Being Lost and Found: How Being a Caregiver Shaped Me
As a palliative care physician, I often spend time with
patients and families talking about their hopes, worries, and sources of
strength. Part of this work involves helping people confront uncertainty in
what lies ahead and be able to hold opposing truths as they face serious
illness. You can feel the best you’ve felt in months and still be dying of
cancer. You may not be able to get out of bed and be completely dependent on
others, and still find joy in every day moments with your loved ones. I think
of caregiving in the same way. It is a hard, humbling, isolating adventure that
veers your life in a direction you didn’t plan for. It can exhaustively consume
your entire world and leave you depleted, wondering if you can face tomorrow. At
the same time, it can be one of the greatest gifts we can give someone, fulfill
us to our core, and enrich our lives in ways that would otherwise have been
impossible.
My memories of caregiving as I navigated my undergraduate
and then medical school studies are a compilation of life events and the day-to-day
tasks that became routine. On weekends, my sisters and I would race home from
college to relieve my parents who dedicated their lives to caring for my Nana. The
five of us were a core unit of distinct parts moving in synchrony as we learned
how to give bed baths and lift her wheelchair up the stairs. I remember with
great clarity the look on Nana’s face and the tears in her eyes when she saw my
older sister in her wedding dress...
Source: Academic Medicine Blog - Category: Universities & Medical Training Authors: Guest Author Tags: Featured Guest Perspective caregiver care caregivers physician-patient relationship Source Type: blogs
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