Self-help
“What about me…” A guide for caring
“What about me…” A guide for caring describes a parent's perspective of lifelong care and balancing family life. It is practical, thought-provoking, confronting and offers strategies with the hope that parents will benefit from the "hard-won" experiences of other families. The guide is directed at parents, siblings, carers and professionals involved with the care of a person with a disability.
Parents need to find answers or face the likelihood of family dysfunction or breakdown. Parents must develop their own map of lifelong care and have an understanding of where they may be and what to expect on their journey. Otherwise, the stressful nature of lifelong care has the potential to create overwhelming circumstances.
The guide has been written by Terry Ryan a father of a son who has an intellectual disability; it is a sensitive and challenging publication that gets to the heart of lifelong care.
"Challenging and motivating"
FamilyCare
FamilyCare workshops provide the opportunity to understand the nature of lifelong care and network with participants who care for a person with a disability. Participants work through their circumstances, understand the typical challenges with ongoing care and develop their own lifelong care plan that includes person-care-financial-legal arrangements.
"Mixed feelings about the long road ahead"
The workshop sessions focused on lifelong care milestones: family and personal struggles, "FamilyCare" and peace of mind and challenges. Session topics: Who Really Cares, Making Changes, Getting Through the Day, Supported Living, Planning for Tomorrow, Taking Care, Brothers and Sisters, Inclusion, Vulnerability, Learning to Cope and Peace of Mind.
Workshop outcomes include understanding the nature of lifelong care, identification of personal and family needs, development of personal skills and knowledge. The workshops are presented in an informal setting involving active learning and interaction. Participants learn that personal choice based on effective strategies creates a positive lifelong care environment.
"It is nice to know that I am not alone"
Worksheets
The worksheets are designed for to work through individual circumstances and develop short and short and long-term lifelong care strategies.