The Unexpected Journey of Caring: The Transformation from Loved One to Caregiver

The Unexpected Journey of Caring is a practical guide to finding personal meaning in the 21^st century care experience. Readers are invited to actively reclaim and remake how they think of themselves, their care situation, and their capacities to provide care for their loved one and themselves.

ISBN-13: 9781538174050

Media Type: Paperback

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers - Inc.

Publication Date: 09-15-2022

Pages: 256

Product Dimensions: 5.46(w) x 8.51(h) x 0.60(d)

Donna Thomson is the author of The Four Walls of My Freedom: Lessons I’ve Learned From a Life of Caregiving. She is a consultant and speaker on issues relating to family caregiving, disability and aging. Donna is a patient and family advisor on health research and policy and she teaches family caregivers in Canada how to advocate for care in hospital and in the community. She blogs regularly at THE CAREGIVERS' LIVING ROOM (www.donnathomson.com). Zachary White, PhD, is an award winning university professor who teaches undergraduate and graduate courses addressing topics such as provider-patient communication, caregiver communication, the patient experience, health and illness narratives, digital health literacy, social support and disclosure, and sense making amidst life transitions. As the founder of the caregiver blog and resource “The Unprepared Caregiver” (www.unpreparedcaregiver.com), his original writing voice mixes first-hand experiences, communication expertise, and cultural analysis featuring a care-centered point of view.

Table of Contents

Foreword by Judy Woodruff Introduction Chapter 1: I'm (Not) a Caregiver Disorientation: From Loved One to Caregiver Chapter 2: Living In-Between Scripts (Transformational Moment #1) Chapter 3: A Hyper-Intolerance of Others (Transformational Moment #2) Chapter 4: Audience Betrayal (Transformational Moment #3) Chapter 5: Who am I Becoming and Why am I So Hard on Myself? (Transformational Moment #4) Chapter 6: When “Getting Through” isn’t Good Enough (Transformational Moment #5) Re-orientation and Advocacy Chapter 7: Making Meaning That Matters Now Chapter 8: Begin With the Basics: What Is My Role at Home, What Do I WANT It to Be? Chapter 9: You Are Not Alone, But Who Are the People in Your Neighborhood? Chapter 10: Navigating the Rough Waters of Transition Chapter 11: Not a Social Network, But a Care Network Chapter 12: How to Know What You Want and Get What You Need Chapter 13: Power and Love = Empowerment Chapter 14: Cultivating Connection Conclusion: A New Way of Seeing and Being Show More