Diane's Stroke Happened to Both of Us! Who Cares?

“Every day around 12,000 people in the UK become carers, looking after family or friends who are older, disabled or seriously ill”. CarersUK

This was an astounding statistic that I discovered during a little web surfing session in the week. Unless you’ve chosen caring as a career, the majority of us become carers unexpectedly, and without any prior training. Even potential parents have 9 months or so to get used to the idea. So, suddenly having to take on the carer role, whilst coping with all the external pressures of juggling family, friends, work and ongoing medical duties (to name just a few) can be challenging to say the least. And that’s not to ignore the overwhelming personal impacts in coming to terms with ‘what the hell just happened to my loved one’.

I probably should have scoured the internet sooner but, to be honest, the idea that there was information out there directed specifically at carers didn’t occur to me. I didn’t see myself in that sense anyway. Just a husband with a sick wife.

CarersUK.org have an extensive website and a very useful guide “Looking After Someone” which can be downloaded free.

It contains a wealth of useful information and more than a few truisms; not least the fact that Diane’s stroke has happened to both of us.

The Stroke Association also has a range of useful information at https://www.stroke.org.uk/stroke/support/carers

Nobody chooses the become a carer in these circumstances. It's just an unfortunate roll of the dice. However, there is a great deal of help and information out there - even if youve been caring for quite some time.

"Alone Tonight" - Genesis - Duke