Spousal Caregivers

Articles

A Spouse Alone
Caregiving Your Spouse
For Better or For Worse

Resources for Spousal Caregivers

Well Spouse Association: Support for Spousal Caregivers
When one enters into marriage, there is the assumption that if the spouse gets ill, the other spouse will do the caregiving. Too often, it isn’t as easy as it sounds. In the blink of an eye, a healthy partner who is contributing to the relationship financially, spiritually and emotionally, can become the victim of brain injury, stroke, early onset dementia, or be diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Wait a minute, this isn’t how we planned it! Suddenly, one partner is faced with the loss of a companion. Not just a companion to fix things around the house or raise the children, but a companion to touch with love. That’s the part nobody talks about. That’s the lonely part.

I get it. I’m a spousal caregiver. That’s when I was introduced to the Well Spouse Organization. I felt understood and hugged when I attended their conference in Pittsburgh, PA in October 2007. ”                       By Barbara Warman

Visit the Well Spouse Association website at www.wellspouse.org for more information. You can purchase a membership from Well Spouse and receive their quarterly newsletter, “Mainstay”, as well as other benefits including an email mentorship program and round robin letter writing groups.

BC Schizophrenia Association Spouse’s Handbook
This booklet was published due to requests from family members who have a spouse ill with schizophrenia, for information specific to their needs.

Caregiver Connect, Spousal Caregiving Discussion
http://www.caregiver-connect.ca/en-us/Relations/Pages/Spouse.aspx

Caregiver’s Home Companion, Spousal Caregiving
http://www.caregivershome.com/spousal/archive.cfm

Spousal Caregiving Book List

(These books are available in the FCNS Resource Library)

When the Man You Love is ill: Doing your best for your partner without losing yourself
By: Dorree Lynn and Florence Isaacs       Published by: Marlowe & Company
ISBN #: 978-1-56924-285-8                 Date: 2007

Heart attack. Parkinson’s. Cancer. Stroke. Whenever illness strikes, a couple’s world turns upside down. Suddenly, you’re faced with responsibilities you never dreamed of—and for many women a more complex relationship with your partner. When the Man You Love is Ill is a woman’s guide to living with a partner facing a medical crisis or chronic illness. How do you understand the male psyche? How do you manage your own feelings of fear and guilt? How do you deal with the loss and keep the family stable? This book helps to heal the relationship with their partners or spouses. Read more …

Breast Cancer Husband: How to Help your Wife (and Yourself) Through Diagnosis, Treatment and Beyond
By: Marc Silver                                         Published by: Rodale Inc.
ISBN #: 1-57954-833-4                         Date: 2004

When Marc Silver’s wife was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001 he was far from a perfect caregiver. He wished he had a book to help him face the challenges ahead. Drawing upon his skills as a consumer journalist at U.S. News & World Report, he wrote “Breast Cancer Husband”. It is the first comprehensive book to address the role and the needs of husbands, fiancés, and boyfriends. Read more …

Finding Meaning with Charles – Caregiving with Love through a Degenerative Disease
By: J. Edmunson                                      Published by: JME Insights
ISBN #: 978-0-9778133-0-8                 Date: 2006

This uplifting book will encourage caregivers to make the most of their situation, help them understand the difficulties they’ll face and teach them what they can do to help their spouse achieve personal aspirations.

Surviving Your Spouse’s Chronic Illness
by: C. McGonigle                             Published by: Henry Holt & Company Inc.
ISBN #: 0-8050-5573-8                 Date: 2006

When a spouse is diagnosed with a serious illness, two lives are devastated. This book reassures readers that they are not alone in what they feel.  Through the wisdom and compassion of the many voices here, readers will learn how  others cope and what they can do to survive.

In An Instant: A Family’s Journey of Love & Healing
By: Lee & Bob Woodruff                   Published by: Random House
ISBN #: 978-1-4000-6667-4         Date: 2007

Lee and Bob Woodruff share the couple’s never-before-told story of romance, resilience and
survival following the tragedy that transformed their lives and gripped the nation. It is an important, wise and inspiring guide to coping with tragedy and an extraordinary drama of marriage and family. Read more …

Mainstay: For the Well Spouse of the Chronically ill
By: M. Strong                                  Published by: Penguin Books
ISBN #: 0-14-01-19787                Date: 1989

In telling her own story of caregiving for her spouse, Maggie writes of the emotional toll created from keeping anger and guilt tucked away, to being constantly aware that the situation will only get worse.

For Better or For Worse
By: B. Kievman and S. Blackman    Published by: Penguin Books
ISBN #: 0-14-01-19787               Date: 1989

Couples who married “for better or for worse” suddenly face the fact that these were not idle
Words when caregiving becomes part of the relationship. There are practical and emotional problems to work through.