How to Manage your Expectations as a caregiver
Family caregivers are often hurt and disappointed if their siblings, spouses, and others don’t step up to help. They often blame those family members for being selfish and uncaring. Another possibility that caregivers should consider, though, is “Am I expecting too much?” In this session led by Barry J. Jacobs, Psy.D., a clinical psychologist, author, and healthcare consultant, we’ll look at the advantages and disadvantages for caregivers of having expectations about others to attempt to answer the question, “Would I be better off expecting nothing.”
Date January 23, 2024
Hosted By WellMed Charitable Foundation
Tags Support, Aging, emotions, caregiving, Barry, caregivers, Jacobs, elderly, Barry Jacobs, family, seniors, Health and Wellness, caregiver
Barry, J. Jacobs, PsyD
Barry J. Jacobs is a clinical psychologist, family therapist, and the Director of Behavioral Sciences for the Crozer-Keystone Family Medicine Residency Program in Springfield, Pennsylvania. He is the co-author (with Julia L. Mayer, Psy.D) of AARP Meditations for Caregivers—Practical, Emotional and Spiritual Support for You and Your Family (Da Capo, 2016) and the author of The Emotional Survival Guide for Caregivers—Looking After Yourself and Your Family While Helping an Aging Parent (Guilford, 2006). He is a co-editor of the e-book, Collaborative Perspectives—A Selection of CFHA’s Best Blogs From 2009-2015 (CFHA, 2017).
Dr. Jacobs has given more than 400 presentations on family caregiving for family caregivers, community groups, and medical and mental health professionals. He is the national spokesperson on caregiving for the American Heart Association and an honorary board member of the Well Spouse Association. He has served on the expert panel for the Caregiver Crisis Great Challenge for TEDMED.com and as a board member of the Collaborative Family Healthcare Association, a national organization on the integration of mental and physical healthcare. In 2016, he received its lifetime achievement award, the Don Bloch Award. He has held adjunct faculty positions with the Temple University School of Medicine, the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, and the Department of Psychology of the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.
A blogger on family caregiving topics for AARP.org and the Huffington Post, Dr. Jacobs received his bachelor’s degree from Brown University and his doctorate in psychology from Hahnemann/Widener Universities.