Caregiver classes offer education and support

You might say 90-year-old Lucile Thompson and her 73-year-old daughter, Janet Twitchell, are familiar with caregiving.

Thompson cared for her mother for 11 years, until her death at age 97 from Alzheimer’s disease. Then she cared for her husband, who had congestive heart failure, until his death.

Now Thompson, who had a stroke five years ago, is the one who needs care. Her only child comes to her mother’s home every day in the early morning and stays until evening, sleeping in her own home each night.

“Janet does all the grocery shopping and anything else that requires walking,” Thompson says. “She cooks, pays bills, runs errands, keeps track of my medicine and keeps me company.”

As her mother’s sole caregiver, Twitchell has sought support from St. John’s.

“I belong to the Caregiver Support Group and I attend the new caregiver classes at St. John’s,” she says. “I also practice Tai Chi, which is a great stress reliever.”

Twitchell gets peer support at the support group, which meets at 11:30 a.m. on the first Thursday of the month at St. John’s Cancer Center. She learns valuable caregiver skills from the classes, which are offered 1:30-3 p.m. once a month at St. John’s Clinic-Smith Glynn Callaway. The next classes are scheduled for April 20, May 18 and June 15.

“The classes are taught by nurses and social workers. Caregivers learn techniques for moving their loved one in bed and getting them dressed and bathed. We also teach medication safety, home safety, care of the dementia patient and stress relief for the caregiver,” says Valerie Griffin, St. John’s Seniors coordinator.

Griffin predicts an increase in the need for caregivers in years to come.

“People are living longer in our society now, but they are often pretty frail in their old age and need help,” she says. “With the baby boomer generation approaching their older adult years, we’re going to have a lot of folks who need care, and a lot of folks who need education about how to be a caregiver.”

While Thompson never expected to be in the role of care recipient after caring for her mother and husband, she’s grateful for her daughter and for the things she can still do for herself.

“I have to use a walker, but I can still bathe, dress and feed myself,” she says. “Some people who are my age and especially those who have had strokes can’t even do the simplest things for themselves, so I’m very thankful for what I can do and that I have Janet for what I can’t do.”