Stepping Stones Is Here To Support You And Your Loved Ones…
Personal Support
Through home visits, telephone and/or electronic contact our services can help you and your loved one. Working together, we can identify your needs, assist in completing an Advance Care Directive or POLST, help plan for the future, address emotional and spiritual needs, evaluate living situations and considering home safety.
Our goal is to assist in locating available resources, support your steps towards obtaining help and stand by you through the process. We will help you give voice to your feelings and wishes, encourage discussions of hopes, fears and dreams. Stepping Stones support can help caregivers realize that to better care for someone, their health also needs to be a consideration. Our advocacy can help reduce isolation and provide a nonjudgmental presence.
Compassion – A Caring Presence
When dealing with a life-threatening illness, the focus can shift from the person in the body to the body and its disease. Often a person’s humanity is lost during serious illness. As Dr. Larry Dossey states, “Bodies do not suffer; people do.” Patients ache for some kind of normalcy such as discussing the latest news, sitting in the garden and talking about nothing in particular. Simple gestures can be both healing and humanizing. Stepping Stones can provide that needed presence and compassionate support.
Advocacy
Good communication is key to proper medical support, instead of telling their story many people become quiet and withdrawn. It is quite common for a loved one to listen as a family member expresses a litany of health issues, then, during a medical appointment the doctor will ask “how are you doing?” The response from the patient is often one word, “Fine.”
Stepping Stones can help prepare for medical visits by assisting with a written list of questions and needs that should be discussed with their doctor.
Stepping Stones can initiate research for families who find the day ends long before their “to do list” is complete.
Education
Too many times we hear “if only I had known about that resource sooner,” “if only I had known about hospice sooner,” “if only I’d known ____.” Unfortunately, many people learn of support after the fact or later than would be ideal.
When a woman is in labor is not the time to talk about birthing options. The same is true at the end of life. Stepping Stones believes educating people before a health crisis hits is beneficial so they can plan thoughtfully and discuss their wishes with their medical team, family and/or friends.
Spiritual Care
Mistaking spirituality for religion can create a barrier to conversations that can heal. No matter our religious beliefs, we all have a spirituality that guides us. It’s how we see ourselves fitting in the universe, our world, community and family. Some questions to consider:
*What does this illness mean to you?
*What sustains you?
*Is there anyone you need to forgive (including yourself)?
*Is there unfinished business in life?
Stepping Stones can provide spiritual care or connect you with your chosen spiritual community for support.
We will not overlay a philosophy or push for a specific outcome. We want people to consider their choices free of myth or misunderstanding. There are all kinds of health care specialists, but often what’s most needed is someone who will provide non-judgmental listening and compassion. We don’t claim to have the answers but believe advocacy and support will help individuals find theirs.
The goal of Stepping Stones is to help where we are needed.