Holidays and long term care planning go hand-in-hand.

After all, where you spend a holiday is relative to your situation. Where do you live? Where do your loved ones live? Does anyone have the room to put visitors up? How much vacation time do you each have? And what are your other obligations – such as new babies, work commitments, mobility considerations, etc.? Your holiday plans don’t just provide answers to these questions; a lot more can be gleaned.

It’s not an exaggeration to say that how you spend the holidays can provide insight into factors involved with your long term care planning.

What do I mean? Do you have a core group of people – or even an extended community – who can be counted on during prolonged time of difficulty? Or is yours a more tenuous, light hearted, band of revelers – there as long as the discussion is lighthearted and the holiday punch is flowing? Imagine instead of a festive holiday get-together that the topic was a long term care crisis and/or an acute caregiving need. Whether it’s providing temporary care – or arranging it – the best outcome usually demands boots on the ground making things happen.

Have the relationships of the people around the table been tested by adversity? As Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands in times of challenge and controversy.” Where do you live relative to the loved one who might need care tomorrow? Is there room for you to stay? Do you have the vacation time, and financial and job security, that allows you to attend to the need? And – let’s not forget – it might be you who needs the care!

When you look around the holiday table, it might be a smart move to not only enjoy the moment, but to think for a minute or two, “What are my plans if I need long term care? And what are everyone else’s? How do I plan to pay for my care (and how does everyone else)?” The answers can be very helpful as you make your own decisions about your long term care plan and long term care insurance.

One more thought. Take a look at the kids’ table, and realize that – in 30 or 40 years they will be grappling with the same questions that confront you today! Not to mention that the plans you make today will likely impact their lives 30 or 40 years from now.

Now, let’s all enjoy the holidays with our loved ones!

If you would like to talk about long term care planning, short term care, or home care options please feel free to contact Baygroup Insurance at http://www.baygroupinsurance.com/forms/contact-us or call us at 410-557-7907 for more information.