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Everyone knows that anytime I go into a relapse, my caretaker is right by my side when I'm going through anything rough with Multiple Sclerosis. Rafael (my husband)  is the best caretaker I've ever had and is always dependable.  It came to me recently that when going for places for assistance, it looks bad that he's not working.  I have to remind people that his wife is disabled and therefore sometimes he can't work.  Stereotypes are bad and it's sad that people may look at him like he's lazy when in fact he works overtime as my support system.  People say to me, you don't know how lucky you are that your husband is with you all the time by choice.  I have to remind them that choice or not, when you have a disabled person you must care for, it's not about choices.  It's for survival. I appreciate it.  I just wish people wouldn't assume he's lazy when he's not "employed".  Sometimes Caretakers are paid, and i'm looking into that because in all honesty, he has a job taking care of me.

Caretakers are some of the most looked over people in the world, but here is the job duties of a MS caretaker.

A caretaker should help the care recipient:

• Make and keep all doctors’ appointments for check-ups and injections. Finding and sticking to a treatment plan helps the patient reduce the frequency and severity of MS relapse.
• Research treatment options and the risks of each treatment. Each medicine comes with its own side effects and concerns. Other health issues may complicate these potential problems. Discuss all concerns with the patient’s doctors.
• Handle health insurance forms and financial concerns. Financial planning for both your health expenses and your personal expenses is an important part of disease care. Patients and caregivers may see an impact in wages as a result of the time needed for disease care. You may wish to meet with a financial counselor who has experience in healthcare expenses.
• Refill and pick up prescription medicines.
• Make the home MS-friendly. It may be necessary to renovate your home (or the care recipient’s home if you do not live together) in order to make it more accessible and comfortable for the person with MS.

If anyone thinks these are easy tasks, think again.  Not only do they do those duties, but they also assist as needed with bathing, feeding, and more. I'm thankful to have him taking care of me. He needs help sometimes but we have found it hard to get the help we need, aside of God's grace. We are quite thankful for that, indeed.