1071: Senior Living Solutions: Planning for Comfortable Aging in Place with President of Care Right Inc. Annalee Kruger

[00:00:00] Robert Plank: Hey, welcome back to the podcast. Annalie Kruger is here from carewriteinc. com, and she is all about elder planning. She's an elder planning specialist, and she has her book, The Invisible Patient, which Katharine O'Connor narrated. That's how we found out about her, and what impressed me about that book was that Annalie has this concept called the grab and go binder. [00:00:24] Robert Plank: which contains your critical plans, your documents, your insurance policies, information, and contacts. And there's just so much to know and figure out about senior living and caregiving, and we all will get old eventually, and we might have an older person in our family who needs helping and caring, and it's a lot of overwhelming information. [00:00:45] Robert Plank: But that's why it's good to tune into podcasts or go to Annaleigh's website and get some of this information so that way you don't have to get hit with it all at once. We're gonna find out what we need to know. So, Annaleigh, glad to be speaking with you. [00:00:59] Annalee Kruger: Very good. Thanks for having me. I appreciate it. [00:01:02] Robert Plank: And I appreciate you too. I feel like I know you, but I don't know you, right? We've known you for all these years and I see you almost every day on Facebook and you see my, my posts and a lot of relationships these days are like that, right? When you listen to that radio DJ for all sorts of years and you sort of know them, but you don't, and you'd miss them if they weren't there. [00:01:20] Robert Plank: So it's kind of this weird middle ground, but in your own words, what are you all about? What is your elevator pitch and what problem are we solving today? [00:01:28] Annalee Kruger: Yeah, we are solving caregiver burnout for families across the globe. So 58 percent of adult children find themselves thrust into the role of family caregiving without ever having any kind of family meeting about the what, when's of aging. [00:01:42] Annalee Kruger: So my mission is to reach families all across the world, let you know that you are not alone in your caregiving journey. It's normal to feel angry, overwhelmed, resentful, um, because you, it, it. Caregiving to an elderly loved one or elderly loved ones can become a full time job. And when you're trying to manage your own career, your own business, your own family, plus the needs of elderly loved ones, it gets really overwhelming pretty quickly. [00:02:10] Annalee Kruger: So my mission is to reach family caregivers and make sure that every family that sees the value in putting an aging plan in place has an aging plan. [00:02:21] Robert Plank: I love it. I love that. And I like how you said that we don't have to go it alone, that there's all of these, these stressors, and we've all dealt, like, there's many people who have come before you, and of course, every situation is unique, but there are people that have blazed the trail already, there are resources, there are things that can just help you deal with the strain, sometimes gradual, sometimes sudden. [00:02:45] Robert Plank: And so this, the aging plan that you mentioned, what is that all about? [00:02:49] Annalee Kruger: Yeah, so we, we, and we're a team of consultants. I've built my career intentionally, virtually in 2011. Um, and we facilitate family meetings. Most families are not talking about the what, when's of aging. And we learn what's, you know, we have a whole pro, I created a whole process that I take our clients through on what's working well, what's working less well. [00:03:13] Annalee Kruger: What are the goals? What are the resources? Everybody wants to age in place at home, but it's not always feasible or affordable or a safe option for seniors. And that's also why nursing homes, memory care communities, and assisted livings are full with people who also wanted to age in place at home. So we, we help families understand dementia progression. [00:03:36] Annalee Kruger: We help families understand that it's normal to be a really angry family caregiver, that there's no shame in, in feeling that way because caregiving, I call it the caregiver snowball. It starts out feeling manageable, but then in time when you're like having to do hands on care or taking time off work or stepping away from your business or spending 30 hours a week coordinating care and parents to doctor's appointments, it's, it. [00:04:03] Annalee Kruger: It's normal to feel really angry. It's normal to feel isolated. It's normal to feel like you're in this journey alone. But it's, it's when you feel that way that, you know, now that you are overwhelmed, you're burned out and what you're doing is not sustainable for your own health, your emotional health, your physical health, your financial health, and certainly your relationship with your, with your own family as well. [00:04:26] Annalee Kruger: So we help families understand what their care options are, what their current care