‘Fearless’ conference puts spotlight on family caregivers

SPEAKERS AND VENDORS:

Aging and disability experts, caregiver advocates, insurance advisers, Social Security specialists, elder law professionals, home-care and facility coordinators, support organization.

Agenda topics will include Veteran Caregiving including legal and disability issues. There will be a special emphasis on Grandparent Caregiving.

How does one become a caregiver’s caregiver?

For Gary Barg of Florida the journey was born out of a heartfelt need in his own family, then grew into a passion that evolved over a 20-year career writing and speaking to caregivers across the country.

This is his story: Barg was living in Atlanta in 1994, working in video production in preparation for the 1996 Olympics. During a phone conversation with his mother, Barg could sense she was worn out from caring for his father, a cancer patient, and his grandparents who also had health problems. He decided to take a few weeks off from work, go home to Miami and help out.

It turned out to be the hardest weeks of his life. There were long days of dealing with insurance companies, doctor appointments and late-night trips to the emergency room, all while making a multitude of urgent decisions.

Barg remembers sitting on the couch with his mother at the end of his visit and telling her how exhausting it had all been. “And she just looked at me, because to her this was just routine,” he said.

That was when the light went on for him: the moment he knew those who care for others also needed someone to care for them.

He went back to Atlanta, gathered his belongings, then returned to Miami and never looked back. Within months he put out his first issue of Today's Caregiver magazine, and has since built his publication and website, caregiver.com, along with other media and conferences into an empire of caregiver education, motivation and celebration.

While there are more than 66 million caregivers in the U.S., most think they’re in it by themselves, said Barg. “It’s important for them to see that they’re not alone.”

That’s the goal of the Fearless Caregiver conferences. Barg wanted to provide an opportunity for family caregivers to meet experts in the field so they could receive information, ask questions or air complaints, and go home with practical, hands-on techniques to make their task a little easier.

Locally, a 2015 Fearless Caregiver Conference seminar and expo will be 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 21, at Cobb County Senior Services Senior Wellness Center, 1150 Powder Springs St. SW, Suite 100, Marietta. Register at caregiver.com, or 877-829-2734. Lunch is included. This is a free event for family caregivers.

Professionals from various senior services will be on the day’s agenda, including support groups for aging, disabilities, veterans and elder law.

Barg will host the event and will address a special concern he has on grandparent caregiving. A growing number of older adults, he says, are now part of the “skip generation” — a term coined because the middle generation is missing. These are grandparents raising their grandchildren because their adult children are not doing the job themselves. And in many cases, these grandparents are caring for their own elderly parents, too.

“So much has been laid on their shoulders,” said Barg.

In addition to break-out educational sessions and opportunities to peruse various exhibits, the day’s highlight will be a Q and A session with an open discussion. Questions may be directed toward the experts, but the greatest wisdom often comes from other caregivers, says Barg.

The most common questions he’s heard: “How do I find time for myself?” followed by, “How do I get other family members to help me?”

Financial concerns are also commonly expressed, and the one question that’s sure to get the most creative responses: “How do I get my loved one to stop driving?”

The conferences also provide opportunities for family caregivers to meet others who are doing the same difficult task, and to laugh and cry with each other, Barg said.

“Usually, they are putting the focus on someone else’s needs, but at this conference the focus will be on their needs.”