When you are working together to make sure the needs of your elderly parents are satisfied, even the closest of siblings can find themselves in dispute. Stress and emotions are, of course, running high. Couple that with your past family history and dynamics, which tend to resurface during difficult times, and it’s not hard to see how overwhelming this phase in life can be for each of you.
The most commonplace areas of controversy among siblings consist of monetary decisions, differing viewpoints on health-related treatments or living arrangements, and an unfair division of duties pertaining to caregiving, just to note a few.
In some cases, regardless of how hard you try, you and your brothers and sisters are just not able to come to an understanding on exactly how to best care for your parents. An impasse similar to this is quite common, frequently stemming from challenging family dynamics and unsettled disputes. However, there is a remedy many families are not aware of that can be incredibly helpful: elder care mediation with your siblings.
A professional skilled in resolving conflicts, an elder mediator brings an independent, third-party voice to family conversations. They can help calm elevated feelings and outbursts and guide the dialogue in a way that creates an outcome that all parties can accept.
Elder mediator Susanne Terry explains, “Most of the time siblings want what’s best for the parents. They just look at it in a different way. Our goal is to help them figure out what their common interests are, so they can work together to find solutions.”
Different from family therapy, which helps families work through challenges little by little over a long period of time, elder mediation is a focused, compacted technique that commonly results in an agreeable outcome in just a handful of sessions.
Elder mediators give siblings the opportunity to both provide input and listen with respect to each other. The objective is not only to look for the very best outcome for the elderly parents, but to help the rest of the family maintain healthy relationships with each other in the process.
When exploring elder care mediation with your siblings, there are several questions you should ask:
- What are your fees?
- Are you a member of the Academy of Professional Family Mediators (APFM) or other professional associations?
- What amount of experience do you have in our particular situation?
- What is your education, training, and background?
To locate an elder mediator in your community, check out APFM’s mediator directory. Once you and your siblings decide on the most effective path forward in taking care of your aging parents, give Carolina Hearts Home Care, the leading home care company in Laurinburg, Rockingham, Raeford and the surrounding areas, a call. We will be happy to provide a free in-home assessment to talk about how we can help ensure all their care needs are met. You can reach us any time at 1-855-277-2005.
