Combat Operational Stress Control:
The Many Realms of Trauma
Bob Bornt, LMFT
Elderly in home care can cause caregiver stress.Caregivers are expected to be strong and healthy, but what happens if the caregiver gets sick? As the Marketing Officer of a web based business that assists families to find care for their loved ones, I can always tell when a caregiver who is calling is at a breaking point. Their voices are very stressed amd they are almost in a panic. Often, as they describe their situation, I can hear the tears welling up inside of them. unfortunately, some people wait too long and the stress of being a caregiver has already taken its toll, but it does not have to be that way.
If you are the primary caregiver of a person with Alzheimer’s,dementia,or other serious illness, you need to be very careful not to let the situation overwhelm you. While this sounds easier said than done, there are steps you can take to prevent burnout. Here are a few points that can help.
1.Look for help.Allow others to help and don’t feel that you have to be the one to do everything. There are numerous ways to get help for your loved one depending on your needs,location and financial situation. Here are a few:
a.Contact the Office on Aging and ask about respite programs. Most counties have programs that will pay for a limited number of hours of home care services, free of charge. These types of programs are designed to give you a break and allow you to get out of the house.
b.If your loved one qualifies for Medicaid, there may be programs available which would pay for either home care or adult day care services.
c.If your loved one has a serious illness, consider using hospice. You don’t have to wait until the illness is at the ends stages to get help.
d.Ask relative or close friends to help you out.
2.Get some exercise.Exercse can help you reduce stress, keep your body strong, strengthen your immune system and simply make you feel good. Some of the best exercises are walking or biking. These are easy to do, get your heart rate into the aerobic zone, burn calories and give you a chance to clear your head. Some excellent mind/body exercises include yoga, tai chi and Qi gong. Make time to exercise and you will reap the rewards.
3.Eat well.Like exercise, eating a well balanced diet helps you feel good, helps avoid being sick and gives you the energy you need to be a caregiver.
4.Learn relaxation techniques.Deep breathing, meditation and some of the mind/body exercises mentioned above can be tremendously helpful. An easy breathing technique is to inhale through your nose for a count of four,filling your belly with air, not your chest.Hold your breath for a count of seven and then exhale through your mouth for a count of eight.This can really help calm the nerves when practiced regularly.
5.Get an adequate amount of sleep.The fastest way to get run down is never getting enough sleep. If you find you are caring for your loved one at night, try to hire a person for overnight if this is possible. If you have siblings, ask them to chip in financially if they are not able to share some of the actual hands-on care.
While it can be very difficult to do many of the suggestions listed above, you must understant that if you get run down and sick, the problem is greatly magnified. You must be firm in demanding time to care for yourself and most importantly, you must not feel guilty. You are doing a great and honorable thing by being a caregiver, but it must not completely take over your life.
If you don’t know where to turn, consider hiring a professional geriatric care manager. While they can be a bit costly, it is often money well spent, as their years of experience are focused on helping seniors and their families when in nee
Patty Adams is the Marketing Officer of CareGrade. CareGrade is a free, web based referral service for families searching for senior care services such as home care or assisted living. For more information, go to www.caregrade.com or call 856-273-9980
What is Stress?
Stress may be defined as the three-way relationship between demands on people, our feelings about those demands and our ability to cope with them. Stress is most likely to occur in situations where:
1. Demands are high.
2. The amount of control we have is low.
3. There is limited support or help available for us.
Who is Affected Most by Stress?
Virtually all people experience stressful events or situations that overwhelm our natural coping mechanisms. And although some people are biologically prone to stress, many outside factors influence susceptibility as well.
Studies indicate that some people are more vulnerable to the effects of stress than others. Older adults; women in general, especially working mothers and pregnant women; less-educated people; divorced or widowed people; people experiencing financial strains such as long-term unemployment; people who are the targets of discrimination; uninsured and underinsured people; and people who simply live in cities all seem to be particularly susceptible to health-related stress problems.
