No Regrets: Hope for Your Caregiving Season shares Rayna Neises’ personal heart-warming stories and practical suggestions for journeying through one’s caregiving season.
As people age, so do their loved ones. The healthy integration of caring for an aging parent requires being able to walk them all the way to the end of their life while still having a life to walk back into. No Regrets helps caregivers consider how being intentional in their season of caring will allow them to care for their loved one well while at the same time not losing themselves in the caring.
For about 10 years, I was my mom's dementia caregiver. When it began about 16 years ago, resources, advice, and support were difficult to find, trust, or access.
I received a copy of the book from the author and, in my personal and professional opinion, “No Regrets” is a book I could have used back then. Like most caregivers when they see those first signs, including memory loss, confusion, agitation, etc. they don’t know where to turn. Even the medical professionals are not as helpful as they should or could be.
Encompassing most aspects of dementia caregiving in a spiritual, compassionate, and helpful way, Rayna Neises provides invaluable information from a personal perspective. She isn’t just a trained professional, she has lived the journey or, as she terms it, the “season“.
From my experience and perspective, my main take away, as it should be for other caregivers, is to be an advocate for your person living with dementia as well as for yourself. Whether it’s with physicians or other medical professionals, home healthcare providers, or care communities or homes, don’t take their word as gospel or final. Insist on information. Request a second opinion. Hold them accountable. Ask for help and support. Establish boundaries. And do make time for and practice self-care.
As I do in consulting in my “encore career” helping family caregivers, Rayna takes a holistic and empathetic approach to advising you and your loved one. You will refer to this valuable resource...and yes you will probably need tissue nearby.
This wonderful book is full of practical tips and lotsa love for people walking through this incredibly important season of life with their loved ones. Reading through the pages feels like a caring friend is walking right beside you, guiding your way, and sharing stories of hope and inspiration. So often a caregivers journey can be isolating so I appreciate the intention of the author, Rayna, finding many ways to provide support and opportunities to connect with others. I found myself only 3 pages in and started thinking of many many people to share it with. So grateful for this resource.
I love this book. Rayna has such helpful tips for caring for your parents as she has walked this walk herself. What I especially like is her perspective of caring for yourself in the midst of the stress and care of caring for your parent.
Rayna offers ideas for seeking out resources as well as hope when things seem undoable. I think anyone who is supporting an aging parent, regardless of the status of their parents' health will find this book helpful.
I highly recommend this book to be on everyone's bookshelf as a resource and go-to book.
I was immediately drawn to this book when I understood the premise: caregiving for a loved one for a season in ways that leave no regrets. That was my husband and me for our daughter, Lisa, for most of her life! We were on call 24/7 as caregivers to problem solve or take over whatever paid caregivers could not do. This book touches all the key factors I confronted: scheduling, finding help, balancing family, making peace with daily grief, and so much more. While it focuses on caring for parents and “walking them all the way home,” its principles can be applied to spousal caregiving or other situations involving family. This isn’t just about strategy; it is a book of heart. You need this book if you are called to change your life for a season and share your time, your home, your love and patience with a parent or someone else whose life has been stolen by dementia, disease, or the ravaging changes in aging.
This book is a must for any caregiver! It covers the author's personal experience in caring for both of her aging parents. There are so many tips and suggestions in setting up care, dealing with guilt as well as caring for yourself--the caregiver. Taking care of our aging parents is something I thought I was prepared for until it actually occurred. I have worked with the over 60 age group for almost 30 years and I still felt lost at times. Rayna helps the reader feel like they are part of her inner circle--stepping you through the process their family experienced and emotions that come along with caregiving. It was comforting to know you are not alone in the battle of aging. I highly recommend this book in preparing for caregiving and as a current caregiver.
Rayna offers hope throughout her story of caring for her parents. Her journey offers insights to the joys and challenges of walking beside her Mom and Dad. Through these she shares humorous stories, connections, common obstacles and victories! Her heart and voice lift right off the sheet with each page you turn! Come to know Rayna's story and let it be a support in your journey of caring for your loved ones.
Caregiving is a selfless act that not many understand. In her book No Regrets: Hope for Your Caregiving Season author Rayna Neises writes about caregiving and taking care of parents in old age. Aging and growing old are inevitable and children often find themselves as the primary caregivers to their parents when they age. Rayna Neises addresses all children that are taking care of their parents, giving practical tips on how to be a great caregiver and how to handle different situations while caregiving.