needs are, how much that's going to cost. We also help them understand through our care matrix project that we do on behalf of our clients, help them understand what care community options are available for if or when staying at home is no longer safe or affordable or viable. [00:04:50] Annalee Kruger: Um, that way we train our clients and we educate our clients on what they need. What to look for, what to ask about during the care community tours, how to interview home care companies, how to be a bold advocate for their loved one in case they decide not to utilize our virtual patient advocacy services. [00:05:10] Annalee Kruger: So it's really helping them outline. an actual aging plan so that, okay, when mom has a hospital stay, this is what we're going to do. We already know that we need to, you know, we already know what we need to do. We already know where mom and dad could potentially live because they've done the tours, they've put mom and dad on the waiting list, or mom and dad have done the tours and put themselves on the waiting list of three to five different care communities, um, so that if or when they need to move into one, they have a higher probability. [00:05:41] Annalee Kruger: Of getting into a care community that they've already toured and have some relationship with and understanding of what that care community can do for them. You mentioned the Grab and Go Binder. Um, that's a tool that I created in 2011 when I started my company, when I started Care Rights Incorporated. [00:05:58] Annalee Kruger: Um, because prior to that, prior to me starting my company, I was a social worker and executive director in CCRCs, Continuing Care Retirement Communities. For over 20 years and every single, every, literally every single day, I had families in my office. They were blindsided because mom's in the hospital. [00:06:20] Annalee Kruger: The hospital says, here's a list of facilities. Go find one by noon tomorrow because we're discharging. And that's exactly how that goes. And so the families, you know, the adult kids would be coming in to take a tour. They had no idea what questions to ask, what to look for. Just even literally stepping into the care community, they were just taken aback because they're like, Oh my gosh, there's really sick people here. [00:06:44] Annalee Kruger: You know, it's a nursing home or it's a rehab center or it's a memory care facility. And just stepping into that environment can be pretty, um, scary and pretty overwhelming. And now you have to make big care decisions on top of that. The tours would take about an hour, but I was spending two and three hours at a time with each family because they had so many questions they didn't understand. [00:07:10] Annalee Kruger: You know, well, how can dad need care? You know, he was a sergeant in the army and he, you know, he's got all this leadership skills and he's a really smart man. How come he can't figure out his medications or why is he acting the way he does? And these families just. Don't understand dementia. They don't understand the disease progression, how to manage those behaviors. [00:07:31] Annalee Kruger: They don't understand the differences in care levels. They'll say assisted living and nursing home as if it's the same level of care and the same type of care. So my goal is really to get out there and. You know, really help educate families so they can make informed decisions instead of being willy nilly and assuming that they're going to have the best possible outcomes for themselves, their families, and their, and their, their family's retirement funds. [00:08:00] Robert Plank: Okay, so what I'm getting from this is that we need to be educated and that we basically have two choices in front of us, right? The bad choice is to kind of not be proactive and ignore the problems in front of us and make all sorts of assumptions and say, well, I'll do what's easiest for now and just get by and try to live at home and not do the research, not look into my alternatives and not communicate, which might get you by today, tomorrow, next month, but then eventually things might fall off a cliff and then life will happen to you instead of you happening to life and that we need to be looking into these things and planning ahead of time and get the help that is out there but if this is suddenly thrust on us and we have to it's like studying for a test five minutes before the test is given like it seems like the most stressful thing there is and so when when you jump in and you help and these families like have all these these questions is there like a Like a top series of questions, or if someone says, you know, I'm overwhelmed. [00:09:00] Robert Plank: I don't even know what I need to know. Like, I mean, what are the, the commonalities, the trends that you see as far as just what the, the problems and the questions are? [00:09:09] Annalee Kruger: Oh, same thing. Literally every day. The same thing every day. Families never call me because things are going well. No one ever calls me because they heard me on a podcast or one