Stress can come with a killer price!!!

For many of you living with stress I’m telling you nothing. Yet I often see families making unreasonable decisions and crumbling under the pressures of emotional stresses, financial stresses, guilt and so much more. This stress is particularly evident when it comes to making decisions about the long term care of a senior loved one!

There’s a section of the community known as ‘the jam in the sandwich generation’, I know because I’m one of them. ‘Jam in the sandwich’ people struggle with caring for their own family and also caring for their aging parents. There are so many hazards when you’re ‘the jam in the sandwich’. It’s almost like trying to juggle with sharp kitchen knives!

Recently I’ve met two beautiful families who are at both at wits end…they’ve each got a loved one who’s no longer capable of living alone and are being faced with tough decisions.

One family has agreed to take an aged care place without understanding the financial implications or time line of required. While I tried to explain their was a sense of urgency  required the family wanted to take their time… to discuss their options…without understanding time is running out and fees are mounting at the rate of at least $49.40 per day on top of the fees they know they have to pay. I felt helpless, knowing I could help them through the maze they’ve entered…yet they weren’t willing to engage me!

The second family has a loved one refusing to go to aged care. The mum’s view is she worked in aged care, she’s not going to live in it!

Sadly the loved one isn’t aware of the stresses she’s placing on her family. The carer’s are at their wit’s end as well as physically and emotionally exhausted! Yet even though they’re upset, they’re pre-planning and asking questions to make sure they’re on track to make a good decision for the family as a whole. Tears were flowing and lots of anguish was on display, yet they want to make an informed decision rather than being forced by circumstances into something they’ll regret later.

If you’re a family who likes to make informed decisions instead of creating yourself a potential financial disaster, give me a call. I’d be happy to chat so you can discover your options. Call me on 0407159298 to find out more.

Talk soon

Gayle