HELPING YOURSELF HELP OTHERS

The former First Lady (First Lady from Plains, 1984, etc.) offers advice, support, and pats on the back for all those who feed, clothe, bathe, and comfort sick friends and relatives, for those who insert the feeding tubes and empty the bedpans. In her introduction, Carter explains: ``I have written Helping Yourself Help Others to hopefully ease the trauma associated with caregiving and to help you feel not quite so alone.'' In a tone that hovers somewhere between the maternal and the institutional, Carter reassures home caregivers that their complaints about having no time of their own are not expressions of selfishness and that fatigue is not failure. She offers strategies to avoid burnout and depression and advice on how to deal with the problems that caregiving can cause in a marriage. It's not just care for the old and infirm that she addresses. Carter's talking to those who care for developmentally disabled children, people with AIDS, the injured, and anyone else who might require long-term care in the home. Much of the data used in the book comes out of the Rosalynn Carter Institute at Georgia Southwestern College. (Author tour)