A Caregiver's Christmas MemoriesIf there's anything my late wife, Lynette, loved, it was the winter holidays. She had a real flair for decorating, baking, cooking, and hosting, and I loved watching her as... By Kaye Waller2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
The Fallible Caregiver Series: Why We Need Lazy Days of GluttonyI tend to burn the candle at both ends and often in the middle. My wife and I started seeing a marriage counselor a couple months back to help us... By Joel Hughes3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
The Fallible Caregiver Series: Helping Her Build a LegacyI heard the results of a survey 25 years ago and it’s haunted me ever since. The survey results were said as part of a sermon I heard on a... By Joel Hughes3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments1 comments
The Fallible Caregiver Series: You’re In the Ring TooI like to think of myself as a manly man. When we moved to Oregon last year, I applied for jobs at a couple of companies. I didn’t get the... By Joel Hughes5 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
The Good Intentions of Others“The road to hell is paved with good intentions,” or so the saying goes. That's a little rough, but the meaning is clear. On their own, good intentions are fine;... By Kaye Waller3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
The Fallible Caregiver Series: Seeking Outside HelpI had a mental image yesterday of how I feel in life. I pictured a piece of twine rope frayed at both ends. I wasn’t even thinking about anything, in... By Joel Hughes8 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
Conflicting Emotions are NormalShe breezed into the house, shrugging off her backpack and setting down her cappuccino. We'd known each other for a number of years but hadn't clicked as friends. She was... By Kaye Waller4 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
The Fallible Caregiver Series: Helping Her Stay ConnectedI think one of the most dominant feelings for those in Cancerland is feeling alone. At least it is for us. There are different types of “aloneness,” but here, I’m... By Joel Hughes6 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
Popsicles and MorphineEverything changes when it's time to call hospice. A lot of the time-consuming, mundane caregiving tasks end; taxi-cabbing, running personal errands, picking up prescriptions, and so forth. When that nurse... By Kaye Waller2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments3 comments
The Fallible Caregiver Series: When Anger Knocks, Part 2Yesterday, I felt pissed off a few times at my dear wife. She was too slow getting ready to get out of the house. She was on her phone too... By Joel Hughes7 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
The Fallible Caregiver Series: When Anger Knocks, Part 1I felt it the other day. I feel it more than I wish. It often stirs right below the surface of my moving demeanor. Frustration. Okay, let’s not sugarcoat it... By Joel Hughes6 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
The Stages of Grief, MaybeThere are hundreds of websites that address the stages of grief. Over the past year, I've read many of them, but none fit me. I've been through a lot of... By Kaye Waller2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
The Fallible Caregiver Series: Helping Her Feel NormalI know what abnormal feels like. I know how awful it feels to think that everyone around you sees you as messed up, broken, weak, and abnormal. Whether or not... By Joel Hughes7 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments1 comments
I Don't Want to Talk About Cancer!Sometimes, the last thing I want to do is talk about cancer. Having been a cancer caregiver for friends and various family members since 1975, there are times I never... By Kaye Waller3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments4 comments
Learning to Let Go of Control and Go with the FlowI looked at Lynette, who sat silently beside me. After a life of starring in musicals and operas, it was natural for her to remain in control and centered in... By Kaye Waller4 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
When the Laughter StopsLet's face it, there's not a lot to laugh about with cancer. Actually, there's nothing to laugh about, but for some patients, laughter is intrinsically important. According to science, laughter... By Kaye Waller2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
The Fallible Caregiver Series: Sick of Feeling Afraid (Part 3)I woke up this morning feeling fear. That’s pretty typical for me. I’m worried about taxes coming up, about the credit card bill we haven’t paid for almost three months... By Joel Hughes3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
When Bob Was Diagnosed With Breast Cancer - Part TwoI had made a decision to go to all of Bob’s appointments with him, medical, treatments, scans, etc. The reason why was he had cognitive and memory issues along with... By Linda Holden2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
When Bob Was Diagnosed With Breast Cancer - Part OneBob and I had been dating for around four years when he felt a lump in his breast. Bob made a doctor’s appointment with his primary physician. He went to... By Linda Holden2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
The Fallible Caregiver Series: Sick of Feeling Afraid (Part 2)In my last article, I shared some of my deep, daily fears as a caregiver husband to a wife living with stage 4 breast cancer. I ended it by saying... By Joel Hughes4 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments