It was one of those frigid winter mornings when Alice got the call from her cousin. Her aunt Michelle had suffered a heart attack, they didn’t know her condition, and they would call and let her know the moment that they heard something. Alice had been relatively close to her aunt since her mother passed away when she was ten. But, she and her aunt hadn’t seen eye to eye on a lot of things recently, and they hadn’t spent a lot of time together as a result. Despite their strained relationship, she was very concerned about her aunt’s condition.
When Alice arrived at the hospital, she learned that her aunt was going to be okay, but that she was going to need a caregiver to be there for her at home when she was released from the hospital. Alice didn’t hesitate – she immediately volunteered to to be that person. Her family was wary about this decision, as they knew about the tension that had been building between Alice and her aunt. However, Alice was convinced that this was the right thing to do. Alice had been a home care provider for several patients through the years, so she had the experience she needed to properly care for her aunt.
The first couple of days were difficult, but Alice provided excellent care in spite of the tension. She knew her aunt would have some trepidation about this arrangement, but she hoped to sway those concerns with the best care she could offer. In time, she and her aunt became more comfortable, and they began to talk about some of the things that had come between them through the years. Alice and her aunt became close once again and she was grateful that she was given this second chance. Being a caregiver, or finding the right, experienced person to offer that level of care, can give loved ones more valuable time with the people they care about, and it can have a profound impact on the entire family as a result. For Alice, it certainly did.
About Joan Cisneros LPN
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