of my speaking engagements, or they read my book and was like, Hey, you just sound pretty cool. [00:09:23] Annalee Kruger: I want to just like sit and chat with you for 30 minutes. No, it's, it's, they've waited until they're in crisis mode or until they realize, Hey, you know, dad's dementia has progressed to the point that he's not safe at home or, um, you know, the caregiver is so burned out that the primary caregiver, who's the mom may be taking care of dad, maybe she dies. [00:09:44] Annalee Kruger: to the family's mind unexpectedly, but it's really because she's, uh, she was a burned out caregiver and the family just didn't understand how, how much of a physical and emotional toll that is on someone to be a caregiver. So the commonalities are the same. Denial, My parents, like I literally before this, I was on a, I was on a call with a family and they're like, well, mom and dad are doing fine for now. [00:10:10] Annalee Kruger: So I think we're okay. We'll just let you know when, when things change. If you want to have the best possible outcomes for your family relationships, your parents finances, and the best quality of care for your family, your parents, you need to put a plan in place now. So the commonalities are denial, You know, we don't get, nobody gets healthier as we age. [00:10:33] Annalee Kruger: As we age, we become more dependent. We lose mobility. We don't become more cognizant, you know, so we have to just be realistic that, you know, as we age, we're, we need to put a plan in place. Otherwise they will, our loved ones will get whatever care options are available to them. And I promise you when you wait, when you choose to wait until you're in crisis mode, you will. [00:10:56] Annalee Kruger: You will get crisis care, the quality of crisis care, right? You won't have the best possible options because you chose to wait. So, denial, not understanding dementia is a huge one. I have yet to work with a family in over 35 years of working with families. I have yet to work with a family who understands the disease progression and how to manage the behavior and personality and mood changes associated with dementia. [00:11:25] Annalee Kruger: So I am on a mission to try to educate families who want to be educated and help them understand this disease process so that they can still have meaningful visits with their loved one. And instead of, you [00:11:38] know, [00:11:39] Annalee Kruger: Being in angst, the last few years of their parents lives, they can actually have a good quality, good quality memories towards the end of life versus angry and resentful and not understanding why mom is acting the way she is when she has dementia. [00:11:54] Annalee Kruger: So it's really about quality of life for not only mom and dad, but also the adult kids as well. [00:12:01] Robert Plank: Oh, you asked [00:12:03] Annalee Kruger: for another commonality, um, people not having their grab and go binder put together, you know, they're like, Oh, we, I think dad has a power of attorney. Well, does he or does he not? Do you have a power of attorney? [00:12:15] Annalee Kruger: Because you don't have to be 80 years old to have to have your estate documents. Everyone over the age of 18 should have their power of attorney documents, their living will, their healthcare proxies, um, their accounts, their passwords, whatever insurance they have. You know, not just last year, I'm in Florida and the Florida Gulf Coast University, there was a college kid who died in a boating accident. [00:12:39] Annalee Kruger: He was missing for two or three days. He fell out of a boat. And he died, you know, and so it doesn't matter how old you are. You have to have these documents in place. Um, You know, people get hurt in car accidents or killed in car accidents all of the time. And that wasn't planned either. All the people who had major strokes last Thursday didn't wake up thinking, Oh, I think I'm going to have a major stroke today. [00:13:04] Annalee Kruger: And then the family is like, Oh my gosh, what are we, what are we going to do here? Is this mom's new normal or where is she supposed to live? And, and families also don't understand the cost of care. You know, Moms and dads will say, well, I want to age in place at home, but they're not realizing that that's 30 to 40 or 50, 000 a month in home care to be able to do that. [00:13:26] Annalee Kruger: So how long can, how feasible really is that for you to age in place at home? And that's why we do aging planning. So families understand all of these. It's like a Rubik's cube, aging, caregiving, dementia, healthcare, all of that is like a big Rubik's cube. And we, we solve it with our families. [00:13:44] Robert Plank: And so speaking of the grab and go binder, uh, like I said, my wife narrated your book and like a couple of years ago, I would just have it playing in the background. [00:13:52] Robert Plank: She was off on a trip, so we had a super young, uh, son and I would just play your audio book narrated by her to kind of make him feel better. And I think I heard a story