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| ASK THE COACH
By Scott Chesney
Last year I devoted one of my columns to the subject of suicide and received an overwhelming response from my readers. I want to share one of the most powerful, honest and heartfelt stories that I have ever read. It comes from, Marylyn Schwartz, the mother of a young man I knew named Clayton who, at 31, took his life. Marylyn bravely faced and accepted her son’s suicide.
After reading this for the first time, I come away neither condoning nor condemning suicide. Rather, I am relieved that a mother has been able to find peace in possibly [...]
A Florida family was shocked to discover the inadequate options for people with severe disabilities in major emergencies.
By Kelly Rouba
Laura George, of Coral Springs, Florida, was three months pregnant when her husband Greg became paralyzed from the waist down as a result of a hit-and-run accident in March of 2006.
As Greg recuperated in the hospital, the couple began to plan for the accommodations he would need upon returning home. The Georges also started questioning staff about how they could best prepare for hurricane season, which was just a couple months away. “And they kept saying, ‘We don’t [...]
Caregiving, whether by a family member or professional, is a complicated subject. Here are some basics of what you need to know about this often necessary relationship.
By Rob Ingraham
With about 44 million people in America acting as caregivers for relatives, spouses, or friends with disabilities—and the looming retirement of over 75 million “baby boomers”—the issue of obtaining and sustaining competent caregivers is rapidly becoming a major question for families across the country.
To provide a basic overview of considerations for people with disabilities seeking to hire a caregiver and issues for spouses, friends, and family who are, or [...]
Parents of children with SCI ask themselves not only when to let their children go, but how, and even whether to let go at all.
By E.M. Treston
Statistics show the average age at which a person sustains a spinal cord injury (SCI) is between 17 and 25, a time in life when the young adult is launching out on his or her own, graduating from school, starting a career, becoming engaged and starting to do all the things that are expected to happen to an adult within a lifetime.
An SCI changes that path, at least initially. Independence, so recently acquired, [...]
By Linda A. Cronin
Providing care for a loved one takes a huge emotional toll on a person. Studies reveal caregivers of a parent experience symptoms of depression twice the rate of the general population, according to the Journal of Public Health. For caregivers of a spouse, the rate is six times higher. Caregivers are too busy taking care of others to take the time necessary to recognize and treat their own symptoms, but self- care is a necessity not a luxury.
“Caregiving doesn’t happen in a vacuum,” said Suzanne Mintz, president and co-founder of the National Family Caregiver Association (NFCA, www.thefamilycaregiver.org [...]
By Richard L. Bruno
When people talk about caring for someone with a disability, you often hear of caregivers getting burned out. When it comes to caring for polio survivors, it’s the polio survivor who often gets burned-not out, but up.
Many polio survivors get angry when it’s suggested that they ask others for help. Actually, their anger is hiding a real fear. Most polio survivors had painful early experiences of rejection and emotional and physical abuse, often by family members, just because they’d had polio. Polio survivors learned early and often that they should look “normal” and act “normal,” never [...]
By William Peace, PhD
In 2005, I wrote a series of columns for this magazine about parenthood and disability. Each column had a specific theme that addressed issues I have encountered as a single father with a disability raising my son. (If you’re interested, you can read them on-line at by clicking on “Parenting” in the Categories section of the navigation bar.)
I took an unexpected leave of absence from column-writing when another sort of parenting issue arose for me. My father died October 9, 2005. His death was preceded by an agonizingly slow form of dementia that was frightening to him and [...]
Giving Care
I’m grateful that you are now including articles on the family caregiver (Giving Care, by Linda R. Cronin, August 2006). Once the invisible partner, family caregivers are now being seen as the backbone of the Caregiving industry. We here in Arizona are working furiously on changing the face of the industry.
Through standardizing the training for the entry-level home and community based worker, we’ve facilitated a partnership with providers and community colleges to do training, a portable credential for those who complete the training, and we’ve urged the state agencies to develop a position that will coordinate all funding sources for [...]
Jonathan Wolpaw, MD, surveyed the state of brain-computer interfaces
in his keynote address to the American Paraplegia Society.
Spinal cord health care professionals make this year’s conference in Las Vegas one to remember, setting the bar high for next year’s meetings in Orlando.
By Rob Ingraham and Chris Pierson
“I never thought I would wax sentimental about the Riviera,” said American Paraplegia Society (APS) President Indira Lanig, MD, at the beginning of the first session of APS’s 52nd conference at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas last month, “but this week, I do find myself waxing sentimental. Coming here [...]
By Linda A. Cronin
An important and frequently overlooked part of the caregiving process is taking care of the caretaker. According to the Family Caregiver Alliance (FCA, www.caregiver.org), 52 million informal and family caregivers provide care to someone aged 20 or more with a disability or who is ill. Family members also continue to be the largest source of unpaid caregivers in the U.S. The numbers are estimated to reach 37 million caregivers by 2050, an increase of 85% from 2000.
Respite care gives caregivers a much needed break. The dictionary defines respite as “a delay or cessation for a time, especially [...]
Hiring a home care aide can be a daunting experience. This article takes you through the
process step-by-step.
Whether you are looking for a home care provider or have utilized home care services previously, United Spinal Association offers the following tips on locating, training, and managing a personal home care provider. This information will be applicable to you whether you pay out-of-pocket for services or receive funds for home care through a state program. You have a right to choose a home care provider that best matches the qualities and experience you decide on. At the end of this article, there is [...]
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