Caregiver Cheat Sheets

Sometimes you just need a quick, "where do I even begin" cheat sheet to guide you through the chaos. So we made them for you. Click the cards below to view and download for free.

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Caregiving 101
Finding Help
Home & Daily Life
Money & Benefits
Specific Situations
The Legal Stuff
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Could This Be Dementia?

Finding Help

Everyone forgets things—but when your gut won’t quiet down, it’s worth a closer look. This can’t diagnose anyone, but it can help you spot what’s changed, write down the facts, and walk into the doctor’s office ready.

The Caregiving Stuff That Sneaks Up on You

Caregiving 101

Caregiving has a way of surprising you, and not just with the responsibilities. Here’s what seasoned caregivers wish someone had told them on day one: how to handle the time, the confusing systems, the loneliness, the costs, and the running-on-empty part.

Turning 18 with an intellectual or developmental disability

The Legal Stuff

At 18, your child is legally an adult. That means benefits, services, and decision-making rules all flip overnight. Here’s your Top 5 Must-Dos to set them (and you) up for adult life.

Protecting Your Parents From Scammers

Money & Benefits

Scammers love older adults—and they’re getting really good. Here’s how to spot the red flags, lock things down, and have the awkward-but-important convo with your parents.

Your Aging Parent is Moving In

Home & Daily Life

You expected to be packing boxes. Instead, you’re negotiating custody of a 1994 floral recliner. Here’s how to sort the actual necessities from the emotional support furniture—without steamrolling anyone.

Actually Getting Your Child to Take Their Medicine

Specific Situations

Practical tips to help parents manage medication struggles with children, including handling unpleasant tastes, practising pill swallowing, reducing resistance, and knowing when to seek guidance from healthcare professionals.

Hiring a Home Care Agency

Finding Help

Every agency says they provide “compassionate care.” Cool. But what does that look like in real life? Here are the questions to ask, the good signs to listen for, and the red flags that send you to the next name on the list.

Hiring In-Home Care: Agency or Private?

Caregiving 101

Should you hire someone yourself or go through an agency? Spoiler: there’s no wrong answer, just a better fit. Here’s what kind of care you actually need, what each option asks of you, and how to choose without the guilt.

Support Groups

Finding Help

Not as weird as you might think—and possibly exactly what you need. Here’s how to tell if a support group could actually help, plus how to find one that fits (and ditch one that doesn’t).

Caring Across Cultures — South Asian Edition

Specific Situations

Faith, family expectations, and tradition don’t always line up with U.S. systems. If you’re a first-gen South Asian caregiver who’s translating, scheduling, and keeping the peace, here’s how to honor your loved one’s wishes and keep the whole family in the loop.

Creating a Dementia-Friendly Home

Home & Daily Life

The house they know by heart can start to feel confusing, and you don’t need a renovation to fix that. A few small tweaks to the space and the daily routine can make everyday life a scootch easier, for them and for you.

Does Mom Qualify for Medicaid?

Money & Benefits

Understand Medicaid eligibility, income and asset limits, long-term care coverage, application steps, and appeals. Learn where to find state-specific rules and explore options for paid family caregiving.

End of Life Planning

The Legal Stuff

It’s the checklist nobody wants to make. But a little planning now can ease the stress later. Future-you is giving current-you a big hug.

Figuring Out SSI & SSDI

Money & Benefits

Two programs with almost identical names and completely different rules. Of course. Here’s the difference between SSI and SSDI, who qualifies, how to apply, and what to do if your person gets denied the first time.

Finding Local Help for an Aging Parent

Finding Help

Nearly every community has an office whose whole job is connecting older adults and families to local support. (No, not the tow truck people.) Here’s how to find yours, what to ask, and a script for that first call.

Having The Talk With Your Aging Parents

Caregiving 101

No family summit with name tags and a PowerPoint required. Just a calm moment and the right questions—because these convos are a whole lot easier when you’re not having them in a hospital room.

Helping Your Parent With a Disability Live Independently at Home

Specific Situations

Your parent wants to stay independent, and you want that for them too. Here’s where to find home modifications, funding, accessible housing, and low-cost equipment, plus who to call when you don’t know where to start.

Home Sweet Home: Aging in Place Edition

Home & Daily Life

The biggest hazards at home are the boring ones (hi, rugs and midnight bathroom trips). Here’s a room-by-room safety checklist so the house keeps up with your parent, plus how to bring it up without it feeling like an inspection.

“Let Me Know If You Need Anything”

Finding Help

You’ve got a dozen texts saying “let me know if you need anything,” and your mind goes blank. Here’s exactly what to hand off, sorted by who’s asking, from your ride-or-die friends to the out-of-towners.

Making a Care Binder

Caregiving 101

If something happened tomorrow, would anyone know where the important stuff is? Here’s how to build one binder for the medical, legal, financial, and daily life details nobody should have to guess during a crisis.

The Must-Have Paperwork When You’re Caring for Someone

The Legal Stuff

“It must be somewhere in this drawer” is never helpful. Here’s your checklist of the medical, legal, financial, and insurance paperwork that comes with caregiving, so nothing important falls through the cracks.

Navigating Medicare

Money & Benefits

Four parts, different plans, and enough acronyms to make your head spin. Here’s the napkin-sketch version: what Medicare covers (and doesn’t), which plan your person actually has, and where to get free help from a real human.

Welcoming a Baby With Down Syndrome

Specific Situations

First things first: congratulations. There’s no overwhelming checklist here, just the basics on health, early support, and everyday life, plus the things every new parent of a baby with Down syndrome deserves to hear.

What to Bring for an Overnight Hospital Stay

Home & Daily Life

“I’ll probably be there a few hours” has humbled many of us. Here’s what to pack for an overnight stay, from the long phone charger to the snacks that keep you from going full hangry. Because you matter too.

When You Become a Caregiver Overnight

Caregiving 101

It might start with a diagnosis, a fall, or a discharge with a stack of papers and a “good luck.” Take a breath. Here’s what to focus on first, from home safety to paperwork to building your support team.

When You’re Pretty Sure Your Child Has ADHD

Specific Situations

Pretty sure your child has ADHD? Here’s where to start with evaluations, what supports you’re entitled to, and small school + home shifts that can make daily life a little easier.
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