People who are less emotionally stable or have high anxiety levels tend to experience certain events as more stressful than healthy people do. And the lack of an established network of family and friends predisposes us to stress-related health problems such as heart disease and infections. Caregivers, children and medical professionals are also frequently found to be at higher risk for stress-related disorders.
Job-related stress is particularly likely to be chronic because it is such a large part of life. Stress reduces a worker’s effectiveness by impairing concentration, causing sleeplessness and increasing the risk of illness, back problems, accidents and lost time. At its worst extremes, stress that places a burden on our hearts and circulation can often be fatal. The Japanese have a word for sudden death due to overwork: karoushi.
Medical Affects of Chronic Stress
The stress response of the body is like an airplane readying for take-off. Virtually all systems, such as the heart and blood vessels, the immune system, the lungs, the digestive system, the sensory organs, and the brain are modified to meet the perceived danger.
A stress-filled life really seems to raise the odds of heart disease and stroke down the road. Researchers have found that after middle-age, those who report chronic stress face a somewhat higher risk of fatal or non-fatal heart disease or stroke over the years. It is now believed that constant stress takes its toll on our arteries, causing chronically high levels of stress hormones and pushing people to maintain unhealthy habits like smoking.
Stressed-out men are twice as likely as their peers to die of a stroke. There are weaker such findings among women, which is likely due to the fairly low number of heart disease and stroke cases among women, rather than a resistance to the health effects of chronic stress. Women seem slightly more susceptible to the effects of stress than men.
Simply put, too much stress puts you at dire risk for health problems. Whether it comes from one event or the buildup of many small events, stress causes major physical alterations that often lead to health problems. Here is a list of some of these changes:
? Our heart rates increase, to move blood to our muscles and brains.
? Our blood pressures go up.
? Our breathing rates increase.
? Our digestion slows down.
? Our perspiration increases.
? We feel a rush of strength at first, but over time stress makes us feel weak.
These reactions helped our ancestors survive threats by preparing for either “fight or flight.” Today, our bodies still react the same way, but the events that cause stress do not require this ancient mechanism.
Stress can also greatly raise our risk of:
? Ulcers and digestive disorders
? Headaches
? Migraine headaches
? Backaches
? Depression
? Suicide
? High blood pressure
? Stroke
? Heart attack
? Alcohol and drug dependencies
? Allergies and skin diseases
? Cancer
? Asthma
? Depressed immune system
? More colds and infections
We have to learn ways to relieve stress, because when it goes on for very long or happens too often, it obviously can cause many serious health problems.
Executive Director and President of Rainbow Writing, Inc., Karen Cole Peralta writes. RWI at www.bookauthorswriters.com and www.rainbowriting.com is a world renowned inexpensive professional freelance book authors, ghost writers, copy editors, proof readers, coauthors, manuscript rewriters, graphics and CAD, publishing helpers, and website developers international service corporation. And Four Seasons CDROM Store sells inexpensive cds: fun arcade games, business and e-book software and computer learning tutorials, all state of the art, at www.cdrommarket.com .
Would you be surprised to know that the biggest threat to your parent remaining at home is how well you manage your caregiver stress and mental health? You know it’s true that without the support that you provide each day that your parent could not continue to live at home. If you as your parent’s primary care provider can no long provide all the care you do right now, what would your parents’ options be?
Caring for a parent adds complexity to your life. You add another layer of tasks to your already busy life. The emotional impact of watching your parent change and struggle is very stressful. At times caregiving opens up old, negative family issues that you’ve been able to avoid. The combination of caregiver stress and mental health issues may result in depression. While caregiver stress does not always lead to depression you should know the symptoms and be vigilant.
