” “Hoping against hope” is the tension between

hoping for a cure for their family member and the recognition that this is no longer a possibility. At the same time they had other types of hope. Hope for these participants was also a choice and a mindset. Many women wrote about how they tried their best, despite extremely discouraging circumstances, to look for hope each and every day in the simple things, and in focusing on the present. They chose to look for the positive aspects of each day and also resorted to good memories of the lives they had lived with the care Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical selleck chemicals llc receiver. Choosing to be hopeful was not easy, and part of this mindset also involved acceptance of their circumstance, and striving to find a new ‘normal’ amidst so much uncertainty. The new normal and acceptance is described here by two participants: “Now we have adapted to the new normal. We are still optimistic… I guess we both know the odds are not in our favour but it is hard to do anything else but Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical push into it and hope for the best.” “I know that we have changed our expectations of what is possible for our family and that’s ok. I think that my family has all adjusted to what our new “normal” is and we are trying

to embrace Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical our opportunities right now.” Participants described several influences on their hope: temporal circumstances, social support, spirituality and faith. Circumstances The specific, temporal circumstances of each day could foster or take away from the participants’ hope. Caregivers’ levels of hope and their general mood were heavily dependent on the mood Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical of the care recipient and the care receiver’s state of health. Good

days were more hopeful days. The weather and environment played a role in the caregivers’ perceptions of their hope, as one participant shared, “Hope, Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical well it was hard to find any today except that the flowers are blooming beautifully, and that is something.” Factors that detracted from the participants’ hope were dreary weather, stressful travel and medical appointments, family conflict, and the declining health and well-being of the care receiver. One participant described her stress with driving and how she felt alone: “I feel alone even Ketanserin when people are here! Nobody really understands! [Care receiver] is sick. I need to lift him into the truck… I am scared of getting him into the truck tomorrow to go to [location of appointment].” Social support Social support was found to be a key theme that fosters hope, whether this was support from family members, friends or health professionals such as doctors and nurses. Many caregivers mentioned how celebrating an occasion with family members, seeing their grandchildren, having extra support from their sons and daughters or their siblings, brought hope to their day and to their lives, for example, “Our friends and our health team give me hope for tomorrow… my support if & when [care receiver] needs them or we need them.