The Caregiving Quandary

Abstract

Long before I became a cancer caregiver, I worried about families. Providing care without a script, expanding their workload, solo decision making, incessant worrying, managing expectations, overseeing medications-that is the lay caregiver's all-consuming world. However, when cancer entered my residence, I started living what I had historically observed from a distance. The double-duty caregiving at work and home overwhelmed me. Years of experience did little to prepare me for the emotional tsunami and physical toll caregiving took on me. I questioned my ability to make decisions, I got my husband's medications mixed up, and I had trouble asking for and accepting help, despite how much I needed it. .

Keywords: activism; advocacy; caregiving; leadership.