It's my birthday today. I'm not having a good time.
On this earth now for more than 50 years, & it's rare that my birthday has ever been about me.
Today is really no exception.
I had a visit from my folks. It wasn't good - they're not doing well. Mom's Parkinson's is worse, her dementia is tanking. She's becoming a shell. Dad is exhausted.
@Impious_Jade Being a full time caregiver is so exhausting. 😢
@Sandywb14 Yeah. My poor dad. He's nearly 80, he isn't going to last long.
@Impious_Jade I hope they do too. It has to be wearing your dad down. There's a whole lot of guilt tied into end of life care as well.
@Impious_Jade
People don't take enough advantage of end of life services. Hospice provides much more home services and caregiver support than standard insurance, and it's designed to go up to 6 months (but can be renewed; some people really thrive with the extra support). Yet most people don't enroll until two or three days before they die. All they get out of it is a DNR order.
@AlphaCentauri @Impious_Jade i found this Australian YouTube channel makes a lot of good points about end of life planning https://youtu.be/UFQntSYmn-A
I have a friend who has terminal health problems including heart and kidney disease. We do what we can when we can
Mom's neurologist is recommending palliative care for her. I fucking hope they go for it because a) mom needs it, & b) dad can't really take care of her.