Stand by Me: A Guide to Navigating Modern, Meaningful Caregiving
As the founder of the first devoted Caregivers Clinic in the country, clinical psychologist Dr. Allison Applebaum is no stranger to the intensity of being an unpaid, untrained family caregiver. She also understands that it is often the strength and well-being of these very caregivers—the parents, partners, children, siblings, and friends of patients—that are the true linchpin determining each patient’s illness experience.
Stand By Me: A Guide to Navigating Modern, Meaningful Caregiving puts the practical tools and transformative support of the Caregivers Clinic in your hands, empowering you to provide your loved one with the best quality of life and care possible, while promoting your own wellbeing.
The book covers crucial topics for caregivers including:
Working with your healthcare system
Navigating changing roles and relationship dynamics
Coping with uncertainty
Engaging in healthcare communication
Implementing homecare
Connecting to support
Finding meaning and purpose in the caregiving experience
Stand By Me draws on a decade of clinical and research experience as well as Dr. Applebaum’s personal journey as the primary caregiver for her own father, legendary musician Stanley Applebaum, at the end of his life. Dr. Applebaum recognizes caregivers for who they truly are: invaluable healthcare team members. Offering critical insight and takeaways, Stand By Me is an essential resource for you throughout your caregiving journey.
Order Stand By Me here.
About the author
Dr. Allison Applebaum is a clinical psychologist whose primary focus is on developing innovative approaches to meeting the urgent needs of family caregivers – that is, family members and friends of patients with chronic or life-limiting illnesses who serve a critical and often unrecognized role on the healthcare team. She is currently an Associate Attending Psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK), and an Associate Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medicine. She is the Founding Director of the Caregivers Clinic at MSK. The Clinic was the first of its kind in any NCCN Comprehensive Cancer Center in the United States and provides psychosocial care to family members and friends of patients who experience significant distress and burden as a result of their caregiving role. Dr. Applebaum works with healthcare systems worldwide to develop similar support programs for caregivers, to draw attention to the unique needs of caregivers across various illnesses and care settings, and to implement systems-level changes that facilitate support and integrate caregivers more formally into the healthcare team. Her professional work as a caregiving scientist has been mirrored by her own caregiving journey in providing care for her father. She deeply understands the distress, invisibility, and multidimensional hardship that over 53 million caregivers in the United States experience today. She is committed to amplifying the voices of caregiving families and addressing the profound mental health needs of caregivers worldwide.