EP 63 :: Challenges in Caregiving Families :: Malia Kline

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Malia majored in journalism and embarked on a career as a TV producer and advertising copywriter. After years spent writing short ad copy, she realized she had more to say, so she co-wrote “Sisterly Shove," a memoir about stepping up when moms die and dads are left behind to get ancient on their own.

The book examines what happens when Malia’s mom was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and her dad developed dementia. Malia and her serious-as-a-heart-attack physician sister engaged in hand-to-heart combat in a 13-year battle to do what’s best for the parents who were always there for them. 

““We never thought ahead and that's another important thing to do before your parents become ill, more planning,” Malia says. “We should have looked at the fact that we're all in different parts of the country, and something inevitably is going to happen to our parents.”

“My sister just thought she could do it better herself and my mom thought she could do it better herself. So, you got this example that was set of a mother that was totally self-sacrificial, and then my sister who, I guess, really followed more of our mothers’ model than I did,”  Malia explains.

“We could have avoided this 13 years of sisterly shove by talking to our parents when they were in their 60s about what they would want us to do if they got dementia, which runs in my father's family,” Malia explains.

 You can find out more about Malia and her sister on her website, Twitter, and Facebook.

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