We're Stronger than We Look: Insights and Encouragement for the Caregiver's Journey

by Jill Brown

Overview

Caregiver, are you overwhelmed? Do you secretly (or not so secretly) have bouts of despair, bitterness, and even hopelessness?

As a caregiver, you run the risk of disappearing. Your time goes overwhelmingly to the needs of your loved one. Relationships get strained, and challenges and anxieties are difficult to articulate. It’s easier to just keep your head down and do what must be done.

What’s more, you probably didn’t sign up for this role or train for it. And yet here you are, reliving the trauma that got you here, providing support you didn’t know you had in you to give, struggling with fatigue, making critical, life-altering decisions, and yearning for the community you had that has changed or disappeared.
As a caregiver, do you ever wonder:

• Where did everybody go?
• Why can’t I do a better job? Am I a complete failure?
• How can I keep up this level of care without exhausting myself?

Rich in stories, threaded with humor, and unflinchingly real, We’re Stronger than We Look is a safe place for you to process the life you’ve been given, to accept that it’s okay not to have it all together, and to be inspired about your caregiving role—even while recognizing the need to take care of yourself as well.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781641583909
Publisher:	The Navigators
Publication date:	05/17/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	176
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Jill Case Brown is on the staff of The Navigators, where she provides part-time pastoral care for those serving in ministry. She has been the caregiver for her husband, David, who is also on staff with The Navigators, since his bicycling accident in 2009.

Table of Contents

Welcome to Your Book ix

1 She's Got It All Together 1

2 The Elephant in the Room 5

3 Connecting 9

4 The Dividing Line 13

5 Not What You Might Expect 17

6 God's Hands 21

7 And So It Begins 25

8 When Heroes Get Personal 29

9 Totally Unqualified 33

10 Woof Woof 37

11 The Right Kind of Addiction 41

12 Boxing with the Pros 45

13 Divide and Conquer 49

14 Well-Kept 53

15 The Idea Man Hits a Home Run 57

16 The Second Elephant 61

17 Climb in the Car 65

18 Going Down 69

19 Time for a Tweak 75

20 Meltdown at the Auto Supply Store 79

21 The Third Elephant 83

22 It Can Happen 87

23 Beauty into Ugliness 93

24 Redeeming the Ugliness 97

25 Rumpelstiltskin Gets It Right 101

26 The Road of Sabbatical Rhythm 105

27 It Is What It Is 109

28 It's More Than It Is 113

29 Keep a Low Ceiling and a High Floor 117

30 Catching a Downdraft 121

31 From Metaphor to Reality 125

32 Worth the Limp? 129

33 Tell It Like It Is 133

34 Stepping Back 137

35 The Last Elephant 141

Acknowledgments 145

Other People's Stories 147

Questions for Reflection and Discussion 155

Notes 159

What People are Saying About This

Dr. Cynthia Fantasia

This is a beautiful book. Jill Case Brown invites us into her story, her heart, and her soul. No simple answers, no easy formulas; Jill takes us on a journey of questions, weariness, anger, regrets, and renewal. As a former caregiver, I am hesitant to read books on caregiving by someone who has no “up close and personal” experience. I was drawn into Jill’s story because of her honesty and raw emotion—because she’s been there and is there. She invited me, and all readers, to join her as she explores the hidden blessings God offers if one is open to journeying through the dark places of illness and caregiving. It has been a few years since my husband battled with, and died from, Alzheimer’s disease, but We’re Stronger than We Look blessed me with insight, wisdom, and words to assign to my still-present questions. This is a book for all current caregivers and for those who will become caregivers. I will keep several copies on my bookshelf, ready to gift to those in the caregiving community.

Ken and Joni Eareckson Tada

Unheralded, lonely, and very hard—that’s a good definition for caring for a loved one who struggles with disability. Every caregiver wonders, Can I do this for the rest of my life? Then, Was this a big mistake? And finally, I’m trapped. Despite all the good times in our 38 years of marriage, I have felt the same. And it’s why my wife Joni and I heartily endorse the book you hold in your hands. It’s filled with bruising candor, honest stories and heartwarming insights that will inspire and refresh the faith of any caregiver. Best of all, once you read this book, you’ll realize I'm not alone! So get reading and be ready to be blessed!