Caregiving is about advocacy, sacrifice, resilience, problem-solving, and love
Submitted by: Jacqueline, Southfield
Caregiving is not something I chose as a profession—it is something that became part of who I am.
I am a daughter, wife, mother, business owner, registered nurse, and a person living with disabilities myself. For many years, I have served as the primary caregiver for my mother, who has significant medical needs, while simultaneously raising my children and managing my own health challenges. My caregiving journey has taught me that caregiving is not simply about helping someone with daily tasks. It is about advocacy, sacrifice, resilience, problem-solving, and love.
My mother has experienced multiple serious health challenges, including mobility impairments, vascular disease, amputations, falls, hospitalizations, and extended rehabilitation stays. As her daughter and legal guardian, I have been responsible for coordinating her medical care, communicating with healthcare providers, attending care conferences, managing benefits, arranging transportation, advocating for therapies, appealing decisions, and planning for her safe return home.
What makes my caregiving story unique is that I am both a caregiver and a person with disabilities. While caring for my mother, I have had to navigate my own limitations and health concerns. I understand firsthand how difficult it can be to access services, transportation, home modifications, and community supports. I have experienced the system from both sides—as a healthcare professional and as a family caregiver seeking help for a loved one.
Caregiving has also impacted every aspect of my life. It has influenced my career decisions, financial decisions, educational pursuits, and future goals. There have been times when caregiving responsibilities limited my ability to work in traditional employment settings. There have been nights spent worrying about medications, falls, hospital discharges, and whether enough support would be available to keep my mother safe at home.
At the same time, caregiving has strengthened me.
It has taught me patience when progress is slow. It has taught me persistence when systems seem impossible to navigate. It has taught me the importance of self-advocacy and the value of community-based supports that allow people with disabilities and older adults to remain in their homes.
Through this experience, I have become deeply aware of the challenges caregivers face every day. Many caregivers sacrifice income, career advancement, retirement savings, personal time, and their own health while caring for loved ones. Yet caregivers are often overlooked despite being a critical part of the long-term care system.
My caregiving journey has inspired me to pursue a future focused on supporting others. I am working to develop community-based services that help older adults and people with disabilities maintain independence, dignity, and quality of life. My experiences have shown me how important accessible housing, transportation, personal care services, and caregiver supports are for families across Michigan.
Most importantly, caregiving has taught me that independence does not mean doing everything alone. Independence means having the right supports, resources, and opportunities to live safely and with dignity.
When I think about my caregiving journey, I do not see only the challenges. I see the lessons learned, the strength gained, and the opportunity to use my experiences to improve systems for other caregivers and people with disabilities.
Caregiving has shaped my life in profound ways. It has made me a stronger advocate, a more compassionate person, and someone committed to ensuring that individuals with disabilities and their caregivers have a voice in the decisions that affect their lives.