No Regrets: Hope for Your Caregiving Season has two main parts, one focusing on caring for others and the other focusing on caring for yourself. One of the main lessons I got from reading both parts is that for you to take proper care of others, you have to be well yourself. Take care of your physical health, take care of your mental health, and protect the energies you love and move away from negative energies.
As you read this enlightening book you realize that caregiving requires both emotional intelligence and compassion. The book teaches that as a caregiver, you should put the other person first and get to understand where they come from. The information and advice delivered among the heartfelt stories will help readers learn to be compassionate and be more appreciative.
One thing that kept me going as I read is how personal the author made the stories feel. Rayna Neises shows a personal side that readers immediately fall in love with when reading her book. The author does not hide her intimate moments nor is she shy to share how she feels about caregiving and what her experience has been. Readers will connect with and appreciate Rayna Neises for sharing deep moments of her life. All of this serves to connect the reader with the author so that the pragmatic advice she shares feels workable.
The thought-provoking stories that are shared throughout the book made the reading experience enjoyable as a mini-memoir. This book is much more engaging than a regular ‘how-to’ book on caregiving. If you are new to caregiving, then this book is for you. The topics that are covered in the book will be very helpful to readers that are not well versed with the subject of caregiving. There is a wealth of knowledge shared in the book, including keeping the family intact, navigating balance, working as a team, dealing with obstacles and how to overcome barriers, when to ask for help and understanding everyone’s needs. This is a fantastic resources for caregivers and will surely improve the lives of many.
"No Regrets" should be read by anyone starting on the journey of caring for a loved one, and especially a parent with dementia. In a conversational tone, Rayna Neises tells the story of caring for her dad, who lived four hours away. She shares how she and her sister teamed up as caregivers, weaving in advice like it's part of the story. The first part of the book will help you think out topics such as decision making, searching for caregivers to come into the home, protecting family relationships, and working with the medical team. The second half of the book contains ideas for caring for yourself, where Rayna gives an honest look at what worked for her and her family, and what needed change. I wish I had this book before I started caring for my dad, who had dementia, and I would certainly freely share it with anyone starting down this path. Thank you, Rayna Neises, for sharing your wisdom and your heart.
I am presently going through this "season " with my mother. I feel a lot of different feelings. I take care of her finances, her healthcare and more, while also taking care of me during the time. To find and read a book that touches on this personal and individual journey has been wonderful. We don't always talk about this time, or have people to talk to about it. Rayna gives us this opportunity to do so.
NO REGRETS is a wonderful book . To know that you are not alone is priceless. I highly recommend it.
No Regrets—the title caught my eye right away. Though I don’t know if it’s entirely possible not to experience any regrets, it’s what I strove for when caring for my parents and 100-year-old mother-in-law. Rayna Neises focuses on honoring our aging loved ones throughout the caregiving process and gives practical head and heart advice on multiple issues caregivers face. Though her experience revolved around parents with Alzheimer’s, these life lessons apply to many caregiving situations. I highly recommend it to anyone facing a season of caregiving.
I wish I had this book as a reference before my parents passed. The book is divided into caring for your parent and caring for yourself. Ranya includes helpful charts for tracking care, which is especially useful when multiple caregivers are involved. This helps to ensure meds aren't missed and basic needs are attended to. I highly recommend you get this book to read before needing it to prepare you how to best take care of your parent and yourself when the time comes.
Caregiving is one of those seasons that arrives without notice and leaves you feeling completely unequipped and ill-prepared. Rayna's book is filled with hope, encouragement, and practical tips to help caregivers navigate the journey. Her experience and expertise provide strong reassurances and wisdom. We were floundering and felt overwhelmed: Rayna's book (and her podcast) are both life and hope savers!
Rayna’s heart comes through lovingly and clearly about her journey in caregiving with her father. She shares specific steps, tips, resource options, and how to build a team of caregivers, a priceless value of maintaining sanity, serenity, and nuggets of joy. Rayna shares a true gift of how to balance showing up for your loved one in need of care and for yourself. A must read if you are, as Rayna says, in a season of caregiving.
No Regrets deals with both practical and emotional aspects of caregiving. Although directed toward caregiving for parents, many of her observations apply to all caregivers. I found Chapter 6, "Change Is Coming" particularly insightful.