic deserved a second…
Laughter truly is the best medicine. When my husband, Don, suffered a massive stroke and became a quadriplegic, I thought…
Creativity and caregiving go hand in hand! Invariably caregivers have stories of how they used creativity to overcome problems and…
This has been a year of unpredictability for everyone, but even in normal times, unpredictability is often the constant companion…
This year has been filled with unimaginable difficulties and challenges for all of us, especially caregivers in need. The coronavirus…
In the midst of a pandemic, hope can seem hard to find. Anger, frustration, and dismay may seem like easy…
The American Cancer Society defines a caregiver as anyone not paid to provide care to a loved one. Whether a…
Across much of the world, social distancing has meant that caregivers can no longer visit relatives in nursing homes. Caregiver…
You may wonder what you can do as a caregiver to protect your ailing loved one. First, don’t panic. A…
This love may flow back and forth between the one receiving care and the caregiver in a way that deepens…
I became a caregiver to my mother who was diagnosed with colon cancer the summer after I graduated from high…
A new year can be a time to reflect. How did the previous year work for me, my family, my…
Our holiday tradition always included making gingerbread houses. My husband, Don, and I would invite over a couple of our…
Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate family connections. However, for caregivers, family relationships can be complicated. Sometimes, resentment may arise…
Caregiving can be scary—not in the way a Halloween horror flick provokes fear—but instead the way real life does. Caregiving…
When I was my husband’s caregiver, I wish I could have more easily connected with others experiencing similar issues. Now,…
As the summer comes to a close and the school year revs up, one category of caregivers faces unique challenges:…
Vacations and caregiving may not seem like natural partners, but they can be. Almost everyone needs an occasional break from…
Even while stuck waiting in the hospital or sitting isolated at home, a book provides a simple way to transport…
The last thing anyone wants to do when planning a vacation is anticipate a medical emergency. Whether you’re in a…
Why not welcome the spring into your caregiving life! Newly blooming flowers and the warm spring sunlight can be a…
Caregiving is rarely the subject of a movie, but this year’s “The Upside” delves into the ups and down of…
February is the traditional month of love. Stores leap at the opportunity to offer candy, flowers, and jewelry to lovers.…
A new year can provide a special opportunity to reevaluate one’s life and make some new choices. Are you devoting…
How can you take extra time to make the holidays merry when you already have so much to do as…
November, the month of Thanksgiving, is an ideal time to consider how giving thanks can improve our lives. As caregivers,…
Nearly thirteen years later I welcome the on-sale day for my memoir, Kick-Ass Kinda Girl. There are no words to…
Caregivers often fall into existing in either crisis mode or chronic mode, according to Dr. Lee Baucom, author of “Thrive…
I did it. I never thought I could, but I have! It’s hard for me to believe, but after more…
Just as new technology has changed television and telephones, it’s also changing caregiving. For busy caregivers who need time to…
This year, I will be sharing insights from other caregiving experts like Peter Rosenberger, who I met when he interviewed…
Sometimes life’s little things are hard to manage. For example, Jess Esquivel’s grandmother needed wheels and a basket for her…
When Tina Lewis’ mother became ill, life became tumultuous and exhausting. Not only was her mother suffering, but Lewis, an…
When a stroke or other sudden health event has wreaked havoc on a couple’s life together, retaining intimacy and joy…
Caregivers suffer disproportionately from depression, anxiety and loneliness, but each caregiver can take one step that will help combat all…
When people becomes parents for the first time, they encounter a new world with demands and stresses and joys that…
Strangely enough, when someone suffers from a stroke or other debilitating ailment, at least two people end up needing help—the…
When you are suddenly thrust into life as a caregiver, handling a loved one’s medical needs can be one of…
One of the most heart-wrenching aspects of being a caregiver is deciding how to let go of your loved one.…
When suddenly thrust into life as a caregiver, one needs support—financial, social, emotional, and physical—but how and where do you…
When one suddenly becomes a caregiver, the challenges can be immense and confusing.Aside from the varied emotional and medical stresses,…
Keeping intimacy alive is a challenge in any relationship, but when one partner has had a stroke, the challenges can…
It’s the New Year and that time that we start thinking about how we’re going to do things differently, and…
After my husband suffered a catastrophic stroke in 2005, the holidays didn’t seem so merry. I found myself yearning for…
After a parent or grandparent becomes disabled, how will a child react? We recently did a piece that offered advice…
When a parent or grandparent has a stroke or other sudden health incident and has become fully or partially disabled,…
The following is a Q&A with Suzanne A., a Southern California-based caregiver and recent Kathi Koll Foundation recipient. Suzanne is…
In our work with caregivers, one of the issues we see all the time is the challenge that people have…
The holidays can be stressful under ideal circumstances, The holidays can be a tough time of year, particularly for caregivers.…
With National Stroke Awareness Month coming to a close, I wanted to send a friendly reminder to everyone about the…
Last week, I met a woman whose husband suffered a serious health incident. She was in the process of setting…
We all experience feelings of guilt from time or time. As caregivers, we can feel guilty about leaving the patient…
I’ve found most helpful in supporting those at the end-of-life is to focus on them and what they want, without…
When a friend’s spouse experiences a stroke or other significant health incident, the inclination is to support the patient. Particularly…
It’s November and the beginning of the holiday season, which has me thinking about the many blessings I have to…
With the change of seasons now upon us and school and work schedules resumed, many of us can start to…
I traveled to Santa Barbara last week to tour two hospice houses and explore what other communities were doing to…
This week, I spoke at the Fullerton Rotary Club and got a number of questions from audience members about how…
With summer already here, it’s gotten me thinking about the things I did for fun in the summer despite the…
Summer is a bridge of time between spring and fall that gives us a time to relax and reflect. A…
I have received numerous emails from people asking us how I dealt with certain issues. Questions have spanned the spectrum…
When her husband, Don, called on his way to the hospital, Kathi Koll had no idea how dramatically their lives would change …
* All proceeds from book sales go to support caregivers in need