where like you got hit by a bus and you had your grab and go binder on you and it sort of saved the day. Can you tell us about that? [00:14:11] Annalee Kruger: Yeah. So I, I practice what I preach. Um, so like I said, when I, when I was still an employee working in continuing care communities, and these adult kids had no idea what their parents had in order, that's what birthed the grab and go binder in the first place when I started my own company. And so when I, when I, um, talk about the grab and go binder, it's this whole done for you process that I've put into place. [00:14:35] Annalee Kruger: I. And I have my grab and go binder done. I'm a multi business owner. So there's like a business succession plan in there. So like who I use for, you know, payroll, who my corporate attorney is. All of that stuff is in like the grab and go binder, plus a ton of other information as well that families should have in one place and you don't bring your grab and go binder with you. [00:14:54] Annalee Kruger: Cause your accounts, your passwords, your 401k, all of that information. You don't just like tag that in your purse with you. But what I carry with me. Is my healthcare power of attorney, my living will, and my DNR, my do not resuscitate. And this is what happened to me and I'm just glad that I practice what I preach. [00:15:13] Annalee Kruger: I had just returned from Shenzhen in Beijing, China. I was speaking at an international healthcare conference. I was their keynote speaker about aging and dementia. And I had just returned to Sheboygan, Wisconsin. I built my businesses in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin area. And so I was in Sheboygan on business and I encountered this gentleman walking up the street. [00:15:35] Annalee Kruger: He looked like he was kind of struggling. He was breathing kind of hard. So I'm like, how are you? And I just wanted to make sure he got across the street to where he was going. We're walking across the street. He's telling me about his health issues. And all of a sudden, like we're in the, we're in the crosswalk and all of a sudden he yells, watch out. [00:15:55] Annalee Kruger: And the next thing I know I'm getting up off of the street. Thankfully, I had a backpack as a purse and I carry way too much crap with me, but it saved my life. Because what happened was, uh, the school bus driver was distracted by the kids on the bus. And she blew through a four corner stop. So instead of looking through the windshield at the intersection, she was looking up in that mirror inside the bus. [00:16:21] Annalee Kruger: So she didn't apply the brakes until she saw my face break the headlight of the school bus. Because again, I was a pedestrian. Thankfully, I'm 5'10 so I'm a tall gal. Um, and an Iowa farm kid, so I got like good bones, good calcium. But my point in that whole thing is I didn't wake up on May 3rd of 2012 that day thinking, Oh, I think I'm going to get hit by a school bus and be, you know, pretty knocked, knocked around pretty badly. [00:16:49] Annalee Kruger: I had major facial reconstruction surgery. I had broken ribs. I had internal injuries, you know, but I carry my grit. I carry my living will, my power of attorney because thankfully I did not lose consciousness. I got up off the street and I'm like, what the heck happened? Um, and then it occurred to me that I was like, Oh my gosh, I think I just got hit by a school bus. [00:17:10] Annalee Kruger: And I sure as heck did. Cause then all of these witnesses came running out of the restaurants and cafes and stuff. And they're like, Oh my gosh, you just got hit by a school bus and you flew 15 feet and all this kind of stuff. And because I do crisis management and have spent Thousands of hours in ICU units and hospitals, I am very clear what quality of life means to me. [00:17:32] Annalee Kruger: So I carry my living will, my power of attorney and my DNR with me, just in case, um, just in case I ever lose capacity, um, then at least the hospital staff and my family is very aware of what my wishes are because we talk about it and we talk about it regularly. regularly. And that's what I would like the listeners to think about too, is having these conversations often and get comfortable with it and have the confidence to talk about it. [00:18:00] Annalee Kruger: Because if it's not communicated and documented, then your wishes are not going to be fulfilled. Like, I don't want a feeding tube. I don't want trachs. I don't want anything. And if that wasn't communicated and documented, my family wouldn't know what, what to do. So, if you want to have a say in your care and what happens to you, you have to think about it. [00:18:22] Annalee Kruger: You have to get clarity on what quality of life means. You have to document it and have, you know, the attorney write up these documents is most ideal. But then you have to communicate it and make sure that your decision makers actually have a copy of what they're saying. What their wishes are, what your wishes are, so that if they should ever have to step into that