TESTIMONIALS. “We tend to forget ourselves a little”, caregivers confide in their daily lives in Agen

“She dresses herself, she eats herself, but it’s still me who washes her,” Béatrice slips. A caregiver for around twenty years, she has taken care of her little sister, who has Down syndrome, since the death of her parents. “Following the death of my father, my mother found herself alone with my sister, so I started to take care of her. Very quickly, my mother got AMD (age-related macular degeneration), so I took them both with me. My mother has died today, I still have my disabled sister, who doesn’t necessarily age well. » Still working, Béatrice juggles between her work and taking care of her sister.

Support in support groups

A daily life that can sometimes be heavy. “When you are a caregiver, you tend to forget yourself a little,” confides the woman. Carpe diem, the support and respite platform for caregivers of the elderly, to which she has been a member for two years, allows her to take a break. “They offer gentle hiking, sophrology, foot reflexology… We can finally take moments for ourselves. »

Martine nods. “Since I came here, I feel supported. In my family, we don’t talk about it, it’s taboo. I felt like I was facing a wall. » She takes care of her 73-year-old husband, who suffers from apathy. “He doesn’t do anything at all anymore – although he used to be very handy, he’s tired, he doesn’t go out, he doesn’t want to shave or dress himself… And he refuses to get help. » “What I’m looking for for her is a good host family,” confides Nadine, who is responsible for her 94-year-old mother. Daily newspapers that are similar for all these women, who find support in the support groups organized by the Carpe diem platform.

A day to promote advancing age

That day, they are in the middle of preparing for a workshop that they will lead on the Village for Aging Well, which will be held for the first time on June 11 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Agen Agora. A free day, organized by Regain Coordination, the Coordination Support System (DAC 47) and the family caregivers of the Carpe Diem Respite Platform *, which aims to prevent loss of autonomy and promote good living advancing age, designed by caregivers.

“We had this desire, but we said to ourselves that by organizing it alone, we could miss the real needs and demand of this audience. The caregivers helped us think about the themes,” explains one of the facilitators from Regain Coordination, an association whose main mission is to keep people at home. A beautiful day ahead, reflected on by those who support their loved ones as best they can to age well.