With a foreword by Judy Woodruff, The Unexpected Journey of Caring is a practical guide to finding personal meaning in the 21st century care experience. Personal transformation is usually an experience we actively seek out-not one that hunts us down. Becoming a caregiver is one transformation that comes at us, requiring us to rethink everything we once knew. Everything changes-responsibilities, beliefs, hopes, expectations, and relationships. Caregiving is not just a role reserved for "saints"-eventually, everyone is drafted into the caregiver role. It's not a role people medically train for; it's a new type of relationship initiated by a loved one's need for care. And it's a role that cannot be quarantined to home because it infuses all aspects of our lives. Caregivers today find themselves in need of a crash course in new and unfamiliar skills. They must not only care for a loved one, but also access hidden community resources, collaborate with medical professionals, craft new narratives consistent with the changing nature of their care role, coordinate care with family, seek information and peer support using a variety of digital platforms, and negotiate social support-all while attempting to manage conflicts between work, life, and relationship roles. The moments that mark us in the transition from loved one to caregiver matter because if we don't make sense of how we are being transformed, we risk undervaluing our care experiences, denying our evolving beliefs, becoming trapped by other's misunderstandings, and feeling underappreciated, burned out, and overwhelmed. Informed by original caregiver research and proven advocacy strategies, this book speaks to caregiving as it unfolds, in all of its confusion, chaos, and messiness. Readers won't find well-intentioned cliches or care stereotypes in this book. There are no promises to help caregivers return to a life they knew before caregiving. No, this book greets caregivers where they are in their journey-new or chronic-not where others expect (or want) them to be.
Foreword by Judy Woodruff Introduction Chapter 1: I'm (Not) a Caregiver Disorientation: From Loved One to Caregiver Chapter 2: Living In-Between Scripts (Transformational Moment #1) Chapter 3: A Hyper-Intolerance of Others (Transformational Moment #2) Chapter 4: Audience Betrayal (Transformational Moment #3) Chapter 5: Who am I Becoming and Why am I So Hard on Myself? (Transformational Moment #4) Chapter 6: When "Getting Through" isn't Good Enough (Transformational Moment #5) Re-orientation and Advocacy Chapter 7: Making Meaning That Matters Now Chapter 8: Begin With the Basics: What Is My Role at Home, What Do I WANT It to Be? Chapter 9: You Are Not Alone, But Who Are the People in Your Neighborhood? Chapter 10: Navigating the Rough Waters of Transition Chapter 11: Not a Social Network, But a Care Network Chapter 12: How to Know What You Want and Get What You Need Chapter 13: Power and Love = Empowerment Chapter 14: Cultivating Connection Conclusion: A New Way of Seeing and Being