role, they're not like, oh my gosh, what does Anna Lee really want? [00:18:45] Annalee Kruger: Well, my family knows exactly what I want because we talk about it regularly, probably too often, . [00:18:51] Robert Plank: But that's what you do for a living. So of course that's, that's what's broken about. But this is all good information and that's, that's new information for me. to talk about it recurrently, that it's not just a one off event. [00:19:02] Robert Plank: Because, like, my mother was a social worker and did the elder care too, and she's seen all sorts of things, such as you have. And, uh, a few years ago, she showed me some kind of a binder. It wasn't a grab and go binder, but it was a binder of some kind. And she was kind of turning the page. And I was, honestly, I was only sort of half interested, because I was like, hey, I'm not, I'm not greedy. [00:19:21] Robert Plank: Sure. You're leaving me this or here's your plans. I'm like, good. It's all written down. But then as you're saying this, I'm thinking, I'm not sure. I know where that binder is located. And I'm sure, I think some attorney has some copy of it, but I'm just like, It's, it's a little scary, right? To think about, I'm not sure where that is. [00:19:39] Robert Plank: And I also, I don't have one for myself because there's that, that what you said is that the young people think, Oh, I won't need that for decades. And you're saying we all need it right now. So how do we tap into your energy and excitement about this? Because it feels like a prevention instead of a cure situation, right? [00:19:57] Robert Plank: Like flossing your teeth. It's not exciting going to the doctor to get your blood pressure checked. It's not exciting. And we, we know it's so important and it's so important for our loved ones to not end up in this situation. But in the present moment, it says it's hard to find the time with all the chaos in life. [00:20:14] Robert Plank: And it's hard to just like, find that focus. So how do we get from where the rest of us are to where you are, where it is a habit, it is something we speak about. It is a concern. How do we just zero in on that? [00:20:27] Annalee Kruger: Yeah, well, and it's hard for families to do that on their own, and that's why they don't, and that's why they call us in crisis mode. [00:20:34] Annalee Kruger: Right? So one, one takeaway is, you know, because Google will only get you so far. So I really encourage, I really encourage people to take us up on the offer of our 30 minute Free consult, no matter where you live, no matter where you are in your journey. We offer a free 30 minute zoom or phone consult to just walk us through what your situation is and how we can help you. [00:21:02] Annalee Kruger: Um, because you. Again, that's why I started my company in the first place. 92 percent of families come to us in crisis mode where they have to make big decisions quickly on behalf of a parent. And the kids have no idea where to even, how to even make these decisions happen because they've never had these conversations with their parents. [00:21:21] Annalee Kruger: So one way, if, if you're on this webinar and you're like, okay, well, I like the sound of this, but how do I get mom and dad on board? Here are a couple of tips. Um, leverage this podcast or leverage, leverage this. conversation that we're having and say, you know, mom and dad, I heard this podcast and this really cool gal, Anna Lee Kruger, really cool gal was talking about, you know, crisis and what happens when dad has that stroke or mom's disease progresses and she has dementia and she wanders out of the house. [00:21:53] Annalee Kruger: You know, we, we leverage this, leverage this podcast and say, we haven't really had any conversations about the what, when's of aging. And we really need some help with facilitating this family meeting so that we can start the conversations. And Anna Lee and her team offer a 30 minute consult. Let's, let's get, let's get booked on her schedule or on their schedule to talk about this. [00:22:14] Annalee Kruger: You can also see, Speak from the heart and say, Mom and Dad, I love you, but we are in uncharted territory here. I don't know how to be the best caregiver to you, or I live seven states away. I can't just easily drop what I'm doing to come rescue you every time there's a problem. Um, you know, we need to work with a professional to help us understand what our options are so that we can have the best aging and caregiving journey possible. [00:22:41] Annalee Kruger: If you're the mom and dad on this podcast and you're like, well, I've been trying to get my kids to talk about this with me for a long time, because sometimes it's the opposite where moms and dads have tried to have these conversations with their kids, but the kids are like, Oh no, we don't want to talk about it because that might trigger you to have a stroke or something like that. [00:22:59] Annalee Kruger: And that's just silly. I mean, really, that's just silly. So it's not, it's not like going to jinx anything from happening. So. If