Honore' from Delaware

I am caregiver for my 84 year old husband who is wheelchair bound with Parkinsons. Last year I hurt my back and it is now necessary to have help 7 days per week. Visiting Angels bathes him, dresses him & gets him up during the week and our son handles this on weekends. Our son also must assists him to bed. During the afternoon-evening hours I assist him to bathroom, prepare meals, do housework & laundry and handle finances, appointments, etc. Since medicare does not pay for these services, it puts a strain on our budget. Medical services such as in home physical therapy cause me much stress as I must convince providers of insurance coverage for these services. Parkinsons is a disease that requires medication several times per day & exercise which I also must monitor. A problem with homebound patients & their caregivers is total isolation. We plan to stay in our home, God willing, as long as I am able. We watch eastern bluebirds and have had several nests just outside our windows. By staying in our home I am able to help him right away & to finds things to entertain him. In a nursing facility, he would have to wait! We have remodeled our bathroom and have a ramp. Our county has limited transportation for handicapped and I cannot get him into the car so our son must take time off work to get us to appointments. The medical community is not helpful with innovations to assist with a wheelchair bound Parkinsons patient. AARP could be helpful by having someone invent a "lift" chair that the seat moves forward instead of up. (patients must back into the chair and this is almost impossible for a Parkinsons patient.) Adjustable arms on wheelchairs would be helpful for short people. The Veterans Administration is of NO help financially. We feel we are being punished for being frugal.

I am able to cope thanks to my faith, a positive attitude (most times) and a sense of humor. Thank God for our son and the Parkinsons support group.