From Babysitting to Nursing Care

Each year, we try to take our annual break before we get back into the routine of dance classes, homework and therapy appointments. We’re fortunate that we have family willing and able to help watch our kids overnight. Two of my kids have gotten easier to watch as they get older. They can take care of themselves for the most part. It’s reassuring that they are doing more to take care of themselves on a daily basis. 

My middle son is different. There are all sorts of tasks that go into taking care of him. My wife and I have realized that the older he gets, the more we need to move away from looking for a babysitter and move toward securing nursing care for our occasional evenings away. 

Establishing a relationship with nursing caregivers can be daunting. I’m not sure why. I don’t have issues finding a therapist, a new doctor or a new medical supplier. However, finding nursing care is intimidating. Maybe the thought of someone else caring for my son makes me nervous, and maybe I’m anxious that my son is getting older and his needs are more complex. 

Not only do his needs change, but his needs evolve away from being like my other kids. Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t bad that his needs are changing, each of my kids has their own set of special needs. Each child needs to be parented differently.

And yet, the process of finding nursing care has me a little stuck. I don’t know where to start, what to look for or how to make it happen. Either way, it must happen because those weekends and evenings away are important for my partner and me. There will come a day when I’m unable to lift my son and I will need help with that. Asking for that help and getting help from qualified people is incredibly hard, but that’s part of the larger experience of being my son’s dad. 

Moving from babysitting to nursing care is another milestone in my son’s growth and I’m blessed to get to see it. And yes, thoroughly intimidated about making it happen.

Connecting with other parents is a great way to get support and ideas from people who have been through similar experiences.