Caregiving is difficult no matter your relationship to the charge or the reason why the person needs caregiving. But different challenges face each of those relationships and reasons. Veteran caregivers have a specific set of challenges, hardships and rewards.

One of the challenges is trying to understand the mountains of paperwork it can require for a veteran to get care. Of course, this can be a challenge for all caregivers, but as the news has shown over the last couple months, the VA system is a particularly rough road to travel these days. This trouble can be mitigated by keeping a close and organized watch on all paperwork related to the veterans care. But that still doesn’t mean that they’ll be able to get an appointment any faster than otherwise.

As for the hardships, there are many. Again this is true for other individuals with disabilities, but oftentimes veterans have problems that are not apparent on their body. PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) or a TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) often don’t leave outside marks. This means that the veteran and their caregiver have to deal with outside people treating them like everything is fine, even when it isn’t. That can be a blessing, but also can mean having to explain more to strangers than one would like.

But being there for a veteran can be tremendously rewarding. As the parent, spouse or friend of a veteran, that person is taking part in an effort larger than themselves. They are part of what makes that veteran function every day and they should be thanked, just as veterans are thanked.

So thank you, from us here at TotalHomeCareSupplies.com, for your service as either a member of the armed forces or as a caregiver of one. We are grateful for you.