ABOUT THE BOOK Growing Down is a personal and candid story of a daughter and the trials she experienced in caring for her increasingly incapacitated mother for eight-and-a-half years. She watched herself resist the inevitable. She became a reluctant slave. She became increasingly depressed and reclusive. Eventually, she learned how to cope in a healthier manner. She became protective rather than resentful. She emerged from this experience with insight and strength. This book covers her hindsight with a calm assessment and provides practical solutions that all caregivers will find enormously comforting and helpful.Not only does this book tell the real story bravely, it gives the personal caregiver some practical techniques, suggestions, and advice on providing the parent/spouse with the best possible quality of life.This book will also provide insight and guidance for individuals who wish to be of assistance to a close friend or family member who is currently acting in the role of caretaker for a loved one. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Pat Jones is now retired after teaching for 37 years. She has four daughters and eight grandchildren. She is an avid grandmother who participates in many family functions and gatherings. She also enjoys renovating, decorating and landscaping. There is a sign displayed on her office wall: LIVE LIKE YOU MEAN IT!