Hi all,
I’m seriously considering quitting my job in order to care for my mum full time.
Has anyone done this?
How do you go about doing this?
Vx
Hi Victoria,
Please, please don’t do this until you have explored all the alternative options.
I need to ask a few questions so we can give best advice.
How old are you and mum?
What does she need help with, and why?
Does she own or rent her home?
Do you have your own home, or live with her?
Do you have any brothers and sisters?
Does mum have over £23,000 in savings?
Yes I did and it felt like a really big deal at the time. I agree many things are best sorted out up front and you need to balance the pros and cons. Do you love your job or would you be quitre happy to leave and have a new focus in life. If you pay for professional care will the funds run out and you find yourself in a place of having to sell the family home if it is owned rather than rented?
Is caring something you could cope with emotionally and will the needs increase and become unmanageable for you in the future?
If you do choose to go down that road make sure you get every little bit of support you are entited to and don’t be afraid to jump up and down very loudly and ask until it arrives.
No one solution fits all, depends on your personality, you and your caree’s finances , housing and relationship , nature of the illness/condition, time you are likely to be a full time carer and your age among other things.
Keep a diary- it will be invaluable further down the road
I was already on disability insurance when I came to see to mum. From the problems I’ve read on this forum that one can run into, I’d advise you to consider all alternatives before so doing.
Hi Victoria,
Juggling working and caring is tough but so I being at home caring full-time. It can be isolating and your social world narrows, not to mention financial implications and getting back into work afterwards. Have you considered requesting to reduce your hours or go part time?
Check out what you would be able to claim https://www.carersuk.org/upfront/ or Where you live
Melly1
If your caree is willing to support you financially it is doable, otherwise don’t even consider it.
Even if your caree is supportive financially, once they pass away you will be left homeless.
Its a tough choice to make, but I wouldn’t recommend it.
I was forced to do this as i became a long distance carer and travel to my mum for about half the month every month-its complicated and meant i could no longer work.
There’s two things to consider for yourself- your mental health and your finances. Sometimes being a full time carer isn’t the best thing if leaving work means that would make you more unhappy but it could be the opposite situation i understand. By law i think you are allowed to request flexitime, but check this. Try the part time route if possible before making a final decision. If you’re worried about finances if you can afford a buy to let with your savings then i feel that’s the best way to see you through if it’s possible.
No but I had to stop working on Sunday afternoons. It was hard for a month but we now have some savings in a bank account that basically enable us to live comfortably. I have also fundraised in the past. It is not a problem for us but I know that this is a issue for many other carers and their families across the country however.