Free Republic

Republicans have slammed Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) for tweeting Wednesday that paid leave, child care, and caregiving are “infrastructure” related items to include in future infrastructure legislation.

Conclusions: Recent changes in public health and social support policies recognize the economic burden of informal caregiving. Our estimates reinforce the high economic burden of stroke in the United States and provide up-to-date information for policy development and decision-making.

A HOMEOWNER has been ordered to leave the house where he was caring for his 92-year-old mother to allow his estranged wife to move back in. Angus and Barbara Ann Fraser are fighting a legal battle over the home in the Lochaber village of Caol. Mrs Fraser, 61, left the house the couple shared with her mother-in-law Elizabeth nine weeks ago when the pair separated, but then began a legaADVERTISEMENT l move at Fort William Sheriff Court to return to live there. Sheriff Douglas Small has granted an interim exclusion order against Mr Fraser, 54, banning him from the house...

Many of our depression-era parents are extremely frugal. They use duct tape to repair items or discontinue use of appliances rather than replacing them. On the other hand, some loosen their guarded nature regarding finances and spend without thinking of the consequences. Lonely widows and widowers and the hard-of-hearing are likely prey for telemarketers. And mail order catalogues, TV shopping networks, and mail or telephone solicitations for charities can also spell budget-busting problems for our aging parents. To protect your loved one, it is important to communicate concern without belittling their intelligence.

It’s easy to fall into a pattern of negative thinking and adopt a woe-is-me attitude when you’re balancing caregiving with the other demands of life. So it might be helpful to honestly assess where you fall on a positive/negative continuum. Often our attitudes, actions, and reactions need a little refurbishing. While an extreme make-over might not be in order, following are some areas to consider:

Life is a balancing Act. As Baby Boomers, we’re part of the “Sandwich Generation,” walking the tight rope between balancing our own lives with caring for aging parents. Some still have children living at home. Others are also caring for grandchildren. Perhaps, instead, we are the “Club Sandwich Generation,” forcefully squeezed between extra slices of additional responsibility. No matter how many roles you fill, your life is probably a mixture of complicated relationships, communication issues, challenging schedules, frustrations, and joys.

Widely prescribed anti-psychotic drugs do not help most Alzheimer's patients with delusions and aggression and are not worth the risk of sudden death and other side effects, the first major study on sufferers outside nursing homes concludes. The finding could increase the burden on families struggling to care for relatives with the mind-robbing disease at home. "These medications are not the answer," said Dr. Thomas Insel, director of the National Institute of Mental Health, which paid for the study. He said better medications are at least several years away. Three-fourths of the 4.5 million Americans with Alzheimer's disease develop aggression,...

It was 15 years ago today that our 8-year-old son Ryan suffered a severe brain injury that left him unable to walk or talk or feed himself. He was in the hospital (in two hospitals, actually) for over six months, and ever since has lived with us at home. I thought I would share some of the lessons I've learned in these past 15 years: Some Run Away I thought I'd start out with the most unpleasant reality first. That in times of real trouble, some people you thought were your true-blue friends or close family members you thought were...

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas (AP) -- A 3-year-old boy died after being left in a day-care van for hours while the temperature was in the 90s, and the driver was charged with manslaughter, police said Tuesday.