Some typical symptoms of depression If you experience some of these symptoms for more than two weeks, you should discuss them with your doctor as they can be symptoms of depression.
the elderly fraternity, be it your own family or any stranger, can be extremely pleasing and rewarding. There is a lot of satisfaction involved in this. But this, for some, could also be very upsetting and frustrating. You will hardly know this if you have never been involved in this sort of an issue earlier in your life. It can make you very pessimistic and put you on the downfall track of burnout. It will take a lot from you to recoup yourself and get your acts together. It is no temporary action as you need to be at it full time, even if you are elsewhere. Thus it becomes very important to know to recognize the frustration and stress involved and how to cope with it.
Caregivers also experience a similar case off trauma and stress over a period of time just like a person taking care of an elderly relative. The upsetting part would be the elderly person, after sometime, turn at you and not recognize you for all the work you had done. It is very disturbing for sure even though this could be an extreme example taken into consideration. There are various other sources of stress when it comes to taking care of elders. Non-compliance with requests, threatening, violence or even intolerable behavior, confusion and illness are certain other things which cause the problem. You might have to put in extra effort sometimes on full time basis and this could be tiring. Even if you are not working on full time basis with a particular elder it is extremely hard. Your mind will tend to stagnate on this issue and its tough switching your mind. All your focus might be directed to this and thereby losing control over things.
Recognizing the symptoms before it strikes you is very important. During stress, you will figure out that it is difficult to eat and sleep properly. Lack of sleep and a depressing mood can let you down. You will burst into tears for no good reason and this could be a problem sometimes. The feeling of emptiness has an adverse effect as you will know that you have nothing left and you don?t have a choice but to continue. Lethargy will result and frustration starts to creep on you. You might be even directing your irritation to the person you taking care of at that time. You will have very less time to devote for your family and friends as all your time will be taken up here. Hence, your life will totally revolve around the person you are taking care of and your mood swings like a pendulum. Whether you can help it or not, your temperament will be under the scanner. You will have to resort to something else if time arises.
You must show more concern for yourself and your health when such symptoms arises. It is tough to continue your good job if you can be mentally fit. So you should be ready to solve the problem on your own and cope up with it according to your needs of relaxation. A few of them take a break for a while by going on a holiday or anything that sets their mind off it. You can arrange for another person during that time of your relaxation. You will not worry constantly while doing this and this can help you immensely with your heath. A few people go to a counselor to discuss their problems and open out to them. Sometimes people get help from home and this can be all the more helpful.
There is no way to avoid stress that caregivers encounter during their tenure. But you should give importance and time for yourself. Caregivers are no different and they deserve break as well. Taking care of you is of utmost priority. Devote equal time and space for yourself before things get bigger on you. Detecting stress and abstaining from stress can do wonders to you.
Abhishek successfully runs an Old Age Home and he has got some great Eldercare Secrets up his sleeves! Download his FREE 80 Pages Ebook, “How To Take Great Care Of Elders” from his website http://www.Senior-Guides.com/560/index.htm . Only limited Free Copies available.
Copyright (c) 2008 Jennifer Selby Long
Is your career wearing you out? Are you too tired to enjoy your family and friends on the weekends, or what little part of the weekend you have? Well, I have a secret to share about the blind spot that just might have got you there. It certainly was mine. The secret is this: Your job is only part of your workload. You’re not tired because of your career. You’re tired because of everything else.
This is particularly true for women. Many of us hold ourselves up to mid-20th century ideals while working 21st century careers.
Two years ago, I was just exhausted. Between my business, the house, eldercare issues, and other responsibilities, there just wasn’t any time to relax. Something had to go, but what?
I was sick and tired of hearing from the “experts” that the solution to my exhaustion was to just stop doing most of what I was doing. I wasn’t doing anything that wasn’t important. I had eliminated all that I could, including many things I enjoy, and there was still no time for a life. That’s when I realized that I had to start hiring people to do things for me.
