Are You A Caregiver For a Loved One?
The job of caring for someone with a physical or mental disability, such as Alzheimer’s disease, is one of the biggest challenges you will ever face. In addition to juggling your own schedule, you are constantly on call, making sure your loved one’s needs are met. In general, caregivers are concerned about ensuring their loved one is properly cared for and receiving the best medical treatment, all without spending down their life savings.
Often, caregivers put their needs on the back-burner, which leads to burn out, becoming overwhelmed, and the possibility of these feelings increasing over time. Although caring for an aging loved one can be extremely difficult, there are tools available to help caregivers make the right decisions while also taking care of themselves.
How to Find Relief
While there are some tasks you will want to handle yourself, there may come a time when you need assistance. There are many places you can turn for relief, including:
- Another family member or friend
- Home health care
- Services such as Meals on Wheels
At some point, you may realize you have done everything you can but are unable to provide a high level of care. As difficult as it will be, placing your loved one in a nursing home may be in his or her best interest.
As a caregiver, there are many things you can do to make life easier on yourself as well as your loved one. Contact our law firm for more information regarding legal and financial planning.
Taking care of yourself
Are you tired? Burnt out? These feelings will only increase over time, especially if you have no relief. Medicaid can help pay for different types of care, depending on your need and circumstances:
- In-Home Care – this provides assistance during the day, as the primary caregiver remains in charge on the evenings and weekends. You will not relinquish all responsibilities.
- Adult Day Care – provides occasional and/or scheduled breaks for the caregiver, and can also be scheduled around work and vacation schedules.
- Nursing or Assisted Living Care – Full-time relief for the caregiver.
What resources and support are available to address your concerns?
Legal planning can provide the following.
If your loved one is mentally incapacitated, putting a disability plan in place is important in the event they are unable to make decisions for themselves in the future. This will help you avoid the court process in an attempt to be named the legal guardian.
If you are concerned about the cost of quality care, consider the following benefits of legal planning:
- Emergency Medicaid planning to discuss the availability of government benefits
- Ability to make decisions that can preserve some of your assets and pay for long-term health care
- In the event of nursing home care in the future, planning with a Medicaid Trust can safeguard your assets if completed and funded prior to the look back period
