Daily Devotions for Caregivers

  Does it ever feel like you are a juggler? It does for me. I find myself juggling things all day long and making sure the most important, although they are all  important, things get done. I juggle therapies, meals, bath time for both of us, transfers, client work, meetings, and sundry other tasks that need to be done daily in an attempt to get as many of them done in a day as possible. Most days, I feel like, hey, I get done what needs to be done, and the rest can wait until tomorrow's list. I've finally learned that at the end of the day and my strength, I have to look at what did  get done that day, not at the things left undone. It is frustrating to not be superwoman sometimes. Lol. Along with juggling all the natural tasks that need to be done each day, I find myself juggling emotions, too. I've teased that I can go from the mountaintop of emotions to the valley of despair in under 2 seconds. And it's true. Seeing an old picture, hearing a tune, or one of many oth...

 This morning, I was reading in 1 Corinthians and slowed down in chapter 10 as my brain kicked in. It's always good to read the Bible and use your brain at the same time! Lol. I stopped to meditate on verses 12 and 13. Paul is talking about temptation. While I cannot and will not say that caregiving is a temptation, I think we can acknowledge that it does present a whole new level to be tempted on.  In verse 13, Paul is trying to encourage the new believers by explaining that everyone is tempted. He's also alluding to the fact that there are no new  temptations - we are still dealing with the temptations that existed from the time God said, Let there be light. Of course, our temptations vary with respect to what the enemy of our souls knows to work for us as individuals. We each have areas of weakness that he's striving to exploit. The enemy likes to tempt us, draw us away, and then condemn us for falling or failing. It's really the same method he's used throughout ...

  When time stands still, it's not usually a good thing, right? The Saturday morning I got the call that my son had been in an accident and med-flighted to the nearest trauma center was one of those moments. And even though it's been 15 years, my life was immediately divided into two timelines, two different worlds. But as I was reading Mark this morning, I found a place where time stood still, and it has a very positive connotation. Let's explore. In Mark 10, Bartimaeus heard the crowd as Jesus came near. When he heard that the crowd had gathered because Jesus was there, he began to cry out to Him. He yelled, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" The crowd didn't like it at all, so they told him to be quiet. Do you ever feel that way? As caregivers, people often acknowledge our situations, like the crowd acknowledged Bartimaeus' blindness, but they want us to be quiet about our need. And that's okay, I get that.  While the crowd was pushing Bartima...

  Do you ever feel like you are missing out on life's best? This was my feeling over the weekend. I had planned on pushing my son in a local 5K on Sunday. It's a free one, and we've done it for several years. It's a nice outdoor activity and a very social, healthy atmosphere. Because he'd experienced asthma-related issues Friday and Saturday, I chose to cancel our fun outing. He may have been fine, but I didn't want to take a chance at him not being okay on Monday when he goes to the 34 Project for his active fitness sessions. It's more important, so I canceled. Again. It can seem like we make a lot of plans only to cancel them over and over. It is frustrating for us as caregivers and easy for us to feel like we are missing out. Also, others don't always understand our dilemma, so they often just stop inviting us. It can be easy to settle into those raw emotions and difficult to harness our thoughts. Canceled again. And again. And again. It can become a ...

 Sometimes, I have tons of questions. Why did this or that have to happen? Why is it happening to my family? What happened to "normal"? There have been many questions along the caregiving journey. Over the last 15 years, I've been the caregiver to my son, and for three of those years, I was also the caregiver for my Aunt Polly. Periodically, I got to keep my mom for a week here and there as well. I must say, It's been a salty season. Salty seasons are part of life, aren't they? I found a little comfort in my reading this morning. In Mark 9:49, Jesus said that everyone will be seasoned with fire.  What did He mean by that? In context, the disciples had been arguing about who was going to be the greatest once Jesus set up His kingdom. This line of thinking demonstrated how far short they were of understanding His kingdom was not an earthly reign but a supernatural eternal reign.  Next, the disciples were asking about someone who was doing the works of Christ but was...

  Caregivers and new parents understand the significance of chocolate pudding. Maybe you already know it's code for something else. Those who care for others get it - you don't taste or smell it to see if it is chocolate pudding or not. Why not? Because it is most likely NOT!  Yesterday, was a chocolate pudding day. Let's be real for a minute. There are some down sides to caregiving and many unmentionables. I'll be as discreet as I can with this story. When those we care for are challenged physically and lack mobility, constipation can be a real issue. I have tried everything with my poor son, but sometimes I think the cure is worse. Lol. There are lots of over the counter options and pharmaceutical products. But I tend to lean toward more natural methods. Fortunately, and oddly enough unfortunately, I've found something that works. But it works well. :-) I make a cocktail of warm coffee mixed with 2 tablespoons of Epsom salt to put in his tube. It hasn't failed...

  The definition of duality is to have an instant of opposition or contrast between two concepts or two aspects. For caregivers, I think it is having two seemingly conflicting emotions going on at the same time. We often deal with living grief that is ongoing. It is possible for grief and joy to be felt and expressed at the same time. I rejoice over every little bit of progress my son makes, but still have the living grief running in the background. I'm supposed to be happy for his new job, enjoying his marriage, and looking forward to the birth of his children, not that he ate a cup of food or took two steps with little help. We often feel conflicting emotions. Perhaps we are too quick to condemn ourselves when we shouldn't. I found an example of duality in the Bible during my daily readings over the weekend. In Matthew 28, after that angel announces that Jesus has been resurrected, it says the two Marys went away with fear and great joy. What a moment, right? They were overco...