I think you should consider doing the same. It’s your life you’re talking about. You are in your peak years, both mentally and physically. If you’re spending your time doing something you can pay someone $15, $20, or $40 an hour to do, you’re not spending that time with your kids, partner, family, or friends, or even a good book. To me this is a waste of all your education and hard work on the job if all it gets you is no time for the rest of your life. Will you really look back on your deathbed and feel satisfied that you personally pulled all of the weeds in your yard?
It wasn’t easy. Like most entrepreneurs, I love control. I liked to pretend that I didn’t, but the truth was that I did. All of my excuses, like “I can’t afford it” really just came down to one thing: I was afraid to give up control.
For some tasks, I even had an added layer of rotten thinking: believing that if I didn’t personally handle household responsibilities like menu planning and laundry, I must be a pretty lame wife. What was I thinking? Old messages still float around our heads, and once we surface them, we have to whack them on the head until they are dead. So I did.
My first baby step was the vet who makes house calls. Why traumatize Bill with a car ride to the vet’s when there’s a vet who will come to him? Not to mention that it saved me the time getting out his carrier, driving him to the vet, waiting, and driving him home.
Then came the bookkeeper. What a fool I was to wait so long. I meet with her every other week to hand off bills and receipts. She does the rest and keeps me informed. She handles bill paying and expense and income tracking and stays on top of all the accounts for my business, for my mother-in-law, and for us.
We actually have a household P&L now. I think it’s a ton of fun. Others think it’s just sick. Either way, I have more time, and I have better focus at work, since, “Oh, crap, I wonder if I transferred enough into the personal checking account to cover that Key Bank automatic payment” never floats across my brain while I’m at work. I know that Laurie is all over it. It was heavenly to come home from almost three weeks away and have NO bills stacked up waiting for me. None.
It was the bookkeeper who suggested the gardener. She was right. Kirk hates mowing, anyway, and I was so bored pulling weeds. Now when I work in the garden, it’s the part I enjoy, like tending to my herbs and vegetables. It’s relaxing. It sort of reminds of…oh, what is it…it’s like having a life!
Finally, I took the biggest step of all: I hired a personal assistant. She handles the 1,000,000 little things like laundry, grocery shopping, making appointments with the plumber, meeting him at the house, and so on and so on. She saves me a full 40 hours a month. I was pretty shocked to realize that 10 hours out of every week had gone to managing the household, some of them during the workweek.
I get really worked up when I hear a reasonably successful professional say, “Oh, I can’t afford a luxury like that. I don’t make enough.” I couldn’t either, you could say. While it’s true that I make more money now because these wonderful people have freed up time for me to be more focused and productive, for the first few months, I carried the expenses without a return (on my business line of credit, in case you’re interested – real debt, real skin in the game, no fooling around). I was confident that the return would come, and would far exceed the investment. It has.
Even for employed professionals, the return will come if you (and your partner, if you have one) at least farm out your most hated tasks.
For the self-employed, it’s absolutely essential to manage your business from where you want it to be, not from where it is now. Investment in resources that make you successful, whether on the personal or business side, is essential to having a profitable and sustainable business.
Jennifer Selby Long, Founder and Principal of Selby Group, provides executive coaching and organizational development services. Jennifer’s knack is helping clients navigate the leadership and organizational challenges triggered by change and growth. She knows firsthand that great plans often fail because companies don’t take into account the human factors that come into play when implementing them. Visit Jennifer at: www.selbygroup.com
Most Americans will be informal caregivers at some point during their lives. Each year more than 44 million Americans (21% of the adult population) provide unpaid care to an elderly or disabled person who are 18 years or older. This is significant! It represents 80 percent of all long-term care in the United States.
Most caregivers are middle-aged or older women who have jobs outside of caring for an elderly person. Most of these women have changed hours or working conditions in order to care for their elderly family member.
Sound stressful? It is.
Take our caregiver stress questionnaire to see if you are under too much stress, and see if our suggestions can help you!
