Send us a text

Rayna Neises, ACC, host, and Aly Neises, RN, cohost, reflect on the conversation with Karen Hafner who, along with her sister, cared for their father. Their family, like many, had a caregiving journey that lasted over several years, but then ended after a quick decline. Guidance for this final part of the caregiving journey is provided:

• When on a long caregiving journey, the terminal diagnosis can easily be forgotten, and the caregiver/family can be shocked when the end arrives.
• While in the day to day, caregivers can be lost in the details individually and not see the overall picture of the situation.
• Sometimes the patient will be ready to move to the next step before the family which makes the end even more difficult to accept.
• Hospice is the very end of the journey; regardless of the time in that phase, it is at the end . . . It is when care transitions from fighting to heal and get better to comfort and release.
• Hospice nurses help guide families and loved ones; they help the patient to die with dignity and with peace.
• Listen to your loved one’s cue, of which not all are physical; Watch for the light to be gone.
• We do not know how long the journey will be or even exactly where we are at on the journey but being aware of the signs of the end can be helpful.
• The end, letting go and saying goodbye, is part of the caregiving journey and deserves some thought now even though it is difficult.