Selena is a caregiver to her mother, who was recently diagnosed with stage 3A colon cancer. Growing up in an African American and Jamaican English household, Selena never saw the care she provided as “caregiving”—it was simply expected of her as the eldest daughter....
Basiliso has been a caregiver since his parents began to age. In 2019, his mother broke her ankle and was placed in a care home, where her health continued to decline. Basiliso brought her into his home so he could provide the care she needed until she passed away in...
“If [Medicaid] cuts happen, that means, honestly, we would be homeless, and we wouldn’t have the resources we need, and my mom wouldn’t have care. It starts a cycle where I wouldn’t be able to work, and I wouldn’t have what I needed to be able to survive in this...
Trixy and her husband are devoted caregivers to their daughter, Harper, who lives with profound medical challenges. Diagnosed with periventricular leukomalacia (PVL), Harper developed cerebral palsy, spastic quadriplegia with dystonia, and severe vision impairment. As...
Terry has always cared for her daughter, who has severe intellectual disabilities. When her daughter was 19, she developed schizophrenia, which affected her disabilities and caused her to decline cognitively. Terry needs to help her do everyday activities like...
Sarah’s daughter, Jessi, was diagnosed with tuberous sclerosis complex disorder at five months old. Her condition causes epilepsy, autism, kidney disease, developmental disabilities, development of tumors and cysts on all of Jessi’s organs, and a lung condition. Sarah...
Jennifer is a caregiver for her daughter, who has two rare chromosomal deletions, causing her to be medically complex. Among her diagnoses are intellectual disabilities, seizures, IBD and ARFID. For the past three years, Jennifer has been provided with a stipend...
Heather’s son Matthew is 13 years old and living with severe autism and epilepsy, which is currently in remission. Heather has been providing care for Matthew since he was a baby. In addition to the routine care a mother provides, making sure Matthew is fed and...
Brittany’s son, Camden, has cerebral palsy. He is trach dependent, G-tube dependent, non-ambulatory, and communicates with an assisted communication device. Brittany is his caregiver. Every day, she provides typical nursing activities like moving him from place to...
Being Christina’s care partner has been one of the most rewarding, challenging, and life-changing experiences of my life. It has tested me emotionally, stretched me intellectually, and reshaped who I am. Christina has C3G, a rare kidney disease. Before caregiving, I...
Jesus is a care partner for his younger sister, who, after visits to several doctors was diagnosed with kidney disease. She was told that she would need a kidney transplant. Jesus’ mom is older and was already dealing with some health complications of her own. That...
Jeanne has been caring for her daughter since she was very young. As a child, a viral infection attacked her daughter’s heart, causing her to need a heart transplant; in 2020 as a young adult, Jeanne’s daughter needed a kidney transplant as well. Jeanne has been her...
A few years ago, Georgette’s sister started experiencing medical complications. While Georgette lived in New York City, her sister and her family lived in Atlanta, where her husband worked. It was decided that the medical complications were serious enough that...
Brian was the caregiver for his wife, who needed a kidney transplant a few years ago. While they were engaged, Brian’s wife went into septic shock due to kidney failure, and that, combined with her pre-existing Type 1 Diabetes, led to high blood pressure and...
Abena’s husband was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2013, shortly after she became pregnant with their first child. Her husband lived with his tumor for a little over four years before passing away. Abena did almost everything for him, from managing his medication...
Sanary is a Cambodian American who moved with her family to the United States at a young age as a refugee. As the daughter in a refugee family, she feels she has filled the role of caregiver all her life, starting by acting as the English translator and interpreter...
Zuzette and TeriLynne are from the Gila River Indian Community and have cared for their aging parents, as well as their own children, two of whom have chronic conditions. Zuzette is the primary caregiver for her and TeriLynne’s mother, and supported their mother in...
While Nayma’s siblings live with their parents, Nayma is the backbone of her siblings’ care team. Their parents came to the United States from Mexico as adults and have faced difficulties overcoming the language barrier. Nayma’s past, present, and future are shaped by...
Caring for both her two-year-old and her husband, while maintaining full-time work as an attorney, was the hardest thing Whitney ever had to do, and she constantly battled with whether she was providing enough care and attention to each of them. Whitney cared for her...
Katie is the mother of a 20-year-old son born with physical and intellectual disabilities caused by a rare disease. The factors of her son’s care have been constantly changing, meaning the caregiving process has changed as well. As her son’s primary caregiver and...
Jeannette’s husband returned from Iraq with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Traumatic Brain Injury, signs and symptoms of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, and advanced bone and disc degeneration. His symptoms got worse over time, but Jeannette knew things were...
Sherry is a caregiver for her husband, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. At the start of her caregiving journey, Sherry struggled to find caregiving communities, and it was difficult for her to share her concerns with others. However, once she made those...
Melissa was the secondary caregiver for her father, who had Lou Gehrig’s disease, and is now the primary caregiver for her husband, who suffers from chronic pain. With her father, Melissa realized right away she was a caregiver as he was on a ventilator, needed a...
Zuzette and TeriLynne are from the Gila River Indian Community and have cared for their aging parents, as well as their own children, two of whom have chronic conditions. Zuzette is the primary caregiver for her and TeriLynne’s mother, and supported their mother in...
Rona lives in rural Oklahoma and is the mother of three children. Her youngest child is a 13-year-old with Down syndrome. Her daughter is non-verbal and has significant intellectual disabilities. She can’t be left unattended. Though Rona feels fortunate that she and...
Beth’s husband was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2016. He had surgery immediately upon diagnosis and, due to some complications, remained in the hospital for three weeks, where Beth stayed with him the entire time. Her husband eventually went into remission but...
Laura spent two years caring for her husband, who was diagnosed with stage IV neuroendocrine pancreatic cancer. They proceeded with chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery to close off blood vessels in his liver that were feeding the cancer. Her husband then underwent an...
Sarah spent several years caring for her brother who suffered from cognitive decline, endured physical challenges, and was diagnosed with COPD. He used alcohol to cope with his conditions, which complicated the care Sarah provided. After her brother passed, Sarah...
National Alliance for Caregiving
1730 Rhode Island Ave. NW
Suite #812
Washington, D.C. 20036