Survey Questions:
Do you feel frustrated and angry while you take care of someone? Do you feel guilty about the care you can provide because you have so many other things to do? Do you feel that care giving has hurt your social life? Are you exhausted when you go to bed at night? Do you feel overwhelmed? Have you recently gained or lost a lot of weight? Have you lost interest in activities you used to enjoy? Are you easily irritated or angered? Are you constantly worried? Are you often sad? Do you experience frequent headaches, bodily pain, or other physical problems? Do you abuse of alcohol or drugs, including prescription drugs? Scores: 0-3 low stress level 4-7 medium stress level 8-12 high stress level Ways to Reduce Caregiver Stress
Focus on the rewards of care giving, and giving back to a loved one. Being a caregiver strengthens your relationship with the person receiving care and makes you feel needed, boosting your self-confidence.
Make sure you are at your best: Get your prescriptions filled Keep your own doctor and dentist appointments Eat healthy meals Get enough sleep Exercise vigorously at least 45 minutes each day Do something just for yourself at least once a week. Talk to a counselor, psychologist, or other mental health professional right away if your stress leads you to physically or emotionally harm the person you are caring for.
Find out how to deal with your loved one?s disease. This will help you take a positive approach to the daily questions and issues you will be presented with. You may be able to find a hospital or local agency on aging that offers classes on caring for people with that disease. Do research with doctors, nurses, on websites, and at the library. The more information you have, the easier it will be to prepare for issues that arise.
If you do find that you are under stress from caring for your loved one, try these stress reducing tips: Get help from community care giving service providers for: transportation meal delivery home health care services non-medical home care services home modification for easier daily tasks legal and financial counseling Accept help from friends and family ? this includes financial help. Say “no” to volunteer tasks, such as hosting holiday meals. Do the best you can and don?t feel guilty about not being perfect. Prioritize your tasks and establish a daily routine. Stay in touch with family and friends. Join a support group for caregivers facing the same condition or disease. Try to keep your sense of humor. Check with the human resource office at your job. Employees covered under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act may be able to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave per year to care for relatives.
Perhaps you will feel better about your loved one?s safety if you purchase an emergency or surveillance device. These devices include emergency response systems (not for people with dementia), intercom systems, web cams and mobility monitors. These devices can help with your peace of mind.
When you need a break (and you will), give a professional home care service a call. They will come to your loved one?s home and perform any number of household chores, personal grooming chores, and provide companionship for your loved one for a very affordable fee.
Grace Enderlein is a freelance writer and editor. ?Senior”>http://www.visitingangels.com?”>Senior Care: Beating Caregiver Stress? outlines the importance of avoiding stress when being responsible for another?s care. Visitingangels.com offers senior care, elderly home care, senior home care and elder”>http://www.visitingangels.com?”>elder care services
If so, you are part of one fourth of American families who are caring for an older family member, an adult child with disabilities, or a friend. According to the AARP, you are one of more than 22.4 million Americans who are now caregivers to older adults, a number that has tripled in the last 10 years alone. The average amount of time these Americans spend on caregiving is about 20 hours per week with many of these hours spent in physically demanding work. With the life spans raising over the past century from 49 -77, some children are actually caring for invalid parents 20 years, longer than the parents spent raising them.
I would like to ask you a question? How is your own personal health? One third of caregivers describe their personal health as fair to poor, and many worry that they won’t outlive the person for whom they are caring. As you and other caregivers struggle to balance caregiving with other responsibilities, including full-time jobs and caring for children, constant stress can lead to “burnout” and health problems. You may feel guilty, frustrated, and angry from time to time, suffer from depression, and become ill easily yourself. Caring for even the most beloved parents can seem like a burden when your own health collapses from endless hours of caring for their needs.
For example, caring for a parent with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) or other kinds of dementia at home can be overwhelming. The caregiver must cope with declining abilities and difficult behaviors that affect even basic activities of daily living and often become hard to manage for both the care receiver and the caregiver. As the disease worsens, the care receiver usually needs 24-hour care.
