AARP’s Barry Jacobs received well-intentioned but conflicting advice when looking after his mother. Her friends suggested how he could be a better son and caregiver. “In each instance I responded as courteously as I could,” he writes, “though I probably showed less enthusiasm for their ideas than they might have desired. Inside, though, I chafed.”His article goes on to offer practical advice on how to respond when well-meaning advisers try to help, but cause hurt instead.
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