Whom This Site Is For
This site is for caregivers of wounded warriors, as well as others who are eager to hear about and gain insight into the life of a military caregiver, me –only one among 5.5 million military caregivers in the United States.
The focus of my blog will be on my experiences as a caregiver, those that my husband and I have shared as a couple since his return home, and those that we have had with many local and national agencies as we’ve negotiated care for his personal and other needs. I plan to add blog posts each month about these and other activities as we are adjusting to our new lives. And quite importantly, I look forward to starting a national discussion and exchange of ideas on experiences that others have had as well and hope that you will subscribe to this blog to stay in touch regularly, receive notices of my blog entries, and join us all as we define and enhance our new lives. We are a large family of survivors who have much to learn from each other and much to teach each other.
Why Blog?
I am blogging because of my desire to share my personal story of lessons learned while devoting my life to supporting my husband as his caregiver and spouse. My hope is that military caregivers will read this blog to gain insight into the resources my husband and I have used, and that other caregivers might also share their experiences and the resources that they have found most helpful as they’ve sought the best solutions to their specific needs.
Perhaps more than anything, my hope is to inspire other caregivers to never give up! I want to encourage each of you to keep working on this journey one day at a time—maintaining a positive outlook is the key to staying healthy and managing the new changes that each caregiver faces. I also hope that caregivers can meet through my blog, exchange ideas, and create supportive, caring, and lasting friendships.
What I Do
What seems like an eternity ago—2010— my husband was injured in Afghanistan. Life as we had known it changed in an instant, and overnight, I took on a dual role of wife and full-time caregiver. A spouse and caregiver at the same time— whew! Many of you have even more roles to add to caregiver: spouse, parent, full-time employee. Each role places heavy demands on you; I don’t know how you do it all— many blessings to those of you who do!!
Caregiving, which could include tasks such as advocating, navigating healthcare systems, setting up and going to medical appointments, managing medications, talking with doctors and social workers, and the list goes on… is very demanding.
My firm belief is that no one understands the plight of another person like those who share the same experiences. My hope is that this blog will help other military caregivers as they go on the same journey as I and other caregivers have started on. I am confident that this blog will also shed light to those eager to help the military caregiver population.
My husband and I are creating our new life together—our new normal— and making new routines for our lives. I hope that our experiences will help inspire all caregivers to remain positive and resilient. Caregivers we must remember—we are not alone! Please be sure to sign up as a subscriber to this blog. Connect with new friends on my page. Become a part of this blog-community and help change lives!
