We all are only one phone call away from disaster. One of those phone calls may be from a health care provider with the news that your spouse has been diagnosed with a critical illness. At the very least, your life will be dramatically changed in the months— and possibly, years— ahead. And, if the very worst comes, you can have a long illness that ends with your loved one passing on.
These changes can challenge you financially, philosophically and practically. If you are put in the position of being a caregiver, the changes can happen very quickly. Most often, you will not have much time to plan once the event occurs. And, very few people take into account caring for a spouse as part of their financial or contingency planning.
As part of the financial planning process, we believe this possibility should at least be part of the conversation. Our goal is to help you make your life better. If you have this conversation before a triggering event happens, you will at least have had one conversation about the things you need to do.
We believe this conversation becomes much more important if there is a health history that might lead you to believe either you or your spouse will spend some time as a caregiver during your lifetime.
Some of the activities we suggest that could be useful on this topic are:
- Understanding how your life would change should you become a caregiver.
- Developing a financial plan where disability is part of the picture.
- Developing a financial plan that accounts for short- to long periods of timecaregiving. .
- Having a list of who to call for help during the the first 48 hours after receiving word that your spouse has been diagnosed with a critical illness.
- Having a list of resources you can call on if you are put in the position of being a caregiver.
- Knowing where you can go for some respite as a caregiver.
It’s hard to make your life better when you’re thrust in the position of becoming an instant caregiver. We find that those who do some basic planning in advance are far better off than those who have not thought about the possibility.