A Catholic Guide to Caring for Your Aging Parent

Monica Dodds understands the pressures that millions of middle-aged Americans endure as they become caregivers to aging parents. Her professional work with the elderly has exposed her to the complex medical, financial, and legal problems that entangle older people. Her personal experience helping ailing family members has given her deep insight into the difficulties caregivers face in dealing with these problems. A Catholic Guide to Caring for Your Aging Parent is a comprehensive guide for caregivers. Dodds insists that faith is a fundamental part of caregiving, and her approach is deeply rooted in Catholic spirituality. She shows adult children how they can love and serve their aging parents better by deepening their own spiritual lives. "Caregiving", she says, "is a time of many grace-filled moments." Dodds explains how to properly assess the needs of a failing older person, and she writes in detail about the physical, mental, emotional, interpersonal, and spiritual dimensions of care. Three extensive appendices provide checklists for assessing needs, a compilation of resources, and an anthology of prayers.

Monica Dodds has worked extensively with older people and their families in the Seattle area for many years. She has been a case manager for homebound elderly, a program coordinator for senior centers, and the manager of the Seattle/King County Meals on Wheels program. She and her husband, Bill, write a column on family life for the Catholic News Service and have written several books, including The Joy of Marriage. Visit her Web site at www.YourAgingParent.com. For more information visit www.CatholicCaregivers.com or www.FSJC.org.