As we round the corner into the months with significant and meaningful holidays we at NAVIGATE NC have a tradition: We roll out blogs from yesteryear that may be of special holiday relevance to our readers. We do this in service to people everywhere, as they gather or speak with their loved ones. It’s time when changes are noticed or encountered, and questions may arise. We hope our collection of NAV-Nuggets for you is helpful, and that they inspire thought kindness and solution.
Investigate: How is Your Senior?
Originally posted in 2013 this was one of NAVIGATE NC’s early blogs, in fact, it was the first holiday season for our budding agency. We knew and understood the challenges that holidays could produce or uncover. Please smile along with us as we revisit the wisdom of this piece, still bearing true these years later.
Holiday gatherings provide an excellent time to notice if our senior family members have changed since a previous visit. Our goal here is to look for clues as to how things are going. It’s about being open to noticing change.
How to Start a Dialogue with Aging Parents
As we continue to approach holidays our “Best of” articles from our blogs will serve again in new ways. In 2016 we heard from a reader: “I returned to your site when the emergencies began with Mom and Dad. I read this post and saw myself. That was ME (in denial) in paragraph three, and ME in crisis in paragraph four! Please tell everyone to read that blog post and talk before the crisis or before the concerns begin to mount.”
Holiday gatherings provide an excellent time to notice if our senior family members have changed since a previous visit. Our goal here is to look for clues as to how things are going. It’s about being open to noticing change.
Tween Time: Seasonal Conversations
This blog post was first published in 2014. ‘Tween Time’, that time between one gathering and the next ushers in a thought-FULL season for caregivers and Advocates alike. Here are some of the typical concerns folks share when they call NAVIGATE NC.
What Grandmother Won’t Tell You on Your Holiday Visit – by Grandmother
Oh, this post from 2015 is one of our favs! Grandma is a sly one, and is one step ahead of the family she thinks is snooping. Read how Grandma prepares for the holidays.
Handling Stress and Grief During the Holidays
When a loved one is no longer with us during the holidays, new and unfamiliar feelings may arise. This 2016 post “permissions us” to acknowledge what is and honor what was, and with that to practice kindness to those around us.
THE TUG TO TALK: It’s your job
When is the time to talk? We bet you’ve felt this feeling, and we call it The Tug to Talk. Learn to recognize it, and how to begin, in this post first published in 2014.
Tips for Talking
The families have gathered and there are now Tugs to Talk. They see changes in a loved one and wish to lodge concerns. Plenty of folks are asking us how to talk, and how to start a conversation with this person or that. choose from these tips first published in 2017.
Elderly Care: Crafty Lead-Ins For Potentially Difficult ConversationsTips for Talking
The families have gathered and there are n Crafty Lead-ins for Difficult Conversations builds upon the last two segments (The Tug to Talk, and Tips For Talking). Now enjoy these approaches from a post Nancy offered back in 2017 that still hold true for use when things get sticky or tricky.
Elder Care and Advocacy: Kitchen Table Advocacy
This blog from 2016 is one of my favs because it reminds me of where it all began for me. I saw how others were helping and planning and we’d assemble to bring us all onto the same page. Then I could see how people helped one another along the way, and I made up my mind up to do just that.
Holiday Traditions: An Unexpected Rumination
Be careful what you ask for… In 2020 I was asked a question and an entire blog fell out! My colleague Nancy Loeffler, of Being With Grief, had asked about new holiday traditions that had been started beyond the death of a loved one.