In addition to the constant care required, caregivers of parents with this type of problem also suffer from the emotional pain of losing communication with parents who no longer recognize them. To sustain this, and other types of prolonged stress and care, you need to call upon other family members, friends, and neighbors for help. If other caregivers aren’t available to fill in, respite care services may be available in the community to help you. Respite care can be a good way for you to get a break (respite) from constant caregiving.
Some caregivers are still raising their own children and feel torn between the needs of their children and the needs of their parents. In fact, in this day of small families, many Americans may have more parents than children. They also feel torn between their own needs for work, vacations, privacy, hobbies, or friends and feelings of guilt, resentment, or even depression or martyrdom. Both aging parents and caregiver children lose independence and privacy. Even the most congenial relationships can suffer from these loses.
Here are some recommendations to help you take care of your own health:
• Eat a healthy diet and drink plenty of water. Avoid sugars, fats, and salt. Include plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. Follow the guidelines of the government’s food pyramid for proper amounts and food types to include in your daily menu. Take a good multivitamin for extra protection.
• Get plenty of rest and sleep, even if you have to enlist help to care for your parents while you rest. Spend some time unwinding and relaxing during the day as well.
• Get regular, healthy exercise at least three days a week. Regular exercise not only reduces stress and improves health, but also produces endorphins, which add to a good feeling mood.
• Keep your own health care up to date, including yearly checkups. If you experience negative feelings, get counseling from doctor or therapist, or share your feelings with good friends.
• Speaking of friends, keep your social life active in order to stay connected with your community and to give an outlet for stress. Seek comfort and support in your faith-based group as well.
• Remember you are not alone. Seek support groups for caregivers, especially if you are caring for a loved one with a disease. Look online for government or state supported groups and help departments. Find community support groups.
• Make arrangements for your own vacations and retreats, for regrouping and refreshing yourself, your spouse, and your own children. Remember, you are not the only one affected by your live-in parent situation. Your entire family experiences changes and stresses along with you. Arrange for someone to stay with your parent and spend some time as a family away from home and those extra responsibilities.
• Remind yourself of the care that your parent lavished on you as a child and how you felt about that parent then. Often, we get so busy that we forget how much we really love our parents, especially in the throes of caring for them. Try to revisit happier days with them and remind both them and yourself of those times. Bring out family pictures and relive happy days together.
If you are a caregiver, remember to care for your own health as well as that of your loved one. Seek comfort, help, time to refresh yourself, and regular exercise to ensure that you will remain able to give that care and still maintain your personal wellness.
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This problem is facing as many as 30% of all seniors who are homeowners, they are feeling the pinch of the times. With the cost of health care, medicines and in some areas rising taxes along with interest rate adjustments! How did we get here in the first place?
Well in looking at the situation this is what was found through extensive research on mortgages over the last five years. Seniors who had the retirement plans laid out with investments in the Stock market were hedging their bets that they would make enough money to pay off the mortgages or be able to sell and take the profits. In years gone bye when home values were soaring and money was easily available they were able to refinance their homes and take capital out for investments. With the stock market up at 14,000 and values of home seeing double digit appreciation many thought that this was the best time in their life for accumulation of wealth. The fact is that they were playing Russian roulette; just like the bankers on Wall Street. It all sounded good on paper; but the fact is nothing last forever and what goes up always comes down he has been this way for ever.
In speaking with as many as 100 seniors on a weekly basis, I hear all too often that I have lost almost all of my life savings and my pension has all but disappeared, and you can hear the stress in their voice. They are worried about what is going to happen to them and their homes. This problem is become epidemic in proportion around this country, and more and more seniors are looking at the Reverse Mortgage as a solution to some of the problem. Now that is not to say that the program is a save all solution for every senior around the country, because it truly is not the cure. However for many of them who are either loosing money in their investments, or having a hard time making debt payments it is a solution that can relieve some of the stress. Let?s take a look at a typical situation!
