Carers’ Resource, Harrogate, Craven and Airedale

These are stories told by carers from the Carers’ Resource, Harrogate, Craven and Airedale about their experiences of caring for people with a wide range of conditions and ages.

Family matters
Pat’s life, and that of her husband, is overturned when they assume the care of their grandchildren. Having fought the legal battles, they now find themselves exhausted and financially overburdened.

Just John’s wife
After her husband’s gliding accident, Hazel and John have to come to terms with his paraplegia, and her new role as a carer, before they can build a new life.

A permanent holiday?
Graham is more than a full-time carer for his wife, following her stroke. When a minor procedure leaves Dorothy in great pain, it’s one more thing to cope with.

My Michael
Michael is due to be operated on for bowel cancer, but none of the medical staff listen when Michael and Joan tell them that an epidural will have no effect due to severe scarring.

Just Jack
Liz cares for her grandson, Jack, who has been labelled with a variety of acronyms which entitle him to extra support at school – but Liz feels as though she has been cast adrift in a sea of uncertainty.

Learning to care is part of the job
Alyson’s elderly father-in-law is given a poor prognosis around the same time Alyson starts working at the Carers’ Resource. She learns about her rights as a carer on the job, but this doesn’t necessarily make it any easier…

Please, just listen
Jeana doesn’t want doctors to breach the confidentiality code – she just wants them to listen so that they might learn something about her son, who suffers (along with the rest of the family) from a psychotic disorder.

Why am I not the expert?
Jenny has Parkinsons. Perhaps that is why nobody listened when she tried to persuade the medical profession that her husband’s mental illness stemmed from a frontal lobe injury as a child. And yet, he receives excellent care for his bowel cancer…

A plea for dignity
Laura pleads with health professionals – and others – to bear in mind the enormous contribution our elderly people have made – and to treat them with the kindness and dignity they deserve.