you're the mom and dad and you're listening to this podcast, speak from the heart and say, you guys, I'm getting older. We need to have some conversations about aging and care. I don't want to be a burden to you as I age. [00:23:20] Annalee Kruger: I want to age in place at home, but we, I don't know how to make that happen. And so let's. Let's get on Annalee or her team's schedule and let's start having these conversations so that we can do this the right way and not be willy nilly about aging when we're the most vulnerable and dependent, um, the most vulnerable and dependent years of our lives. [00:23:40] Annalee Kruger: So no matter where you are on the bench, so to speak, on this, on this podcast, um, know that, know that aging doesn't, you know, Make us younger. We need to stay ahead of this and make sure that we have our documents in order, make sure that we're having family meetings, understanding what care options are, how to pay for care, the cost of care, so that you can make informed decisions now versus when you get that crisis call and then talk about being overwhelmed, then, then you really are overwhelmed. [00:24:09] Annalee Kruger: And that's usually, unfortunately, where people are at when they call us. [00:24:13] Robert Plank: And then you're dealing with multiple problems at once because it's one thing to do what you're saying here and plan ahead and make the steps and then deal with uh, you know, falling down or a stroke or some health crisis then, but then if you don't plan you're dealing with the crisis plus the not having planned and uh, so yeah, it's not, not a good place to be. [00:24:33] Robert Plank: And so it seems like the, the lesson here is to really Get clear about what the current situation is, and where you want to be, and who you need to talk to, and by, and figure out how to make your case, right? And just say like, here's my situation, and here what I think the facts are, and here's where I'm stuck, and here's where I need your help. [00:24:56] Robert Plank: Whether it's the, the, the young ones talking to the old ones, or the Mom and dad talking with the kids and then say and think of a few like logical stories and say, Hey, what if this happens? Or here's what I would like to happen. And this is a great conversation that we need to have. And especially just get learning some of these things. [00:25:16] Robert Plank: I mean, you know, I don't think anyone ever told us that after school was done, as adults, we just have to, we would have to be learning all the time, right? No one saw like Google and Bing and ChatGPT and podcasts and YouTube coming. Turns out now we have to learn maybe even more than we did at school. And I especially like that advice there of, well, say your loved one. [00:25:37] Robert Plank: has a dementia diagnosis, read about it, learn about it, don't avoid it, and other people have been in your place and there, there's like these things you need to learn that might, they might not click with you right away, and kind of strategies and ideas. And I want to make sure before we wrap up our call here, because you mentioned here about how A lot of people like misunderstand dementia or it's not understood. [00:26:01] Robert Plank: So I know we only have a few minutes left, but is there like a, like a cliff notes, like a few bullet points of just what to know about dementia and what people misunderstand about it? [00:26:12] Annalee Kruger: Oh, there's a lot. Um, so real quick, cause what I take our clients through our dementia 101 down and dirty so that they can understand what to expect. [00:26:21] Annalee Kruger: Um, so tips that I would suggest because nearly every family I've ever worked with, um, the red flags were always there with their parent or with their spouse, if they're, it was a spousal person with dementia, but they. People just don't understand dementia. They don't want to think that their loved one has memory issues until it becomes so apparent that they do, that then they can't ignore it anymore. [00:26:55] Annalee Kruger: So there really are red flags, you know, the forgetfulness, the repetitive questions, the layering of the clothes, the getting lost when they're driving, the getting scammed, last week I picked up another new client, the kids, Got more involved lately and found out that their dad had 125, 000 scammed out of his account. [00:27:17] Annalee Kruger: Um, so these are all red flags that are always obvious when you know what to look for and you can't keep ignoring it. Um, so be mindful of those red flags, weight loss, what are they actually eating? Are they safe to drive? How is the house? Is the house even senior safe for your loved one? All of those things are really important. [00:27:39] Annalee Kruger: Another thing to keep in mind is, and I see this all of the time when we're helping families with the Grab and Go Binder, um, parents, parents still have the spouse named as the decision maker and this person has, you know, advanced dementia to the point where they don't even know where they are. They don't know