The Reality We Don’t Always Talk About

In the United States, the numbers are hard to ignore. An estimated 2.1 million new cancer cases will be diagnosed in 2026. Someone has a stroke every 40 seconds, and approximately 1 in 9 people over age 65 is living with Alzheimer's disease.

But these aren't just statistics.

They're real people.

They're husbands and wives, parents and grandparents, friends and neighbors. They're families whose lives changed in ways they never expected.

The reality is that none of us like to think about needing care someday.

We don't like to imagine a diagnosis affecting our independence. We don't like to picture our spouse becoming a caregiver or our children stepping into difficult roles. We don't like to ask ourselves the hard questions:

What would happen if I needed help?
Who would provide that care?
How would it affect the people I love?

So often, we tell ourselves:

"That won't happen to me."
"I still have plenty of time."
"I'll figure it out when the time comes."

But life doesn't always wait for us to be ready.

A long-term care event doesn't only happen because someone reaches a certain age. It can happen because of a stroke, cancer, Parkinson's disease, an accident, or another unexpected health event.

Recently, our family was reminded of this reality in a heartbreaking way.

Family friends of ours experienced every spouse's and parent's nightmare when a healthy 43 year-old wife, mother, and daughter suffered a massive stroke. She and her husband are raising two young children, ages 2 and 3. In an instant, life changed. What began as an ordinary day quickly became weeks in the hospital, difficult decisions, uncertainty, and a future that now looks very different than they had planned. She spent 16 weeks in the hospital, and then was airlifted to a rehabilitation center in Texas, where she spent 6 weeks; she is now at UW hospital waiting to go to a facility.

Stories like this are difficult to talk about because they remind us of a hard truth:

None of us are promised tomorrow.

When we hear stories like these, it's easy to think, "They're too young for this." But the reality is that life-changing events don't always happen later in life. Sometimes they happen when families are still raising children, building careers, paying mortgages, and dreaming about the future.

The truth is, every family will likely have a long-term care story at some point. The question isn't if care will impact someone we love, the question is- will we be prepared when it does?

Planning for the future isn't about expecting the worst. It's about protecting what matters most. It's about preserving choices. It's about protecting retirement savings that took decades to build. It's about maintaining dignity and independence for as long as possible.

And perhaps most importantly, it's about helping ensure that the people we love aren't left carrying the emotional and financial burden alone.

Because the reality we don't always like to talk about is this:

Doing nothing is still a plan.

It's simply a plan that often leaves families making difficult decisions during an already overwhelming season of life.

One of the things that recently stood out to me during a long-term care training was this:

Planning earlier creates more options. In fact, many professionals consider your 50s to be the "sweet spot" for planning. Health is often still on your side, costs may be more favorable, and there is typically more flexibility in creating a plan that fits your family's goals. The goal isn't to create fear. The goal is peace of mind. Because planning isn't really about insurance, it's about love. It's about giving your family clarity instead of confusion, peace instead of panic, options instead of limitations. It's about having conversations today so the people you love aren't left making difficult decisions tomorrow.

While we can't predict what the future holds, we can choose to prepare for it, and sometimes, the most loving thing we can do is talk about the realities we would rather avoid.

Because planning today may make all the difference tomorrow.

At DeWaard Insurance, we believe these conversations begin with education—not pressure. If this topic has been on your mind, we'd be honored to help you explore your options and create a plan that reflects what matters most to you and your family.

Tracy DeWaard