Senior age 65 with a mortgage
This senior purchased the home over 20 years ago, when they were earning a living had a good job and they were contributing to a 401 k.
They purchased the home for lets say $50,000.00, they paid on it for 20 years and they only had 10 years left to pay on it.
Now here we are it is 2002 and values have started to rise and the Stock Market is rocking and people are buying and selling Real Estate and showing huge profits. Now that home that they paid $50,000 for is now worth $400,000.00. They are seeing that if they take a 50% loan to value they can use the money to invest and still have 50% as a security blanket on their home. So they borrow the 200k at let?s say they were able to cash in on an interest rate of 5% the payment on the home, not including taxes and insurance would be $ 1.073.00 per month with a 30 year term. Now they have in cash after everything they have net $180k for investments. So we will assume that they listen to their investment person and they tell them they can expect a 7% return on investment so they pull the plug and they are seeing a net return after they pay the mortgage of 2%. They also held out $50,000 for a reserve so they invested $130k. Now they see and opportunity to buy Real Estate so they switch some of the monies from stocks to real estate. They meet someone who told them that they could use a portion of the money as a down payment on a new development and sell it before they home is completed. Now they have stocks, and real estate as their investment, the time comes and the home is complete they have a buyer all lined up to close and it goes great the person is able to get a mortgage and they make a whopping 30% return on their investment. Boy that was easy! So they figure if they can do it once and get that kind of return, just think if I did it again but with two properties.
So they take the profits from the sale and some of the $50k they have sitting for a rainy day and invest that into another couple of units and they are planning on flipping them also while they are being built. Now it is 2006, al of a sudden the buyers are having trouble getting a mortgage, because the rules of the game have changed, money is getting harder to get. The property is now ready and the builder wants for close on the property or you they are going to keep you deposit, so you apply for a mortgage on the property as a second home.
At this time the second home is being treated like a first home for mortgage purposes so you put down the 10% and close on the property. Now you have a second mortgage along with your first, and thought is you will rent the house to pay the mortgage. Now here is where the real problem begins, the stock market starts to tumble a little, your broker tells you not to panic its just an adjustment, your real estate person is telling you it is just a slow time in the market, wait until spring the market always open up then!
Now here we are it is 2007 and you are hearing on the news that this company is in trouble and that bank is going under and real estate values are starting to fall. What are you going to do you have a $200k mortgage on your primary home, you are now 64 years of age and retired. Sound familiar, I have spent the better part of 20 years not only doing this but working with investors on the very same scenarios over and over again. As a real estate person in a vacation home market, and a very good market nationally, I seen it too many times where customers where trying to cash in on profits. Now there are no profits to be had and they are in fear of not only loosing the investment home, but their primary home.
In many cases they are able to get the property rented but in some cases it is less then the mortgage payment, the stock portfolio is in the negative arena, because they listen to the broker who said stay the course! So what are you going to do now! Here is the best advice you can ever get, Take the loss on the Stock Market and get out with what ever you can and put the money into something that will protect the principle even if you are not getting interest. As to the second home; if it is renting even if it is a little loss monthly ride it out or try to sell it at a loss, call your mortgage company and see if they will work with you to reduce the sale price. Now to your primary home where it is the most important issue is to keep the roof over your head. The home that you borrowed the $200k and you thought you had another 200k in equity is now only worth maybe $300k if you are lucky.
So now you have a home worth $300,000 and a mortgage that is maybe reduced the balance to $195,000 over the last 6 years. You are now 65 years of age and all of the stress is causing you all kinds of additional problems. So look at this!
Home Value $300,000.
Mortgage Balance $195,000
Age 65
Payment of $1,073.00 plus taxes and Insurance.
Income of $1,500 per month assuming a couple on SS
Does this Sound Familiar or do you know someone who has this situation.
Here is a solution
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