For Primary Caregivers(articles)

We often consider diabetes as lightly as a bad bout of cold; after all, it is not life-threatening. You have seen that Uncle in your building going for morning walks or your manager dealingwith deadlines like a pro, despite having diabetes. Diabetes may not seem as life-threatening as cancer or chronic heart disease as it does not show life-threatening symptoms right away, however, it is a silent killer. It can cause havoc in the patient and the caregiver’s lives over Read More

Publisher: International Diabetes Federation Diabetes occurs when the pancreas can no longer make insulin, or the body is unable to use the insulin adequately which leads to raised glucose levels in the blood. Insulin, a hormone made by the pancreas, helps glucose from the food get into your cells to produce energy. There are 3 types of diabetes: Type 1 Diabetes – Usually occurs on children and adolescents but can develop at any age. In type 1 diabetes the body produces very little Read More

Original Publishing Date: February 22, 2018 Publisher: Shine Author: Marta Brzosko From a young age, we are taught that serving others while putting your needs behind is the right thing to do. Helping other can make us feel better about ourselves, but if only if we start taking care of ourselves can we take care of others. Self-care is when we consciously plan and make the time for our basic physical, emotional and mental needs. It helps us feel more energized Read More

Inspired by an experience with a caregiver to a mentally ill patient Recently I tried to interview a caregiver, who I identified from my social circle. I saw them resurfacing from the murky waters of caregiving, and they had officially transitioned to a happier period in their life. Their loved one had a clinical mental condition for which they went to an institute of rehabilitation, and it transformed who they were overnight. Up close, when I saw the caregiver in Read More

There’s a great saying- “To care for those who once cared for us is one of the highest honours.” And while that may be true, what also accompanies such an honour is the unseen and inexplicable emotional trauma, financial stress and always a certain sense of failure. As one of my mother’s primary caregivers, I felt each of these feelings and much more. In the wee hours of April 6, 2019, my mother passed away at the hospital, where she Read More

Your absence has gone through me Like a thread through a needle. Everything I do is stitched with its colour. W.S Mervin Fear is one of our most primal instincts. It’s hardwired into us through years of being hammered and drilled into us through suffering. We recoil at a harsh sound, wince at a sight, startle at a touch. Now that we’ve outgrown hunting and gathering, now that we stand tall on two feet, now that we segregate ourselves by Read More

My grandparents, both maternal and paternal, shed gender expectations like snakeskin. They were bold in their thinking for the time. They divided the chores of the house, pursued careers in fields they were interested in, were legally, financially and morally equal individuals in each other’s eyes. It was the first spawn of true feminism in our household that once demanded strength and structure. To my surprise, my parents more or less fit the mould of traditional roles: my mother stays Read More

Parkinson’s has even more complex needs towards the end of life. As the patient transitions towards the end stage, they may stand or walk for short periods unassisted but require assistance in daily living and can’t live alone. The tendency to fall while standing or walking is higher and the patient may freeze or stumble. Round the clock assistance becomes necessary at the end stages. Read more about the caregiving in mid-stage of Parkinson’s here. Towards the end stages of Read More

A young couple was sitting in front of the doctor, anxious and at the same time hopeful. The doctor had an inscrutable expression but didn’t know what to tell and how to tell. With great difficulty he nodded his head and whispered “results are positive”.  The wife beamed and shouted “I knew it! Nothing is wrong with you. It is just stress we need a break and all shall be fine. Doctor I told him so!”  She heard and understood Read More

“Care”is the all-encompassing being inside us all,embodied as an entity with emotional, spiritual, intellectual, financial and physical dimensions… Care is mostly activated by our sense of responsibility, love, compassion for our family and loved ones, while for some as an occupation. All these emotions make that entity of “Care” take on the act of caregiving for someone with a condition or in a state where they are unable to manage by themselves – temporarily or permanently. Let’s take a trip Read More