Stories from Caregivers: Jo Lisa from FLORIDA
FL
Jo Lisa
FROM FLORIDA
I am my mother's caregiver. It did not start out that way. My older sister was Elizabeth's caregiver for many years. My mom had mini-strokes and it became obvious that she could not be alone. She eventually went blind and unable to walk. My sister took care of her very well. She was fed, bathed, talked to and cared for by my sister. Then my younger sister came to help. My older sister died of cancer and mom became my responsibility. I am her guardian and her caregiver. I hire people to come into the home to care for her so I can work my job as a teacher. There are many sacrifices my husband and I make in order to take care of her. Would we trade these years? No, my husband and I have become closer and learned more about one another than our previous 20 years of marriage. We plan our activities around Mom and her care. I am working on my Master's Degree while working full-time and still care for Mom. It has not been easy and my health is not great but I continue on because Mom deserves the best care. In a nursing home she would not be taken care of as well and would probably not survive more than a month because she takes too long to eat and drink. She has to have a special diet due to choking precautions. I think the state makes it hard for someone to take care of their family member. Having to pay for a lawyer each year to submit paperwork. We should be able to submit paperwork without a lawyer or an accountant. Give us the forms and what you need and let us submit without more money. Once we get the lawyer we have to pay for the court costs, which can change yearly making it financially hard on the caregiver. I have had to get an accountant and a lawyer just to get through the county court system. This is due to the state laws that require yearly accounting. I do not get paid by my Mom to do these things, yet the state wants us to pay others. If I let the courts give her a legal guardian who does this for a living, they would get paid every time Mom's name is mentioned. That is exactly what the judge said to do. Ridiculous, make this easier for us to take care of our relatives with family in the comfort of their homes.