their own kids, you know, because that's what happens as that disease progresses. [00:28:02] Annalee Kruger: But yet they don't have a backup power of attorney listed. So just think if mom and mom is dad's power of attorney and mom's lost capacity Um, if that, if their documents weren't updated, it's very likely that they may have to go through guardianship court, and that's thousands of dollars. So there's just so much, so much that families need to understand about dementia. [00:28:24] Annalee Kruger: Google will only get you so far. Even though there's all these different platforms and associations that, that you can leverage, the reality is people need that white glove approach, coaching and consulting and education so they can make informed decisions. so much. We're people, we're not an algorithm. [00:28:41] Annalee Kruger: And I will say that until my dying day. [00:28:45] Robert Plank: And that's great advice. If you were being sued or going through a divorce, you wouldn't say, Hey, I need to go crack the law books. I need to go to law school. Maybe you would learn enough of what you need to know, but you would also go to an expert who could look at the situation who eats, breathes, and sleeps all of this and says, Hey, well, here's what you're missing out on. [00:29:05] Robert Plank: And if you don't make the steps, then you might have to go through guardianship court later. So let's solve some of these problems. Before they actually become problems. And so what's the next step here where you mentioned Grab and Go Binder, CareRight Incorporated. If someone says, Hey, I really want to jump on that free 30 minute Zoom call. [00:29:23] Robert Plank: How do they take the next step and how do they find out more about you? [00:29:26] Annalee Kruger: Yeah, they can actually go straight to my website, which is carerightinc. com. C A R E R I G H T I N C. com. You can email me directly at Anna Lee. At care, right? inc.com. I'm even going to give you my personal cell phone. Just know that I'm in Florida, I'm in Eastern time zone, so try not to call me at 3:00 AM but my personal cell phone is (239) 770-6322. [00:29:58] Annalee Kruger: Either way, you can, you can reach out to us and get us, get scheduled for that free 30 minute consult. It doesn't cost you anything. It costs us our time, but it doesn't cost you as a family anything to just at least start the relationship and start the conversation. [00:30:15] Robert Plank: Great advice. Start the conversation, get it done, make some progress. [00:30:18] Robert Plank: CareRightInc. com, AnnaLee at CareRightInc. com, and then Anna Lee was even generous enough to give us that personal cell phone number. So, what's the excuse? And you're listening to this podcast, you know this is something that you should deal with and take seriously, and it doesn't all have to get solved overnight, but at least Make some progress. [00:30:39] Robert Plank: At least know what you know and know what you don't know. And as we're wrapping up our conversation here, Annalie, you, you've written so much, you've spoken so much, and it's really helpful for me just to get one final quote or lesson to make us like excited and energized because there are a lot of perks with an aging parent, right? [00:30:57] Robert Plank: They can be happy and they have all this free time and hang out with the grandkids and Break out the photo album and reminisce about the old time. So there are, are upsides and positives to these, these many final years and decades, but what do you have as far as just a, a quote or lesson to, to make us feel good or kind of wrap all this up in a bow, as far as what we've been discussing? [00:31:18] Annalee Kruger: Yeah. And this, I say this literally every day, caregiving. Aging and dementia progression can be a more positive experience when you have an aging plan, when you're working together as a family, as a team, when you understand the disease process that your loved one has, when you understand that you're all doing the best that you can and give each other grace. [00:31:42] Annalee Kruger: When you understand what the care options are, when you understand how the costs of care work, and when you understand the importance of having all of your documents in order so that when that crisis, it's not if, it's when that crisis call happens, you're at least as prepared as you can be as a family and so caregiving and that can be a more positive experience when you actually have an aging plan in place. [00:32:08] Robert Plank: Okay, so it is time to get that plan in place. That way, we can turn a negative into a positive. And the first step to doing that is by going to carerightinc. com. We've been speaking with Anna Lee Kruger about the sometimes exciting world of elder care and dimension and estate planning and all the rest. [00:32:27] Robert Plank: So carerightinc. com is the place to go. Thank you very much, Anna Lee, for stopping up and stopping by, showing up, etc. and having a lot of fun. [00:32:36] Annalee Kruger: Thank you so much for having me on. I appreciate it.